I haven't been blogging much. I've got things to say, but none of them very profound or unique. There are so many people talking about important issues that I don't feel a strong need to contribute to these conversations. But...
I am reading some of my old paperback fiction, most of it from the 70s or earlier. These books are often pretty obscure but good nevertheless. Example: Fletcher Pratt's The Well of the Unicorn. It's a heroic fantasy about a young peasant who becomes a viceroy because of his charisma.
Pratt wrote a number of fantasies in the 40s and 50s. They were written out of Pratt's wide knowledge of history and in the case of the Well of the Unicorn early English (16th -18th centuries). Pratt's vocabulary is remarkably accurate even entertaining.
This book was published in 1948 and got favorable reviews in a number of periodicals, including the New York Times. By the time it was reprinted in 1973, it was not so unique. But I found it very interesting. I hadn't read the book in 25 years (at a guess) but phrases and usages seemed familiar. Was it Pratt being memorable, or Pratt inspired by Shakespeare, or Dafoe or any member of the Long Parliament?
Title: A character's respomse to the notion of breaking hearts
https://kbimages1-a.akamaihd.net/75bb448c-4182-4305-b6e9-3542a59a9e44/1200/1200/False/the-well-of-the-unicorn-1.jpg
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