Twenty-eight years after Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone first introduced readers to a world where three-headed dogs guard magical stones and house-elves iron their own ears as punishment, J.K. Rowling's menagerie of magical creatures continues to captivate audiences worldwide. But behind every Niffler's obsession with shiny objects and every Boggart's shape-shifting terror lies a … Continue reading Magical Creatures in Harry Potter: Folklore, Mythology, and Rowling’s Creations
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Where Magic Still Lives: Choosing My Fictional Christmas
Welcome back to Blogmas 2025, my annual series of holiday-themed blog posts that runs every day through Christmas. This year, I've enlisted the help of AI to generate daily writing prompts, which has led to some interesting creative challenges and unexpected topics. Today's prompt for December 19th asks a deeply personal question: If you could … Continue reading Where Magic Still Lives: Choosing My Fictional Christmas
Beyond the Fellowship: Women in The Lord of the Rings
When J.R.R. Tolkien penned The Lord of the Rings in the 1940s and 50s, he probably didn't anticipate that decades later, scholars would be dissecting his female characters with the intensity of Gandalf examining the One Ring. Yet here we are in 2025, still debating whether Galadriel is a Mary figure or a fallen angel, … Continue reading Beyond the Fellowship: Women in The Lord of the Rings
The Medieval Foundations of Narnia
When young Lucy Pevensie first steps through the wardrobe into the snowy woods of Narnia, she enters more than just a magical land—she walks into a universe constructed according to the intricate cosmological beliefs of medieval Europe. C.S. Lewis, one of the 20th century's foremost scholars of medieval literature, didn't simply sprinkle his Chronicles of … Continue reading The Medieval Foundations of Narnia
More Than Yellow Brick Roads
When L. Frank Baum published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1900, readers saw a delightful children's fantasy about a Kansas farm girl who finds herself in a magical land. What they didn't realize was that Baum had created one of the most sophisticated commentaries on American society ever disguised as a fairy tale. Through … Continue reading More Than Yellow Brick Roads
Exploring Family Dynamics in the World of Demigods
In the world of young adult literature, few authors have managed to weave together ancient mythology and contemporary family struggles as masterfully as Rick Riordan. Through his Camp Half-Blood Chronicles—spanning Percy Jackson & the Olympians, The Heroes of Olympus, and The Trials of Apollo—Riordan has created a universe where teenage demigods navigate not just monsters … Continue reading Exploring Family Dynamics in the World of Demigods
The Last Word by Taylor Adams: A Review
Rating: 4/5 Stars There's nothing quite like discovering a book that turns your planned "early bedtime" into an involuntary all-nighter. The Last Word by Taylor Adams is one of those literary criminals—the kind that hijacks your evening plans and leaves you bleary-eyed but satisfied at 1 AM, wondering where the last four and a half … Continue reading The Last Word by Taylor Adams: A Review
Ancient Myths Commenting on Current Environmental Crises
In the pantheon of young adult literature, few authors have wielded ancient mythology as effectively as Rick Riordan to address contemporary anxieties. While his Camp Half-Blood Chronicles, Magnus Chase series, and Kane Chronicles are celebrated for their inclusive representation and mythological accuracy, they also function as sophisticated environmental allegories that translate climate science into the … Continue reading Ancient Myths Commenting on Current Environmental Crises
The Tik-Tok Man: An Early Example of Artificial Intelligence in Literature
In an age when artificial intelligence dominates technological discourse, it's illuminating to look back at early literary representations of thinking machines. Long before the term "robot" entered our lexicon and decades before Isaac Asimov formulated his famous Three Laws of Robotics, L. Frank Baum introduced readers to a remarkable mechanical being in his Oz series … Continue reading The Tik-Tok Man: An Early Example of Artificial Intelligence in Literature
The Influence of Norse and Greek Mythology in Narnia
C.S. Lewis's beloved Chronicles of Narnia series represents one of the most enduring works of children's fantasy literature, still captivating readers more than seventy years after the publication of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. While the Christian allegory in Lewis's work has been widely discussed and analyzed, equally fascinating is his rich integration … Continue reading The Influence of Norse and Greek Mythology in Narnia
The Confusing Middle 