50 great books you’ll never read in school
It’s that time of the year when reading for pleasure will give way to burning through that syllabus, Emily Temple writes at Flavorwire. She selects some great books you’ll (probably) never read in high school, but should still read.
For example:
Infinite Jest, David Foster Wallace: Well, for one thing, it’s way too long to assign. And it’s complicated. And full of drugs. And probably impossible to teach. It’s best to read this book by taking three months off from everything else, which is just not possible in a traditional school. That said, it’s worth every minute it takes you to get through it.
Ooga-Booga, Frederick Seidel: Deliciously dirty and gleefully gauche poems from the “Laureate of the Louche.” It’s really a shame this isn’t taught in more high schools — I can’t think of anything more likely to get teenage boys into poetry.
Read the article
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Speaking of school…
25 Of The Most Dangerous And Unusual Journeys To School
To the delight or dismay of millions, the school season is beginning in many countries. But in some parts of the world, school can be a hard-won luxury. Many children have to take the most incredible and unimaginable routes in order to receive the education that some of us may take for granted. This list compiled by Julija K at Bored Panda shows some of the most astonishing, from a 5-hour journey into the mountains on a 1ft wide path, to crossing a broken suspension bridge, to ….
Kids flying 800m on a steel cable 400m above The Rio Negro River, Colombia
Image credits: Christoph Otto
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Speaking of dangerous…
Five things to do before you’re ready to be a writer
Before you can write about life, at least adequately, you have to have lived it. And I don’t mean vicariously on Facebook. What you must do:
1) DO SOMETHING DANGEROUS. Know what an adrenaline surge REALLY feels like. You cannot possibly write about one without that visceral knowledge. Three of my young, female friends and I once climbed down from Table Mountain in Cape Town, on foot, in the dark, sliding down scree slopes and falling into the switchback roads. Foolish? Dangerous? Yes, but exhilarating. (We were very young and, of course, invincible.)
2)….
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Knock down a wall, find a city
A man renovating his home discovered a tunnel… to a massive underground city
In 1963, a man in the Nevşehir Province of Turkey knocked down a wall of his home. Behind it, he found a mysterious room that led to an intricate tunnel system with additional cave-like rooms. What he had discovered was the ancient Derinkuyu underground city in Turkey.
The underground city is neither the largest nor oldest, but its 18 stories make it the deepest. The city was most likely used as a giant bunker to protect its inhabitants from either war or natural disaster.
Read the article
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50-year missing Willy Wonka chapter discovered
In the Daily Mail, Jim Norton reveals the grisly end of two greedy boys who disappear in fudge cutting room in Roald Dahl’s most famous book was published.
In the missing section from the 1961 draft, mysterious confectioner Willy Wonka took children who won a tour of his factory to the Vanilla Fudge Room – only for the passage to be cut from the published version.
Read the article
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THIS ‘n THAT
At Slashdot, destinyland writes that even though the newest book from the geeky cartoonist behind XKCD hasn’t been released yet, it’s already become one of Amazon’s best-selling books. Thanks to a hefty pre-order discount, one blogger notes that it’s appeared on Amazon’s list of hardcover best-sellers since the book was first announced in March, and this weekend it remains in the top 10. Randall Munroe recently announced personal appearances beginning this week throughout the U.S. two weeks ago he was also awarded the Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story.
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Books & Beer
McIntyre’s Books in Pittsboro, N.C., is hosting a Books & Beer event series to celebrate North Carolina authors and provide an informal space for writers and book lovers to enjoy a good read over local craft beer at Fearrington Village’s Roost beer garden. The “informal and intimate literary event” series launches September 11 and will run for six weeks.
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Oldest library Could close
For more than two centuries, the Darby Free Library has remained both a vital part of its community as well as a historical landmark. Built in 1743 in Darby, Pa. by Quakers, it remains the oldest public library in the nation. But a financial crisis has left it in danger of shutting down by the end of the year.
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Quote of the Day
“We’ve all heard that a million monkeys at a million keyboards could eventually produce the complete works of Shakespeare; now, thanks to the Internet, we know that is not true.” — Robert Wilensky
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Alma Alexander
My books
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