Eric Newby’s cable to his friend, Hugh Carless, marked Newby’s exit from a career in high fashion. And the beginning of A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush. Renowned travel author William Dalrymple described A Short Walk… as “the book that virtually invented modern travel writing.” In 1956, Newby and Carless attempted to summit Mir Samir, a twenty thousand foot peak in the Hindu Kush range in Nuristan, the land of the Tajiks in the northeast corner of Afghanistan. Neither had climbing experience, other […]

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If I don’t keep up with what’s going on musically, I feel irremediably old. So I maintain a sampling of Miley Cyrus, Drake, Rihanna and the lesser-known wonders my musician brother keeps me privy to in my playlist. From experience, I can tell you that it’s true, babies love Beyonce. One new musician that “everyone” is talking about is 17-year-old New Zealander Lorde. She’s on the current cover of the Rolling Stones and won two Grammies this past weekend for […]

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Modernist Charles Olson (1910-1970) viewed poetry as a means of projecting energy. As a poet, essayist, and teacher, he had a  far-reaching influence. Rejecting the confines of academic poetry, Olson believed that sound was the way to reach the reader: the HEAD, by way of the EAR, to the SYLLABLE the HEART, by way of the BREATH, to the LINE Here’s a sample of his work, which I will allow to “speak” for itself: THE GRANDFATHER-FATHER POEM rolled in the […]

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My husband has to travel for work fairly often, and I am lucky enough that I usually get to tag along. When I accompany him on his trips, I know I will end up being a co-pilot of sorts, which I actually enjoy. This means I won’t be lounging in a coffee shop with a book all day, so I have to plan my reading accordingly. On these types of trips, I try to travel with two books: a novel […]

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