Reading University Library and Pocket University

Reading University Library and Pocket University

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April 2024

Story fit for a frog: 21 April 2024
Well, Mark Twain's story is partly about a frog. And "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" is quite a bit shorter than I always remembered…
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Brendan Howard
Borneo, ho! The Pocket University 20-21 April 2024
A.R. Wallace explores the Malay Archipelago, writing on village visits, beautiful vistas, Durian fruit, bamboo architecture and bugs.
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Brendan Howard
Day 297: Doctor said I had to quit, so ...
Charles Lamb's physician said, no more smoking. So ... here we are. What is this excerpt? Well, when they grab me, I'll share from Half-Hours With the…
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Brendan Howard

January 2024

September 2023

Mendelssohn on music: The Pocket University 11 September 2023
A composer waxes philosophic on popularity, childhood, and what makes music music.
How does love live on? The Pocket University 12 September 2023
Sept. 11 brought Mendelssohn's thoughts on music. Today, Percy Bysshe Shelley shares metaphors for love.
A dream finally un-deferred: 9 September 2023
Many writers make their living in newspapers, magazines, websites, Substacks and social media platforms. And they often serve editors and their…
Why fear confusion? The Pocket University 9 September 2023
You're watching a movie. You don't understand what you're seeing. You're reading a novel. You're lost. You've reading a poem. You don't get the…
Is someone plagiarizing? The Pocket University 7 September 2023
Hmmm. The entries for September 7 coincidentally cross over from two popular daily readers from the early 20th century. What gives, editors?
We're all in a rush: 7 September 2023
A sampling of poems, and I'm in a rush. But it works, because the first poem is about a knight in a rush!
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