Jan 21, 2019 | Current Ned Note, Past Notes, Poetry
The poet Langston Hughes was a great inspiration to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Examples of their connection are expansive. In 1956, King recited Hughes’ poem “Mother to Son” from the pulpit to honor his wife Coretta, who was celebrating her first Mother’s Day. That...
Jan 17, 2019 | Current Ned Note, Past Notes, Poetry
Poet Mary Oliver died today, at the age of 83. Here is one of her poems in memory of her life. My Work is Loving the World –by Mary Oliver (Aug 15, 2016) My work is loving the world. Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird – equal seekers...
Jan 9, 2019 | Current Ned Note, On Books, Past Notes
The wonderful fantasy writer V.S. Schwab recently asked for recommendations on books from her readers. I was surprised to see a new book I’d never heard of mentioned by many — If We Were Villains, by M.L. Rio. I promptly purchased the book and it’s...
Nov 18, 2018 | Current Ned Note, Past Notes, Reviews
A new commemorative limited hardcover edition of the bestselling novel The Eagle Tree by Ned Hayes has just been published. The new edition has a spectacular cover by Pacific Northwest author and artist Hal Schrieve, which was selected for the National Book Award Long...
Nov 1, 2018 | Current Ned Note, On Books, On Writing
Tana French is one of the most talented writers I’ve ever read in the mystery and detective genre. In this most recent book, she really surpasses the genre entirely, and breaks new ground with a lyrical, heartbreaking and soul-bending literary novel that focuses...
Oct 19, 2018 | Current Ned Note, Horror
I found a thread on Reddit that asked this question: “What is the best horror story you can come up with in two sentences?” I posted the best ones I found, as well as one more scary tale I created on my own. See if you can figure out which one is mine! With Halloween...
