Newsletter time!
Today’s piece has a wee essay for all, on the struggle for many writers to make sense of violence in their times.
That’s then followed by a fuller essay for my paid subscribers, in which we deep-dive into lessons to be gleaned from Thucydides, the Peloponnesian War, and Athenian struggles for a democracy we still haven’t perfected here and now.
#History #Democracy #BetterWorldsTheory
https://open.substack.com/pub/mlclark/p/lessons-from-ancient-fools
Before I dive into Thucydides, I hope you don't mind if I ask about those books in your childhood library... Were they mostly on shelves in your home, or were you also seeking them out at the library? I'm curious because I find the subject of childhood reading habits very interesting.
Some were, some weren't! But the library was a refuge I used to go to by myself from age nine on, and then in middle school and high school I always left home ASAP in the morning, to work in the halls until the library or a classroom opened.
We find some fun coping mechanisms when trying to get out of our head-spaces in homes with so much stress!
Have fun with The Peloponnesian War! Many editions to choose from these days, if you want something more lyrical or footnote-heavy!
Oh, I'm diving into *your* writing about Thucydides, lol! In the meantime, I got stuck on the bit about your childhood reading. It brought up a bunch of things. Yes, libraries are sublime refuges and shelters, even these days. My reading material was very different from yours, of course, but we probably had a very similar experience of libraries.
I'm really so thankful about the nonjudgmental policy for kids in the library back in the day. It was a couple blocks from home and my father was country-raised so he didn't mind me going off on my own very young (sometimes I was just sent with a quarter to call from the library to confirm that I was there). And since the librarians weren't judgmental, that meant peace & quiet in an era with only children's books and adult reads... making my transition from one to the other super easy.
Oh, I had those Reader's Digest-style books, too! I loved them. They were completely indifferent to genre breakdowns: medical thrillers with a touch of near-future SF, romances that opened into deep criminal dramas, mundane happenstance that opened into wild life-or-death adventures. I never knew what I was going to get into next, but I always had such a blast. Such a great era for publishing good stories, first and foremost! :)
Mine were actually divided by genre. They were mostly fiction, but not exclusively. The first volume was nursery rhymes and poems for children (Wynken, Blynken, and Nod was my favourite); and the very last was autobiography: Helen Keller, Anne Frank, Florence Nightingale... I believe there were eight in total. I have no idea who I'd be without them. They were an incredibly powerful influence. So many doors to open each time I was taken to the library. Sigh!
@MLClark
(Huh, I looked them up and those books actually weren't after my time, yet somehow I missed them. And I have kids! And there are cats!!! 🤷 )
My father took me to the library on weekends and left me alone with the books for hours. My parents never read to me, but I had a series of Reader's Digest-style books at home that gave me a taste for what was out there, and that's how I found my way. The librarian at my school slipped me some great stuff. Teacher-librarians are *heroes*.