A Return to Homer: On with The Odyssey
I took a brief step away from my 2026 journey along the “Spine of Western Literature,” and now I return…
Why the Story Still Matters — And Why You Need to Be in the Room
Six posts. Two series. One sustained conversation about grief, love, doubt, and the stories that refuse to leave us alone.…
What Hadestown Taught Me About Grief, Doubt, and Looking Back
If you followed my three-part series on Hamnet, you know that grief has been on my mind. Maggie O’Farrell’s novel…
Caffè Vittoria, Kafka, and the Germans at the Next Table
I didn’t expect John Green to follow me into Caffè Vittoria yesterday, but in his own way, he did. I’m…
Hadestown: Don’t Let the Myth Fool You
Last week I made a return trip to New York City with one mission locked in: I was going to…
Hamnet, Courage, and the Cost of Love
We last considered the idea that in the midst of grief one may find grace. We leaned into how anticipatory…
Hamnet, Loss, and the First Goodbye
As I continue exploring grief in O’Farrell’s Hamnet, I turn to a scene that shows us how grief often arrives…
Hamnet, Grief, and the Story We All Live
In February 2024 I ducked into Sundog Books, a local shop in the Seaside, Florida amphitheater. Each year we visit…
Closing the Cover Where Grief and Glory Meet
I have reached the end of Book 24 of The Iliad, and I leave Troy not so much conquered as…
When the Light Grows Dim: Hector’s Dark Cloud and Our Own
In Book 17 of The Iliad, the light goes dim on the battlefield. Patroclus, dear friend of Achilles, has fallen,…