“Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.”
—Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita
rogue rhetoric
random musings by michael d. durkota
Great opening lines: Neil Gaiman
“Shadow had done three years in prison. He was big enough, and looked don’t-fuck-with-me enough that his biggest problem was killing time. So he kept himself in shape, and taught himself coin tricks, and thought a lot about how much he loved his wife.”
—Neil Gaiman, American Gods
My top 10 favorite novels
I occasionally change the order based on my mood, but it’s been awhile since anything as broken into the top 10.
- Michael Ondaatje: In the Skin of a Lion
- Steve Erickson: Amnesiascope
- Ernest Hemingway: The Old Man and the Sea
- Michael Ondaatje: Anil’s Ghost
- James Joyce: A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
- Michael Herr: Dispatches
- Vladimir Nabokov: Lolita
- Neil Gaiman: Neverwhere
- Carole Maso: The American Woman in the Chinese Hat
- David Guterson: Snow Falling on Cedars
Truth of ‘Shakespeare’s skull’ to remain a mystery
Like to size up the cranium that once held the brain behind Macbeth, Hamlet, and roughly 1,500 words we still use today?
Source: Truth of ‘Shakespeare’s skull’ to remain a mystery | Fox News
I can’t really
say that I blame them for denying the DNA test. The skull has no inherent power other than to those who believe it is his. Either you believe it or you don’t. When it comes to Shakespeare legend, I personally prefer the famed Juliet statue in Verona. It’s a shame that it is apparently gone now too. There is something comforting about rubbing the breast of Juliet for luck.