A taciturn gumshoe in Robert B. Parker’s detective novel Bye Bye Baby (Bookshop|Amazon) offers this good advice: “Never say anything that doesn’t improve the silence.” This is part of a complete episode.
Robert in Oak Park, Illinois, seeks a Portuguese phrase he once heard that a man might say when the object of his affection is out of their league or otherwise forever unattainable. This wistful phrase is Ela é muita areia pro meu caminhãozinho or...
Justin in Dallas, Texas, is curious about the origin of the name William, and why the Spanish version is Guillermo. Its popularity goes back to the days of William the Conqueror. Modern languages have several versions of this name, such as German...
Following up on our discussion about the many meanings of the word regret, we share David Ray’s poem “Thanks, Robert Frost,” which addresses hope for the past as well as hope for the future. This poem was read with permission of...
Mudlark: In Search of London’s Past Along the River Thames (Bookshop| Amazon) relates the amazing tale, told many places, of Thomas James Cobden-Sanderson, a bookbinder who developed the famous Doves Type. To prevent the moveable type from...
In 1971, when a new public library opened in Troy, Michigan, famous authors and artists were invited to write letters to the city’s youngest readers, extolling the many benefits of libraries. One of the loveliest was from E.B. White, author of...