Over a decade ago, you might have stumbled across the following headline in the New Zealand Herald: "Transit and the Taniwha" by James Corbett. It discusses--with that characteristic Kiwi sense of dry humour--how a dragon came to be at the center of a Māori protest over the construction of a highway. The BBC said, "Construction …
Continue reading Taniwha Highway: the Phenomenon of Modern Day Dragons
Beware! Leper unclean! shout the crowds. Don't touch me! responds Thomas Covenant, the antihero of Stephen R. Donaldson's memorable epic fantasy trilogy. In this exchange, which Convenant repeats in his mind like a mantra for his sanity, Donaldson summarizes the conflict of his protagonist. Despite being unlikeable, Covenant tends to garner your empathy. He's a …
Continue reading Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever: Lord Foul’s Bane by Stephen R. Donaldson
J.R.R Tolkien, born this day in 1892, would be 122 if he were alive today, one of the oldest people in the world. Alas, his physical body perished 2 September 1973, even though his textual body lives on, with much thanks to the continued labours of Christopher Tolkien, his son and editor. I would love …
Continue reading Are Tolkien’s Ideas Still Alive in Our Postmodern Twenty-First Century?
Matthew Rettino 