Dancing for My Mother

by Duff Brenna

Originally published on August 1, 2010

In the fall, the mom was told a truth she couldn’t ignore. One day, talking about Carol Marie’s future and men and getting married, Pappas came into the conversation. The mom said again that she shouldn’t have married him. Again, she brought up the fact that it was barely six months after they were married [...]

Intimate Lives of the Founding Fathers, Thomas Fleming, A Review

by Duff Brenna

Originally published on February 10, 2010

Fleming tells us that contrary to what we might think, Washington’s presidency was no “love feast.” …There were many Anti-Federalists who did not like Washington, fearing he was setting himself up to be a king. Rabble-rousers and ideological fanatics abounded then as they do now, making as much trouble for Washington as possible. He and Martha kept quiet and kept their dignity amid the myriad troubles that fate inflicted upon them.

Down to a Sunless Sea by Mathias B. Freese

reviewed by Duff Brenna

Originally published on April 7, 2008

It’s a crazy but credible universe Freese has created. Every story glistens with bitter truths, edgy truths about twisted human relationships, lack of love, the inexplicable lives we live. Each says maybe you haven’t experienced life this way, but many others have–it is their truth and one day you might know what it means to live a shadow figure yourself.

Goodbye Norman Mailer: A Brief Retrospective

by Duff Brenna

Originally published on November 26, 2007

“Mailer took part in no major battles in the army, but out of his experience came his first bestseller, The Naked and the Dead (1948), considered to be one of the best and most important novels written about World War Two. The novel depicts his disdain and hatred for authority, its abuses of power, its lack of humanity.”

The Go to Girl

by Duff Brenna

Originally published on July 18, 2007

“Ray was dangerous. He was volatile and he had killed men in combat (or so the rumors said) and he was admired on campus because of the novels he had written about war and because he had an international reputation and he always got respectful reviews… How did such a one ever get on the faculty at all? And tenured too! Ridiculous.”