English poet and novelist, Philip Larkin, referring to the work of a contemporary poet, "...But I do admire the way it's a long time before you notice he doesn't rhyme hardly at all.  That is an admirable feature, & an accomplishment I envy, though personally I'd as soon venture forth without rhyme as without boots in a meadow of snakes."

~ Letter to Norman Iles, April 16, 1944.  Selected Letters of Philip Larkin, edited by A. Thwaite, Faber and Faber Limited, 1992. Philip Larkin (1922 - 1985)

Pastural, tranquil Haldimand countryside.  Earthy.  Autumnal.  Agricultural.  Rural.  Searching for words.

(For larger image, pls. click on photo. Taken Nov. 2. lbw.)

"When in 1841 William Henry Fox discovered how a photographic image could be attached permanently to paper, it seemed to many that the art of painting had been dealt a body blow from which it would never recover.  In fact, some painters were so convinced that their careers as artists were in danger that they began trying to paint with a photographic realism that they had never tried before..."

~ RURAL LIFE, Adrian Vincent, Bloomsbury Books, 1987.

" The Flanders Campaign of 1917 was one of the most insane and brutal blood-baths in the history of war.
"For eight months the attacks ground away.  When winter and lack of 'cannon fodder' brought them to a halt, 500,000 men had been killed, wounded, gassed or driven insane in Flanders Fields.  For this fearful price, Haig had gained just four and a half miles!"

~ In FLANDERS FIELDS The 1917 Campaign, Leon Wolff, Ballantine Books, 1958/ The Viking Press Inc.

Scotiabank Giller Prize Shortlist ~ 2013

Dennis Bock - Going Home Again
Lynn Coady - Hellgoing
Craig Davidson - Cataract City
Lisa Moore - Caught
Dan Vyleta - The Crooked Maid

"The first word in fiction for twenty years."

The winner will be announced on CBC live Tuesday, November 5, 9:00 a.m.

Have a safe & happy Hallowe'en.

Pirates infinitely prefer gold and jewels to bales of cloth, however gaudy.

"There is often confusion between the terms 'pirate,' 'buccaneer,' and 'privateer.'  Pirates and buccaneers are criminals, while privateers operate within the bounds of the law.  Pirates and buccaneers do on occasion sail as privateers.  A privateer is a man who sails with a commission known as a letter of marque.  These letters are issued by governments and permit the privateer to take and make prize of enemy ships."  Pirateology, Candlewick Press 2006.


"Woe-betide," the pirate a.k.a Dummy Board, will not be at The Neat L'l Bookshop today.  Stormy seas!
"A short life and a merry one, that's my motto!"  ~ Black Bart Roberts, Condemned for piracy , 1711.
(Click on photo for larger image. lbw)