Upon first reading Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, the great 19th-century biologist Thomas Henry Huxley—later to be known as “Darwin’s Bulldog”—is reported to have told friends, “How extremely stupid not to have thought of that!” Huxley’s quote captures the essence of why I love to read the Origin. […]
Guest Blog
GUEST BLOG – Ghazals – erotic & spiritual, by Lisa Pasold
The ghazal is my favourite poetic form—even though it’s less familiar than the sonnet or the haiku. A sonnet gives us a glimpse of the formalism and beauty of 12th century Italian literature, where that form was invented. Similarly, we study a haiku and discover an enduring Japanese spirit. English-language […]
GUEST BLOG – Julia Zarankin on Reading Proust
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the publication of Swann’s Way, by Marcel Proust. I doubt there’s a better way to celebrate this monumental literary festivity than by engaging in an in-depth discussion of the novel at Classical Pursuits in Toronto. If you happen to be in New York […]
GUEST BLOG – Sean Forester on solitude and connection in the paintings at the Chicago Art Institute
The man on the left sits solitary. The bartender seems to be speaking, but no one responds (the woman looks at what she is holding in her hand, and the man seems to be lost in his own thoughts). Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks creates a powerful atmosphere, a feeling of melancholy. […]
GUEST BLOG – Ear of the Beholder with Rick Phillips
After a Viennese music critic died, some of his friends made the rounds of local musicians to raise money for the funeral. “How much is my share?” asked one musician. “Thirty shillings,” was the reply. “Here are sixty shillings,” said the musician. “Bury two music critics.” Criticism has always had […]
GUEST BLOG – Lisa Pasold on why September is best for visiting Paris’s glittering Belle Epoque
Paris is beautiful at any time of year, but autumn is my favourite season for conjuring the glittering world of the Belle Epoque. In September, the early fall light turns the city’s streets into scenes worthy of Degas and Monet. The Belle Epoque encompasses wonderfully diverse creative energies: composer Debussy, […]
GUEST BLOG – Gary Schoepfel welcomes you to his home field, Chicago.
For more than a decade, I have been globe trotting with Classical Pursuits. I’ve led book discussions on riverboats in Russia, Vietnam, and Cambodia; in cafes and restaurants in Paris, Greece, Quebec, and Santa Fe; in pastures, pubs, and B&Bs in England, Italy, Toronto, Ireland, and Key West. And although […]
GUEST BLOG – Join Elspeth Cameron in wild Dorset for superstition and passion
Come and see the beautiful landscapes that inspired Thomas Hardy. He did not want change to intrude on his beloved Dorset, and to a great extent, it hasn’t. People in Dorset have told me that even most English people have not experienced this wild and quaint place, because they pass through […]
GUEST BLOG – Craig Walley invites you to explore ga·lore /gəˈlôr/ Adjective – in abundance
While I cannot invite you to Newfoundland, I can invite you to do the next best thing — journey imaginatively with me and fellow travellers for a week (July 14-19, 2013) to Michael Crummey’s fictitious rugged outport of Paradise Deep, the setting for his epic novel Galore. In 2011, my […]
GUEST BLOG – David Schmitt on the merits of mysteries
I love good books! I’m reading Anna Karenina right now, just for fun, but I recently finished two of Lee Child’s “Jack Reacher” novels and The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith. I’ll read Ripley again, as will I AK, but once is enough for a Jack Reacher novel. After AK, I’ll […]