tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79452875715075139842024-03-04T22:13:12.975-08:00Monroe St. PressBookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-80633042655640784832019-09-22T13:00:00.000-07:002019-09-22T13:00:28.897-07:00Eric Brighteyes: Granddaddy of Sword and Sorcery<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. Press' latest paperback release, <a href="http://www.lulu.com/shop/h-rider-haggard/eric-brighteyes/paperback/product-24254755.html" target="_blank"><i>Eric Brighteyes</i> by H. Rider Haggard,</a> is among Haggard's less famous but still influential adventure stories. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">While Haggard is best known for his stories set in contemporary or ancient Africa (<i>King Solomon's Mines, Allan Quatermain, She</i>), <i>Eric Brighteyes</i>, published in 1890, was set in medieval Iceland and written in a style resembling that of the Viking/Norse sagas. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first modern English translations of the original sagas had appeared in print in the 1860s. Icelandic scholar Eirikur Magnusson of Cambridge University taught the Old Norse language to William Morris and collaborated with him on translating several classic sagas, including <i>The Story of Grettir the Strong </i>(1869)<i> and Volsungasaga </i>(1870). Magnusson and Morris also worked on a six-volume collection of translated sagas published between 1891 and 1905. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Haggard traveled to Iceland in 1888 and wrote <i>Eric Brighteyes</i> shortly after his return. He also composed an in-depth introduction outlining the history and purpose of the sagas, and how they blended history and fiction: </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">From generation to generation skalds (storytellers) wandered through the winter snows, much as Homer may have wandered in his day across the Grecian vales and mountains, to find a welcome at every stead, because of the old-time story they had to tell. Here, night after night, they would sit in the ingle and while away the weariness of the dayless dark with histories of the times when men carried their lives in their hands.... To alter the tale was one of the greatest of crimes: the skald must repeat it as it came to him; but by degrees undoubtedly the sagas did suffer alteration. The facts remained the same indeed, but around them gathered a mist of miraculous occurrences and legends.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">He dedicated the book to Empress Frederick of Germany (Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa), eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and widow of Emperor (Kaiser) Frederick III. Frederick had just been diagnosed with throat cancer when his father, Wilhelm I, died in March 1888, and he was ill for most of his 99-day reign. The Empress had told Haggard that her husband "found pleasure in the reading of my stories". Knowing that his writings had brought "an hour's forgetfulness of sorrow and pain" to the dying Emperor was, Haggard wrote, a knowledge "far dearer than any praise". </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Those who read and were influenced by <i>Eric Brighteye</i>s included J.R.R. Tolkien, who cited it as an inspiration for <i>The Lord of the Rings,</i> and Robert E. Howard, creator of Conan the Barbarian. It contains numerous plot and character elements that became common in 20th- and 21st-century sword and sorcery, including inter-family and inter-tribal warfare and supernatural influences wielded by a priest, sorceress or similar figure. It even includes a "red wedding" similar to that portrayed in George R.R. Martin's <i>Song of Ice and Fire</i> series, which formed the basis for the TV series <i>Game of Thrones</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Monroe St. Press edition of <i>Eric Brighteyes</i> also includes numerous vintage illustrations drawn by Lancelot Speed. </span></div>
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Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-72197905210217830542019-09-08T14:58:00.003-07:002019-09-08T14:58:43.561-07:00Announcing Team Monroe St. <br />
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Join Team Monroe St. in our quest to hasten the day when diseases such as Huntington's, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and numerous cancers are cured. With your contribution to our efforts, our loved ones could live longer and healthier lives. </div>
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All it requires is the unused power of your computer, smartphone or other internet connected device. </div>
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Folding@Home (FAH) is a distributed computing project that harnesses the available resources of personal computers owned by volunteers all over the world to tackle one of the greatest challenges in modern medicine and biology.</div>
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</span><b>What is "Folding" and Why Is It So Important?</b></div>
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"Folding" is the process by which organic proteins — the substances that make up our bodies' cells and vital organs — are formed into molecular chains that make them functional. Understanding how these proteins take shape, and modeling the myriad shapes these proteins can take, could shed light on how diseases such as cancer develop and how they could be cured or prevented. </div>
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However, analyzing the billions of possible folding combinations is a task beyond the capability of any single computer to handle in a reasonable amount of time. In 2000, Stanford University researcher Vijay Pande, PhD, launched a distributed computer network to handle the complex mathematical calculations required for protein folding research. Thus, Folding@Home was born. </div>
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</span><b>Solving Problems Faster</b></div>
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Current FAH director Greg Bowman, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biophysics at Washington University in St. Louis, says the project enables otherwise insurmountable research tasks to be completed far more efficiently.</div>
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"To model just one millisecond of folding, even for an average-size protein, on a top of the line MacBook Pro would take something like 500 years," Bowman said in <a href="https://sitebuilder.homestead.com/~site/builder/stage.jsp?pageId=x41626f75742d55732e787066#"><span class="s2">an interview</span></a>. "But with Folding@Home, we can split these problems into many independent chunks. We can send them to 1,000 people at the same time. Running those calculations in parallel, we can take problems that would have taken 500 years and instead solve them in six months." </div>
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</span><b>Putting Your Computer To Work</b></div>
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FAH currently has more than 110,000 volunteers using their home/personal computers and other devices to perform these intense calculations. Its goal is to recruit 1 million folders. </div>
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Participants can choose the types of research they would like to contribute to — from cancer or Alzheimer's to antibiotic resistance. Many have signed up in honor of someone who is living with or has succumbed to one of the diseases being researched. Participants can also form or join teams whose statistics are tracked as a whole. </div>
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FAH links your home computer or mobile device to software that works with Windows, Mac, Linux or Android operating systems. The calculations use only the portion of your computer's power that is available at any given time — more when your device is idle, less when it is being used. </div>
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You can continue to use your device for other tasks while the folding calculations are performed in the background. Your device can perform the calculations at night or while you are away at work or school, all the while helping medical and biological researchers come closer to their goals. You can also devote to this effort a spare or slightly outdated device that you are not currently using regularly. </div>
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Think of it as YOUR chance to play a part, however small, in solving one of the greatest scientific challenges of our time... comparable to putting humans on the Moon or Mars! </div>
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For more information on FAH, or to sign up, visit https://foldingathome.org/. </div>
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If you would like to join Team Monroe St., our team number is 235367. You can also submit further questions or suggestions to our contact link above or to our Facebook page. </div>
Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-52317908010492682682019-08-11T10:52:00.001-07:002019-08-11T10:52:17.760-07:00A hidden gem of detective literature<span style="font-size: large;">The newest title in the Monroe St. Press collection is <i>The Moonstone</i> by Wilkie Collins, published in 1868 and regarded to this day as a trend-setting work of detective fiction. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In 1848, relatives and friends of heiress Rachel Verinder gather at the family estate to celebrate her 18th birthday. On that day, Rachel inherits ownership of the Moonstone, an exotic (and possibly cursed) diamond bequeathed to her by her deceased uncle. </span><span style="font-size: large;">When the Moonstone vanishes from her room that night, an exhaustive investigation begins into who took the gem, and where it might be found. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Although it was not the first English language detective story — Edgar Allan Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" and similar short stories predated it by more than 20 years — it is reckoned by some literary scholars/critics to be the first full-length English-language detective novel to attain popular success. Figures such as T.S. Eliot, Dorothy Sayers and G.K. Chesterton considered it among the greatest British mystery stories of all time; in 2014 the British newspaper <i>The Guardian</i> ranked it No. 19 on its list of 100 Best Novels. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Moonstone</i> established a number of conventions that remain staples of detective fiction to this day: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">— its setting on an upper class English country estate</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">— the involvement of a professional investigator whose skill contrasts with the ineptitude of the local police</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">— introduction of "red herrings" and false suspects to keep the reader guessing </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">— an elaborate reconstruction of the crime</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">— a final, shocking plot twist </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Author Wilkie Collins (1824-1889) was a novelist, playwright and essayist who worked closely with Charles Dickens and served as an editor of Dickens' periodical <i>All the Year Round</i>. His other well-known works include <i>The Woman in White</i> (1859) and <i>No Name</i> (1862). Many of his writings touched upon issues considered sensational by Victorian standards, such as divorce, illegitimacy and the disadvantageous position of women in legal matters. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Monroe St. Press edition of <i>The Moonstone</i> is available <a href="http://www.lulu.com/shop/http://www.lulu.com/shop/wilkie-collins/the-moonstone/paperback/product-24189871.html" target="_blank">at this link</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-40200773725839301202019-07-24T05:40:00.002-07:002019-07-26T18:15:06.671-07:00Monroe St. artists on Bandcamp <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOFXX0xQQ7NdKBE1Szyz1klpZscanJLLRa88N0dgtG9FB5ZWteb4PMQ5Cx5VTYAyJtcKmx5r3ID92tc_35JMzwc59UaTkRFUYr-m8y7aquiweBLn5j7UofJNwAqNHQlDEDaYk8ezRXUJI/s1600/Bandcamp+Banner.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="301" data-original-width="800" height="120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOFXX0xQQ7NdKBE1Szyz1klpZscanJLLRa88N0dgtG9FB5ZWteb4PMQ5Cx5VTYAyJtcKmx5r3ID92tc_35JMzwc59UaTkRFUYr-m8y7aquiweBLn5j7UofJNwAqNHQlDEDaYk8ezRXUJI/s320/Bandcamp+Banner.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you have visited our Music Page recently you may have seen links for our artists That That Is and Aerostat on Bandcamp. What sets Bandcamp apart from numerous other online music companies that have risen to prominence in the past 20 years? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Bandcamp allows artists and recording labels not only to upload their music, but also to control how they sell their work, as well as the pricing of their work, and to sell associated merchandise. Artists can also offer their work in physical formats, including CD and even vinyl records. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since Bandcamp was founded in 2008, more than 3,500 labels and 600,000 artists have sold music or merchandise through it. The company operates on a "fair trade" music policy in which revenue is split approximately 10-15% to Bandcamp, roughly 5% to processing fees, and 80-85% to the artist. Since, as its website states, "we only make money when artists make a lot more money", it's become a hotspot for emerging artists of all kinds. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Standalone music streaming companies have, in the past decade, continued to lose money and industry-wide recording sales have continued to decline. Many, if not most, artists no longer make any substantial income from recording sales. Ethan Diamond, one of Bandcamp's founders, stated in 2017 that "the seemingly inevitable upshot of these two trends (declining streaming and recording sales) is that the majority of music consumption will eventually take place within the subscription rental services of two or three enormous corporations, who can afford to lose money on music." In turn, he added, these corporate giants will increasingly dictate what music is recorded and heard. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But Bandcamp was and is determined to buck those trends. </span><span style="font-size: large;">In 2017 Bandcamp enjoyed its sixth straight year in the black, along with double-digit growth in every aspect of its business. Digital sales increased by 16% for albums and 33% for individual tracks. Even more astonishing was its growth in physical sales: vinyl album sales increased 54%, cassettes 41%, and CDs 18%. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">"We want a music platform to exist where the playing field is level, where artists are compensated fairly and transparently, and where fans can both stream and own their music collections," Diamond said. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Bandcamp also is generally more consumer-friendly than other music services. Browsing, sampling and choosing music at the site is easy and enjoyable. You may also discover new artists and artists outside of the mainstream music industry that you might not have found otherwise. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">These reasons and others are why Monroe St. has included Bandcamp among the marketplaces through which we make our works available. To explore Bandcamp and its offerings, visit </span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://bandcamp.com/">https://bandcamp.com/</a>. </span><br />
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Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-87684243633735931182019-07-13T12:00:00.001-07:002019-07-13T12:00:48.764-07:00Recent and upcoming events <span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. Press rounded out a busy spring season with back to back events in Montello, Wis. and Bloomington, Ill. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Cog County Faire VI, held May 31-June 2 at White Lake Beach Resort in Montello, featured old-fashioned carnival-style entertainment and games, lake cruises, and plenty of time to relax and catch up with old and new acquaintances. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We were especially pleased to see some returning customers, including Marie, Eric and their 7-month old daughter Ingrid from Minneapolis, who received a signed copy of the futuristic anthology Unto This Last. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As always, thanks to White Lake Beach Resort for hosting this event every year and making all "time travelers" feel welcome!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The very next weekend (June 7-9), we took part for the first time in Cogs & Corsets: A Steampunk Happening in downtown Bloomington. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Vendors were originally scheduled to set up outdoors but due to strong winds, many (including Monroe St. Press) took advantage of an opportunity to move to the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts. This historic building, formerly the Scottish Rite Temple, is best known for hosting the American Passion Play but also hosts numerous other events. We enjoyed the surroundings and our visitors, including some we've seen at other events, and hope to return again next year. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Outside of the Center is a unique sculpture monument, titled "Convergence of Purpose", honoring Abraham Lincoln and his connections to Bloomington. The statue shows Lincoln flanked by two close friends who were Bloomington residents: David Davis (1815-1886), a fellow circuit riding attorney and eventual Supreme Court Justice, and Jesse W. Fell (1808-1887), a businessman and land owner who helped establish what is now Illinois State University in Normal. Davis and Fell encouraged Lincoln to run for the U.S. Senate against Stephen A. Douglas and also took part in his 1860 presidential campaign. Lincoln frequently kept important papers under his signature stovepipe hat and is depicted pulling documents out of the hat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">At the base of the statues are plaques commemorating speeches and presentations that Lincoln made in Bloomington, including the "Lost Speech" of 1856 and a lecture in 1858 at which Lincoln remarked: "Man is not the only animal who labors; but he is the only one who improves his workmanship. This improvement, he effects by Discoveries and Inventions" — an appropriate focus for a steampunk-themed celebration. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We'll be returning to Bloomington for our next scheduled event, the FlatCon gaming convention Oct. 11-13 at the Interstate Center. Watch this blog and on our Facebook page for more details! </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-35436942037710262652019-04-14T09:51:00.000-07:002019-04-14T09:51:12.066-07:00First Big River Comic Con <span style="font-size: large;">On April 13, Monroe St. Press took part in the first Big River Comic Con in Hannibal, Mo. This event drew at least 4,000 people to the Tabernacle of Praise Recreational Complex for a full day of demonstrations, seminars, cosplay and special appearances by artists, actors and other performers. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Organizer Darin Logue noted that while many people had told him that the Hannibal/Quincy/Tri-State area wasn't populated enough to support a full-scale comic con, the response before and during the event proved otherwise. At least 800 people showed up just in the first hour and attendee traffic was heavy for most of the day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Nearly every character, superhero or villain from the various comic book and film/TV universes was represented: DC (Superman, Batman, Harley Quinn, Green Lantern, etc.), Marvel (Spiderman, Hulk, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Thor, Guardians of the Galaxy, etc.), Star Trek, Star Wars, Doctor Who, Ghostbusters, Doc Brown (Back to the Future), Michael Myers (Halloween), and many others. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Vendors in attendance, in addition to numerous comic book and fandom/collectible vendors, included Tech Outreach of Hannibal, which creates and sells memorabilia created via 3D printing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We extend special thanks to Logue and his crew of volunteers who made this event happen, and to the Tabernacle of Praise Church for providing their facilities when flooding closed the originally planned venue. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Thanks also to everyone who stopped by the Monroe St. Press table and took home a copy of one of our books, a business card or a book list. As was the case two weeks ago at the Steampunk Spring Faire, we had some returning visitors/customers from the Big River Steampunk Festivals... this year, however, we will be taking part in the Festival as guests rather than as vendors. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Big River Comic Con 2020 is already in the works—and may be extended to 2 days due to the overwhelming response to this year's event. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">After doing 2 events in 2 weeks we're taking a bit of a hiatus, but our next two events are literally back to back— Cog County Faire (May 31-June 2, Montello, Wis.) and Cogs & Corsets (June 7-9, Bloomington, Ill.) </span><br />
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Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-38171437066521258742019-04-06T15:24:00.002-07:002019-04-06T15:24:54.096-07:00Victorian Desktop Publishing: A Brief History of the Typewriter The following is the script for a seminar I had planned to present at the Big River Steampunk Spring Faire.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">By Elaine Spencer </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Victorian Era or the “Belle Epoque” was, as we know, an era of world-changing inventions.... the telegraph, telephone, photography, automobiles, phonographs, electric lighting, etc. One of those inventions that doesn’t get a whole lot of notice these days, but which still influences our lives and is enjoying a bit of a renaissance, is the typewriter. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0u9Z-wy9ViFmCESOM-l0Hj0SVK4q1NGz5mAp1YQaYsuoiEgSbNUyR1NA-5GS_LRL4KGSmIZr8Nksh4z16sw1W3DkvUBHIoxod0nNKwLRAbN6riBn-4-OIE-Wkd_mhnXX0XMabLhIUpn0/s1600/Remington+ad.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="195" data-original-width="259" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0u9Z-wy9ViFmCESOM-l0Hj0SVK4q1NGz5mAp1YQaYsuoiEgSbNUyR1NA-5GS_LRL4KGSmIZr8Nksh4z16sw1W3DkvUBHIoxod0nNKwLRAbN6riBn-4-OIE-Wkd_mhnXX0XMabLhIUpn0/s320/Remington+ad.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Advertisement for Remington brand typewriters at the turn of the 19th/20th centuries.</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As with the automobile, telephone, and telegraph, a number of people contributed insights and inventions that eventually resulted in ever more commercially successful instruments. Historians have estimated that some form of typewriter was invented 52 times as thinkers tried to come up with a workable design.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first patent for a device similar to the modern typewriter was issued in England in 1714 to one Henry Mill. The patent documents describe the device as “an artificial machine or method for impressing or transcribing of letters... whereby all writing whatsoever may be engrossed in paper or parchment so neat and exact as not to be distinguished from print”. Mill touted the device as being “of great use in settlements and public records” since the impressions it made were “deeper and more lasting than any other writing, and not to be erased or counterfeited without manifest discovery.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In 1802, Italian Agostino Fantoni invented a typewriter that would enable his blind sister to write. Six years later, another Italian, Pelligrino Turri, invented a typing machine that used carbon paper. In 1829 American William A. Burt patented a machine called the “Typographer” that used a dial rather than keys to select characters. While this device is sometimes described as the “first” typewriter, Burt never found anyone willing to produce it commercially — probably because it worked slower than writing by hand. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">First Successful Typewriters</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">By the mid-19th century, the increasing pace of business communication had created a need for mechanization of the writing process. Stenographers and telegraphers could take down information at rates up to 130 words per minute, whereas a writer with a pen was limited to a maximum of 30 words per minute. Numerous attempts to develop viable printing or typing machines were made in Europe and America, but it was not until the 1870s that inventors finally came up with a model that enjoyed any kind of commercial success. </span></div>
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<i>The Hansen Writing Ball, the first mechanical typewriter marketed in Europe. </i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first was Rev. Rasmus Malling-Hansen of Denmark, who invented a machine known as the Hansen Writing Ball. He developed his device by making a porcelain model of the keyboard and experimenting with different placements of the letters until he found a configuration that yielded the fastest writing speed. The Hansen model was the first typewriter that was able to produce text faster than it could be written by hand. It won first prizes at the Vienna Exhibition of 1873 and Paris Exhibition of 1878 and was still being used in offices in London as late as 1909. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">However, the first typewriter to enjoy significant commercial success was invented by three men from Milwaukee — Christopher Latham Sholes, Carlos Glidden and Samuel Soule. In 1868 Sholes, Glidden and Soule were granted a patent for “a new and useful improvement in typewriting machines.” </span></div>
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<i>The Sholes-Glidden Typewriter produced by Remington in 1873. </i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>Their prototype was adopted by Remington & Sons, then known for making sewing machines, which began producing them in 1873. This machine was the first to have what is known as a “QWERTY” keyboard in which the letters in the top left row are Q,W,E,R,T,Y. The placement of the letters was designed to keep the most frequently used letters as far apart as reasonably possible so that the machine would not jam. This configuration eventually became the standard and remains the standard today for electronic keyboards. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">One major difference between 19th century and 20th century models was that in the earlier models, the typebar was located <i>under</i> the platen and the user could not see what he or she was typing until several carriage returns brought the text into view. The Underwood company came out with a frontstriking or “visible” typewriter in 1895; this model also helped popularize the four-row keyboard with numbers and symbols at the top. </span></div>
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<i>Ad for Underwood’s “visible” typewriter.</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">At the turn of the 19th/20th centuries, keyboard typewriters such as the Remington model had some competition from “index” typewriters that used a pointer or stylus to choose letters from an index. Although slower than keyboard machines index typewriters were, at first, lighter, more portable and less expensive to produce. But index typewriters never moved beyond a niche market and by the 1930s they were no longer being produced — at least in the English-speaking world; they are still used in Japan and China. </span></div>
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<i>The Columbia brand index typewriter, 1880s.</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK2YvktWelEZOVQB_tLhiVn6PK1tJA0-KG7FNw41TStzlus80cLS2dtxcH3MnvVYPypYYTbnAN-RKcT5yKqvv1nhgTmUMsXU_LrH6dUnzpV5ieyNEi80_6YvvnkGvJg6SKVmNHMki8Kk0/s1600/VictorIndex.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="690" data-original-width="950" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK2YvktWelEZOVQB_tLhiVn6PK1tJA0-KG7FNw41TStzlus80cLS2dtxcH3MnvVYPypYYTbnAN-RKcT5yKqvv1nhgTmUMsXU_LrH6dUnzpV5ieyNEi80_6YvvnkGvJg6SKVmNHMki8Kk0/s320/VictorIndex.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Victor brand index typewriter</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">By about 1910, the "manual" or "mechanical" typewriter had attained the standard design still familiar to many today. Each key was attached to a typebar that had the corresponding letter molded, in reverse, into its striking head. When a key was struck the typebar hit a ribbon (usually made of inked fabric) and made an ink mark on paper wrapped around a cylindrical platen. The platen was mounted on a carriage that moved left or right, and the paper is advanced vertically by the carriage-return lever into position for each new line of text. A small bell goes off a few characters before the right hand margin to warn the operator that it was time for another carriage return. Other familiar features such as tabs, margins stops and shift keys had also become standard — and so had the loud clickety-clack of the typebar striking the paten. </span></div>
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<i>Ad for Remington Noiseless 8 model typewriter, with a diagram indicating each part.</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first “noiseless” or "silent" typewriter went on the market in 1917, produced by the Noiseless Typewriter Company and later by Remington and Underwood. Its main feature was a mechanism that slowed down the typebar so that it didn’t strike the paper and paten as hard; while it reduced noise it didn’t entirely eliminate it. Noiseless portables continued to be manufactured until the 1960s.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The basic groundwork for the electric typewriter was laid by the Universal Stock Ticker, invented by Thomas Edison in 1870. This device remotely printed letters and numbers on a stream of paper tape from input generated by a specially designed typewriter at the other end of a telegraph line. The first electric typewriters that used a motor to power the typebar were created in the 1920s. In 1933 IBM bought the company that made them and IBM remained the leader in electric typewriter development for the rest of the 20th century. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Although typewriters were superseded by electronic word processors in the 1980s and the last Brother model typewriter rolled off the production line in 2012, antique typewriters remain in demand. Many writers prefer them for writing because they provide fewer distractions than computers hooked up to the internet, and because of the more tactile aspects such as the “thunk” of the keys, the “clack” of the typebar, and the “ding” of the impending carriage return. Even today the typewriter is known as the “thought machine”. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Originally I had planned to engage in a "type in" writing exercise using a manual typewriter and inviting others to bring their own typewriters. That did not work out, but the exercise is presented here for your edification and amusement....</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">A Do It Yourself Steampunk Story</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="s1"><i><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span></i></span>(Your name) was born (time, place) and grew up in (place, dimension etc.) At an early age he/she was tutored in the art of (doing something odd) by Professor (name)(noun). In search of adventure, (your name) left (your birthplace) for (a far flung destination) where they met up with (noble title) (name) (noun) and (did something amazing). </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>Later, (your name) discovered that the dastardly Count (name) von (noun) and his mad scientist companion, Dr. (name) (noun), had built a fleet of unstoppable (adjective) (nouns) in their attempt to conquer the (name of place)-ian Empire. With the help of scrappy companions (names of friends), (your name) improvised a fantastical (adjective) invention known as the (noun)-erator that (verb ending in “ed”) the Count’s plans for world domination. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>(Your name) now lives in (somewhere fabulous and unusual) with their (living companions). When not writing a tell-all memoir or attempting to perfect (an invention/scientific endeavor), (your name) likes to (do some sort of unusual and creative hobby). </span></div>
Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-10040953654141859232019-04-02T19:50:00.000-07:002019-04-03T18:45:31.290-07:00The "Big River" couldn't stop the fun at Spring Faire<span style="font-size: large;">Despite rain, snow, flooding and several last-minute venue changes, the first Big River Steampunk Spring Faire drew hundreds of Steampunk aficionados to Hannibal, Mo. for two days of entertainment, enlightenment, socializing and old-fashioned fun March 30 and 31. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">After the originally scheduled venue (the Admiral Coontz Armory) became inaccessible due to Mississippi River flooding, the Mark Twain Brewing Co. graciously welcomed dozens of vendors (including Monroe St. Press) and performers to its two-story restaurant and craft brewery on Main Street. Located in a converted factory complete with a large, gear-operated freight elevator, the MTBC provided an appropriate backdrop for Steampunk costumes, gadgets, and other wares. </span><br />
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Above, Greg Vogel of The Mountain Bird Wand Shop displays some of his hand-carved wands, which come with an instruction manual/spell book.<br />
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John and Elaine Spencer (top photo) of Monroe St. Press display their newest titles (bottom photo, from left) <i>The Wood Beyond the World</i>, <i>The Border Spy</i>, <i>The Prisoner of the Mill</i> and the <i>Blazing West</i> comic book reprint.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We were especially glad to see a number of returning visitors and customers from the Big River Steampunk Festivals held every Labor Day weekend, along with new customers. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Although all vendors were successfully accommodated, a change in location for seminars and make-and-takes resulted in limited space and some scheduling conflicts/overlap. For that reason, we canceled our planned "Victorian Desktop Publishing" seminar -- which will be re-presented as a blog post in the near future. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Many thanks to Ken and Lisa Marks, creators of the Big River Steampunk Festival, and their faithful volunteers for making sure that the Spring Faire went on despite the obstacles presented by Mother Nature and Old Man River. And a big shout-out to the staff at the Mark Twain Brewing Co. for their excellent service! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. Press returns to Hannibal in less than two weeks for the Big River Comic Con on Saturday, April 13. This event has also been moved from the Admiral Coontz Armory due to the ongoing flooding. <b>Its NEW location is Tabernacle of Praise Recreational Complex, 6400 County Rd. 445. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-75484821652466257942019-03-17T12:30:00.000-07:002019-03-17T12:30:21.910-07:00Two big "Big River" events coming up <span style="font-size: large;">Spring is just around the corner -- and so are two back to back events for Monroe St. Press in the same location. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We will be participating in the first Big River Steampunk Spring Faire Saturday and Sunday, <b>March 30 and 31</b> at the Admiral Coontz Armory in Hannibal, Mo. Two weeks later, on Saturday, <b>April 13,</b> from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., we will also be among the vendors at the first ever Big River Comic Con. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">At the Spring Faire, our table will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both days. Additionally, we will be presenting a workshop at <b>12 noon both days</b> on Victorian Desktop Publishing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first commercially successful "desktop publishing" device was introduced in 1874 -- the manual typewriter. Today, the typewriter is enjoying a bit of a renaissance in an increasingly wired world. Writers are even gathering for events known as "type-ins" in order to experience a more tactile, distraction-free method of composition. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In this presentation, Elaine Spencer of Monroe St. Press will discuss the history of the typewriter and give participants an opportunity to try out some writing exercises on vintage (pre-electric) typewriters. <b>All participants are encouraged to bring their own portable typewriters;</b> there may be extra machines available if you do not own one, but this cannot be guaranteed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Many other seminars and workshops will also be presented at the Spring Faire (indoor) event -- the first of two steampunk-themed events planned during the bicentennial year of the city of Hannibal. The 6th annual Big River Steampunk Festival (primarily an outdoor event) will still take place on Labor Day weekend as in previous years. More info and tickets for premium events at both festivals can be found <a href="https://www.bigriversteampunkfestival.com/" target="_blank">at this site</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Big River Comic Con, meanwhile, is NOT affiliated with the Spring Faire or Steampunk Festival -- it is a separate event with a classic "comic con" format featuring the best in comics, sci-fi, fantasy, and superhero art, books, costumes and memorabilia. Admission is $15 (free for kids 12 and under). Tickets may be purchased online <a href="https://brcchannibal.com/" target="_blank">here</a> or at the door (cash only). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since Monroe St. Press will <i>not</i> be participating in the Labor Day Steampunk Festival this year, we invite all our customers and fans in the Illinois, Iowa and Missouri Tri-State Area to come visit us at either or both of these events. </span><br />
<br />Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-11891796088536426892019-03-03T08:59:00.000-08:002019-03-03T08:59:16.508-08:00Winter War 46<span style="font-size: large;">Our first event of 2019 was Winter War 46, the largest independent gaming convention in the Midwest, held in Champaign, Ill. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As always, Winter War features a wide selection of tabletop, miniature and role-playing games in a variety of genres. They include well-known games popular from the 1970s to today, as well as newer games and game systems of more recent invention. Many are based on fictional worlds (e.g., Firefly, Conan, Honor Harrington) while others recreate battles from every phase of history, from ancient Greece to World War II. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In between stints at the vendor table I got to try out one tabletop war game. Dubbed "Etna Erupts!" the game pictured above is a recreation of a little-known Civil War battle near Etna, Missouri, in 1861, utilizing the Brother Against Brother tactical skirmish gaming system. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Using a scale model of the battlefield (which consisted of a farm, several dirt roads, open fields and a stand of trees), players may move their soldiers a fixed distance forward in inches on each turn; how far they may move is determined by a dice roll. Players may also use their turn to fire upon enemy forces, with another dice roll determining how many (if any) enemy soldiers are felled. Card draws at the start of the game determine the level of experience of one's respective units and the type and firing range of weapons they will possess. Card draws and dice rolls during the game introduce elements of chance, such as "morale points" that determine how much impact casualties will have upon one's unit in subsequent turns. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Brother Against Brother system is particularly useful for games based upon Civil War battles that aren't nearly on the same scale as Gettysburg, Shiloh, Antietam, etc., but require no less tactical knowledge—and luck—to win. The outcome can be quite different from the historical outcome; I played the Union side and got thoroughly wiped out, whereas in real life this battle was reckoned a Union victory. But I enjoyed the game since it was challenging without being too complicated. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Many thanks to Mark Lueckenhoff (pictured at left) for hosting this game and for all his work in creating the scale model battlefield. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Some of the other games featured included: </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVJjKN3OiJKgOoHVeDQ6a8pbyrj4mgbnRFR8MH_hCs24YzO6Z4Or_uWpCp_IQsDzrTSJVJF-2muXLkWHqBjkeFP0hyphenhypheny6cd5eN8LzVw0O5cWocBUTj0dn_cTDxm1NGsZ5XW5BHtpkvw9k/s1600/Martian+Front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVJjKN3OiJKgOoHVeDQ6a8pbyrj4mgbnRFR8MH_hCs24YzO6Z4Or_uWpCp_IQsDzrTSJVJF-2muXLkWHqBjkeFP0hyphenhypheny6cd5eN8LzVw0O5cWocBUTj0dn_cTDxm1NGsZ5XW5BHtpkvw9k/s320/Martian+Front.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">All Quiet on the Martian Front, which portrays a second Martian invasion of Earth after that depicted in H.G. Wells' <i>The War of the Worlds</i>. This particular game is set at Arsenal Island near Rock Island, Illinois, which the Army is preparing to defend from a Martian force advancing up the Mississippi River. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhne7q6BXc0-zO-vLTzDB7nrAViBnct2pKs5oh11lDwEonBXTfoyO5mDUZW3EygMQ72hBEY_5-SZA7KV21q6m1L4DlBsYNRf3ETwuy0M2Soreq3Jj_BK3N4N8z9piBGI16RWbjnUEL0UVU/s1600/War+of+1812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhne7q6BXc0-zO-vLTzDB7nrAViBnct2pKs5oh11lDwEonBXTfoyO5mDUZW3EygMQ72hBEY_5-SZA7KV21q6m1L4DlBsYNRf3ETwuy0M2Soreq3Jj_BK3N4N8z9piBGI16RWbjnUEL0UVU/s320/War+of+1812.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here's a real Winter War — a reenactment of Napoleon's retreat from Russia in 1812. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Formula De: Watkins Glen is among a series of tabletop recreations of famous auto races to satify your need for speed....</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKFagDi2-kmC8AEt6zbic5ASd-DIayeorGmwcwDLE_lK_EL7m3hsEOoactnT3Gl5f8V1Lun_snVY5g2dlja6A99C1XtmgmcosJOKl0HZvcSErD3GYYLKWszswgfrnUX6vsNxZNiMMRe-Q/s1600/Blazing+Skedaddles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKFagDi2-kmC8AEt6zbic5ASd-DIayeorGmwcwDLE_lK_EL7m3hsEOoactnT3Gl5f8V1Lun_snVY5g2dlja6A99C1XtmgmcosJOKl0HZvcSErD3GYYLKWszswgfrnUX6vsNxZNiMMRe-Q/s320/Blazing+Skedaddles.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">....meanwhile, Hedley Lamar and his band of gunfighters run loose in Rock Ridge looking for anything they can grab in the 1st Annual Blazing Skedaddles Scavenger Hunt! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Thanks to everyone who planned and staged this event... it's one we look forward to every year. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Next up on our schedule is the Big River Steampunk Spring Faire in Hannibal, Missouri, March 30-31. Be advised that this year, Monroe St. Press will be vending at the Spring Faire <i>instead of </i>the larger Big River Steampunk Festival on Labor Day weekend. More details will be posted as they become available. </span>
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Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-14309814724297635232018-12-30T08:20:00.000-08:002018-12-30T08:20:02.314-08:00Dime novel sequel & year-end recap<span style="font-size: large;">We're closing out 2018 with one last new title... </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Prisoner of the Mill</i> (1864) is a sequel to <i>The Border Spy</i> by the same author (Lt. Col. Hazeltine). It picks up where <i>Border Spy</i> left off, in November 1861. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Union forces have just retaken Springfield, Mo., when their commander, Gen. John C. Fremont, is removed. His replacement immediately orders a retreat, leaving Confederate bushwhackers free to prowl the countryside the Federals have abandoned. When a Union soldier vanishes under suspicious circumstances, his sister and his best friend undertake a dangerous quest to determine if he is dead or alive, and who is responsible for his disappearance. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjgN3nekZHT4ax_B-A_jHOZtilRXPgU4mDZ1wflnLiCgC75T945foNlPs5FAowKdZLt8ngiUrRT9XiHhZuHwh2s7atufWxnrwxNqAQIZ1URnsMy9Y3Z5Mla0_OnVwi3pkV8x3hIyXbdIg/s1600/product_thumbnail+Prisoner+of+Mill.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjgN3nekZHT4ax_B-A_jHOZtilRXPgU4mDZ1wflnLiCgC75T945foNlPs5FAowKdZLt8ngiUrRT9XiHhZuHwh2s7atufWxnrwxNqAQIZ1URnsMy9Y3Z5Mla0_OnVwi3pkV8x3hIyXbdIg/s1600/product_thumbnail+Prisoner+of+Mill.jpeg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We've made <i>Border Spy</i> and <i>Prisoner</i> available as separate paperback editions as well as in a combined hardcover edition. All three titles are available at our website. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlXDmgAQI1b8UXbu9loPqGgmTYpYnmoananRtUJumrKALHWN0iLe3G05ht5n0g-yjF7g2lJ4pu8ZBSWFodAbvTE4xWY0GqYhnYn6CM6CR0MCAPcmcPxEjpnQsf13OyvbnLPo34D9DIhvE/s1600/product_thumbnail+Combined+Edition.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlXDmgAQI1b8UXbu9loPqGgmTYpYnmoananRtUJumrKALHWN0iLe3G05ht5n0g-yjF7g2lJ4pu8ZBSWFodAbvTE4xWY0GqYhnYn6CM6CR0MCAPcmcPxEjpnQsf13OyvbnLPo34D9DIhvE/s1600/product_thumbnail+Combined+Edition.jpeg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Looking back on 2018, it proved to be a year of change and transition for Monroe St. Press. Shifts in the independent publishing industry prompted us to reevalulate our mission, try out new marketing and publishing approaches, and expand into other venues, including music. Expect more changes in 2019 as we participate in new events and new ventures. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Our sincere thanks to all who visited our website or our vendor booths this year. Wishing you a healthy and happy New Year!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-30341558307593175562018-12-07T05:33:00.001-08:002018-12-07T05:33:06.828-08:00New fantasy and dime novels<span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. Press' two newest vintage titles are the fantasy novel <i>The Wood Beyond the World</i> and the Civil War dime novel <i>The Border Spy</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Wood Beyond the World </i>(1894)<i> </i>by William Morris was written in a style reminiscent of medieval romances. It was among the first modern novels to blend an imaginary world with elements of the supernatural, and influenced later writers such as Lord Dunsany, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Morris (1834-1896) was a British novelist, poet, artist, textile designer and social activist who was part of the Pre-Raphaelite circle and exerted significant influence on the culture of Victorian England. He helped revive traditional textile arts as well as interest in ancient and medieval epic tales. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxU6v4zo_fx_aF9-hZGkvq3kfQprp7OV-D6yM_RqsAuu8QeRFV9priy9KVLUDATOO0pXNTG8CU2yCpHLtPx0vnvELEx86RGQblgEBYW8rc85ym-gDetgDwKYlfCKMxWa4zD3etHRrbaVg/s1600/220px-William_Morris_age_53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="277" data-original-width="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxU6v4zo_fx_aF9-hZGkvq3kfQprp7OV-D6yM_RqsAuu8QeRFV9priy9KVLUDATOO0pXNTG8CU2yCpHLtPx0vnvELEx86RGQblgEBYW8rc85ym-gDetgDwKYlfCKMxWa4zD3etHRrbaVg/s1600/220px-William_Morris_age_53.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Morris' best known literary works include <i>The Defence of Guinevere and Other Poems</i> (1858), an early example of Pre-Raphaelite poetry; <i>The Saga of Gunnlaug Worm-Tongue</i> (1869), a translation of an Icelandic myth; <i>News from Nowhere</i> (1890), his utopian vision of a kinder, gentler and more pastoral 21st-century London; and <i>The Well at the World's End</i> (1896), a fantasy-adventure epic with some parallels to Tolkien's <i>The Lord of the Rings</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Turning to American literature, <i>The Border Spy; or, The Beautiful Captive of the Rebel Camp </i>(1863) by Lt. Col. Hazeltine is a Civil War dime novel written during the war by a veteran of the conflict, and was among the earliest dime novel titles released by Sinclair Tousey's American News Company. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRxU8MLYK3xaQg-KaAAUQriFlTd5Z4lyD0aqXtSr50TaZJMkRmUuVmN7Yhei8PWoqVjQTWIfWewLRP-kQUKh-igo5b4Z1DRGy0Ok8mQqTbIHvKRtdC5aDP2VCBh0Z-kBvHJxk9wQVvUEM/s1600/Border+Spy+thumbnail.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRxU8MLYK3xaQg-KaAAUQriFlTd5Z4lyD0aqXtSr50TaZJMkRmUuVmN7Yhei8PWoqVjQTWIfWewLRP-kQUKh-igo5b4Z1DRGy0Ok8mQqTbIHvKRtdC5aDP2VCBh0Z-kBvHJxk9wQVvUEM/s1600/Border+Spy+thumbnail.jpeg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The book depicts Union Gen. John C. Fremont's campaign to drive Confederate forces from southwest Missouri, culminating in the First Battle of Springfield (Mo.) in 1861. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The author is not clearly identified, but may have been a Col. Harry Hazelton of the Benton Cadets, Missouri Infantry, who served in the campaign depicted in this book and its sequel, <i>The Prisoner of the Mill</i>. Some later editions of <i>Prisoner</i> are attributed to Hazelton. Both books combine historical figures and details of real-life military actions with a popular, dramatic dime novel storyline. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Both titles are available through the <a href="http://www.monroestpress.com/What-s-New-.html" target="_blank">Monroe St. Press website. </a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-53321222070913460642018-09-08T12:11:00.001-07:002018-09-08T12:11:46.424-07:00Recap of Big River Steampunk Festival<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Taking our "show on the road" to the Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Mo., has become a Labor Day weekend tradition for Monroe St. Press, and this year was no exception. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">After 4 successive years of participating in the Festival as vendors, in addition to meeting numerous new customers each year, we have developed a following of returning customers who come to check out our new offerings and tell us how much they have enjoyed their purchases from previous years. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Christopher Michael Carter, sci-fi/horror/poetry author from Bevier, Mo., bought a copy of <i>The Steam Man of the Prairies</i> anthology edited by John Spencer. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Meanwhile, Ted Meadows of Hannibal bought copies of Unto This Last, the utopian/dystopian anthology by E.M. Spencer, along with other Monroe St. Press titles. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In response to an invitation from Festival organizers Ken and Lisa Marks for presenters of seminars, talks and "make-and-takes," Elaine Spencer gave two talks at the Airship Village, one on the history of Spiritualism in the 19th Century and another on Victorian-era utopian movements. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnMOQj1Z6p0Gc9uSlLOAw_xoPcJ7YXzYVDzm1vbzdXuiIVVul6FV_XL65HZbB8Pl0QNa_7J7jT1noY-Th45Oj1d2l0_OlFQ5pdgK_GczUCICs01cmMS_32ofHQgEJ8Ld6AxAosN-7UEVE/s1600/Elaine+Utopian+Talk+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnMOQj1Z6p0Gc9uSlLOAw_xoPcJ7YXzYVDzm1vbzdXuiIVVul6FV_XL65HZbB8Pl0QNa_7J7jT1noY-Th45Oj1d2l0_OlFQ5pdgK_GczUCICs01cmMS_32ofHQgEJ8Ld6AxAosN-7UEVE/s320/Elaine+Utopian+Talk+.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<i>(photo by Brandy Jaquet Photography) </i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We thank everyone who visited our tent or listened to the talks, and we appreciate your encouragement and suggestions! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. Press' next event will be the St. Louis Indie Author Fair Saturday, Nov. 3, in St. Louis. Watch our website and Facebook page for details. </span></div>
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Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-36818933559504422082018-07-06T05:30:00.000-07:002019-07-24T07:29:32.279-07:00Erik Satie, Composer of the "Belle Epoque". <span style="font-size: large;">The Parisian avant-garde composer Erik Satie (1866-1925), whose <i>Gymnopedie</i> is featured on Aerostat's La Belle Epoque album, is generally regarded as a foundational modern musician whose compositional forms have been widely imitated in classical, jazz, pop, and other styles. His work is considered to be a precursor to 20th-century movements such as surrealism, minimalism and the "Theatre of the Absurd".</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiuHqUm27wieiUk1fMrImYvghjwrOZepBrmqdbWT2VrHQqRj-m6XR0tSLS9xOCepwsSqDexzzGvjNce5KvgYaDWd3K0ec0YkbQLgBRMJH4PMsZvr6kyYFUwbICN9TKrPvgjW1-t9aajNg/s1600/Erik+Satie.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="265" data-original-width="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiuHqUm27wieiUk1fMrImYvghjwrOZepBrmqdbWT2VrHQqRj-m6XR0tSLS9xOCepwsSqDexzzGvjNce5KvgYaDWd3K0ec0YkbQLgBRMJH4PMsZvr6kyYFUwbICN9TKrPvgjW1-t9aajNg/s1600/Erik+Satie.jpeg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">His love of experimentation and the unexpected in his compositions was also reflected in his personal life, as evidenced by some of his more eccentric habits:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">-- He composed one piece, titled <i>Vexations</i>, that consisted of a single bass phrase to be repeated 840 times. Satie advised anyone who attempted to play the work in full that "it would be advisable to prepare oneself beforehand, and in the deepest silence, through serious immobility." The first known complete public performance of <i>Vexations</i> took place in 1963 under the direction of John Cage (another well known experimental composer).</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">-- He founded his own religious sect, <i>Église Métropolitaine d’Art de Jésus Conducteur, </i>after a falling-out with a friend who had founded a sect known as the Mystical Order of the Rose and Cross of the Temple and Grail. Satie was the only known member of this sect.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">-- Long before "elevator music" was invented, Satie created what he called "furniture music". In 1902 he staged a performance in a Paris art gallery, intended to serve merely as a background while the audience turned its attention elsewhere. He asked the audience beforehand to ignore his performance and carry on with their usual activities, but, perhaps out of habit, they politely hushed when the performance began.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">-- He didn't consider himself a musician or composer, but a "photometrographer" whose ideas were entirely based on the science of phonology, or the study of sound. "Science is the dominating factor," he wrote. "I think I can say that phonology is superior to music. There's more variety to it. The financial return is greater too."</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">More fascinating facts about Satie can be found <a href="https://flypaper.soundfly.com/diversions/composer-erik-satie-was-weirder-than-you-realize/" target="_blank">here. </a></span><br />
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<br />Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-56329909070688737782018-06-28T04:32:00.000-07:002019-07-24T07:32:28.906-07:00 "La Belle Epoque"<span style="font-size: large;">"La Belle Epoque" or "The Beautiful Era", a term adopted by the French to refer to the years between the Franco-Prussian War and the outbreak of World War I (1870-1914), expresses nostalgia for a time of (relative) peace, prosperity, and progress before the devastation of the "Great War". </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhawqRE6nwa0LKiD_lXSV2CZKC_jwiYCwBU15uKmut0YyFjiNxmkrKPwZPs6vJdbVSbdeTDO1JHrTsNPgb5bkwdjT5SyVAiF-O0wpoKZ8AYuODtay1TwuMp6jyK4lY3r-zLtxU9ri4uFTY/s1600/Aerostat+La+Belle+Epoque+CD+DiscFace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1417" data-original-width="1417" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhawqRE6nwa0LKiD_lXSV2CZKC_jwiYCwBU15uKmut0YyFjiNxmkrKPwZPs6vJdbVSbdeTDO1JHrTsNPgb5bkwdjT5SyVAiF-O0wpoKZ8AYuODtay1TwuMp6jyK4lY3r-zLtxU9ri4uFTY/s320/Aerostat+La+Belle+Epoque+CD+DiscFace.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Aerostat's La Belle Epoque</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Throughout much of the Western world, these were generally years of economic prosperity, groundbreaking scientific and technological advancement, and innovation in art and music. La Belle Epoque coincides or overlaps the Victorian and Edwardian eras in Britain, the Wilhelmine era in Germany, the Porfiriato in Mexico, and the <b><span style="color: yellow;">Gilded Age</span></b> in America. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">During this era, wealth and progress were publicly celebrated as never before. Inventors such as Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell became household names. Fortunes were made in industries such as railroads, mining, banking, iron and steel production. Monuments such as the Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty were built, as well as lavish public buildings and private estates. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOAN065idzeuW6zc6SyLTGtCYw3RjhX-lNRhJXym7xIU92nIOWZxBuIFNK9p4cyfYZs08QcMyp1WffXE-Qy8Tyrwa2xreJgM9jsk8waqr3EkGHHiH2NkYvm80_5xShXpantCO469QJms/s1600/eiffel+tower+1900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="970" data-original-width="1024" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOAN065idzeuW6zc6SyLTGtCYw3RjhX-lNRhJXym7xIU92nIOWZxBuIFNK9p4cyfYZs08QcMyp1WffXE-Qy8Tyrwa2xreJgM9jsk8waqr3EkGHHiH2NkYvm80_5xShXpantCO469QJms/s320/eiffel+tower+1900.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">"World's Fairs" showing off the achievements of the participating nations included the Exposition Universelle (Paris, 1889 and 1900), World's Columbian Exposition (Chicago, 1893), the Brussels International Exposition (1897) and the Louisiana Purchase Exposition (St. Louis, 1904). Each of these events was a celebration of the past and present as well as the future; for example, the 1889 Paris Exposition marked the centennial of the French Revolution, while transportation was provided by an innovative 3-kilometer narrow-gauge railway. Major cities such as Paris, New York and Chicago also grew exponentially during this period both geographically and in population. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfUr0mrFaIb-r2uU0O9RndiuuCm6W7IaLJJzXNY6K4etWqG4Zi7gK6KH6Qry2nMnNe9sRdouKOkOAjsYXRn-D45ZPiQc8JR7W7p7qsfdcxeD-0vf0mgaRkioPaUXFmOCxJ-Wiew7bpvk/s1600/chicago+1900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="800" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfUr0mrFaIb-r2uU0O9RndiuuCm6W7IaLJJzXNY6K4etWqG4Zi7gK6KH6Qry2nMnNe9sRdouKOkOAjsYXRn-D45ZPiQc8JR7W7p7qsfdcxeD-0vf0mgaRkioPaUXFmOCxJ-Wiew7bpvk/s320/chicago+1900.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Innovators in Parisian art during this period include the painters Auguste Renoir, Henri de Tolouse-Lautrec, and Pablo Picasso. The Parisian avant-garde included composers such as Erik Satie and Claude Debussy, whose works are featured on Aerostat's "La Belle Epoque". </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Although severe social problems and unrest still existed during this period, eventually setting the stage for the wars and revolutions of the 20th century, the optimistic and adventurous spirit of the era lives on in its art, music and literature, and continues to inspire generations. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">For more background on this era, check out "10 Fascinating Facts about La Belle Epoque" at <a href="http://fiveminutehistory.com/10-fascinating-facts-about-the-belle-epoque/" target="_blank">Five Minute History</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-28027483880780234832018-06-14T04:26:00.000-07:002019-07-24T07:31:03.780-07:00Recap of recent events <span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. Press recently participated in two of our favorite annual spring/summer events, Heroicon in Decatur, Ill., and Cog County Faire in Montello, Wis.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Heroicon, held May 4-6 at the Decatur Convention Center and Hotel, is a gathering of gaming enthusiasts that benefits the non-profit organization Games for Troops. This year there were a number of fictional and real life characters in attendance, including Iron Man....</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgngeXNOTGEtY8V-gFY3GJFq_D8lcPj8g5OChVLTh7hbGp1E0ojd8daEMZbll8Rr-7JiU-yUdP8_JxjgjBiETiyn67OrLalDXKsp-xdaH3PZjgavOFgnqgHYn8WJFukijyD56CDUjThWGg/s1600/Iron+Man.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgngeXNOTGEtY8V-gFY3GJFq_D8lcPj8g5OChVLTh7hbGp1E0ojd8daEMZbll8Rr-7JiU-yUdP8_JxjgjBiETiyn67OrLalDXKsp-xdaH3PZjgavOFgnqgHYn8WJFukijyD56CDUjThWGg/s320/Iron+Man.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Darth Vader...</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD7VlrAsj993shjF6yiLUVUhGEN8gMAuMPN45tRf8NJrWAvyy6QAqA-8oBq9mF7S9Kl4I6q2JpaovbzFn9gD-Ssy5MkKtPAp2tNh7w0VOIFTQiBD2N_qO3LtBv1AiwVG0YCvjbuTF6AJk/s1600/Darth+Vader.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD7VlrAsj993shjF6yiLUVUhGEN8gMAuMPN45tRf8NJrWAvyy6QAqA-8oBq9mF7S9Kl4I6q2JpaovbzFn9gD-Ssy5MkKtPAp2tNh7w0VOIFTQiBD2N_qO3LtBv1AiwVG0YCvjbuTF6AJk/s320/Darth+Vader.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Thor....</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiP6ZkH0PxuOY6WEgDdHoRUhrBXUXsCGlwtytb12lihqDpAj9GlAUVTwHjZAyHYuREdPYtmjpM4NdADuyS6lG-tMHDpNCIxG6h2v4C2itupeQpBLeUprcmU3P1PNYILjabolmELtpoxGw/s1600/Thor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiP6ZkH0PxuOY6WEgDdHoRUhrBXUXsCGlwtytb12lihqDpAj9GlAUVTwHjZAyHYuREdPYtmjpM4NdADuyS6lG-tMHDpNCIxG6h2v4C2itupeQpBLeUprcmU3P1PNYILjabolmELtpoxGw/s320/Thor.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">and Jack the Ripper (which is why I'm eyeing him with suspicion)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwnsAXFiI7832ZUCmro8k6sLWtKDhSWu3NJVkchWfbPYn3QvfoaWasOQZicVMryx1wTWZQaeqavKaJ9frt4VYZKipHbOPp0s4v-vfV4NmZDcL5wRwlYLEhwShNCKOBaVSglbPlhCHtTeI/s1600/Jack+the+Ripper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwnsAXFiI7832ZUCmro8k6sLWtKDhSWu3NJVkchWfbPYn3QvfoaWasOQZicVMryx1wTWZQaeqavKaJ9frt4VYZKipHbOPp0s4v-vfV4NmZDcL5wRwlYLEhwShNCKOBaVSglbPlhCHtTeI/s320/Jack+the+Ripper.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We also made a few new fans, including Jennifer (from Heroes of Legend Cosplay) and her soon to arrive son, who picked up a copy of our futuristic anthology Unto This Last.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPh3P09orPvvZTfgKEl8mrB0RPnTzwGB8krpraXsYXznqs8CKCeLfueZd9ITRW_d1F86Le-bbhqT5PG56_0M-I8hef4sWsvuWK9WQDKT2rmQpr9e0Ej30sY3uTZX4FwEI9ONAinVMkIXg/s1600/Jennifer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPh3P09orPvvZTfgKEl8mrB0RPnTzwGB8krpraXsYXznqs8CKCeLfueZd9ITRW_d1F86Le-bbhqT5PG56_0M-I8hef4sWsvuWK9WQDKT2rmQpr9e0Ej30sY3uTZX4FwEI9ONAinVMkIXg/s320/Jennifer.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Vendors present included Play to Beat Brain Cancer, from Olathe, Kansas, a non-profit that sells gaming items such as dice, boxes and bags as fundraisers for brain cancer treatment and research. Their website is ptbbc.org.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqWpVah7gRHJ6E8aoD6ZjUqhw5ijrG0cVCTZirPzzqVx38S2HqqsyvpuganymDqhMOBacEDem0fAQSrY45dlfp4XRs3cAYHuWrmJX0ZwCQUzn4WFyI0pnMpxOdu17k_QbOdJY6FxdSy1o/s1600/Play+to+Beat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqWpVah7gRHJ6E8aoD6ZjUqhw5ijrG0cVCTZirPzzqVx38S2HqqsyvpuganymDqhMOBacEDem0fAQSrY45dlfp4XRs3cAYHuWrmJX0ZwCQUzn4WFyI0pnMpxOdu17k_QbOdJY6FxdSy1o/s320/Play+to+Beat.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Heroes of Legend Cosplay, based in Decatur, stages appearances as Marvel, DC, Disney and other characters at venues such as parades, parties and children's hospitals. Their life-sized Iron Man and Wonder Woman costumes are quite impressive. If you'd like to hire one of their heroes, contact them at their Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/HeroesOfLegendCosplay/</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxndEg0BiFSVpTjTEWQusEg2GksnQQaDEQbSimj-uDdgasH4vsacA6QSVk53OzXtP_l_Zad7Hc_aEIGTaeG9vibStOdqswXEVczK5SOHQvhp7GGl_PrX0Wx1pRBbaXCF4AI995bAJofk/s1600/Wonder+Woman+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxndEg0BiFSVpTjTEWQusEg2GksnQQaDEQbSimj-uDdgasH4vsacA6QSVk53OzXtP_l_Zad7Hc_aEIGTaeG9vibStOdqswXEVczK5SOHQvhp7GGl_PrX0Wx1pRBbaXCF4AI995bAJofk/s320/Wonder+Woman+.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Also in attendance was GameChurch, a Christian ministry to gaming fans. As described by Rook (pictured), "we're here to tell you Jesus loves you and hand out free stuff" as well as overcome the perception that Christian faith and gaming don't mix. Its offerings included a summary of the Gospel of John in which the life and ministry of Christ are presented as the "ultimate quest to save a land known as Earth".</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQXN7TTbccQFvFj5vSvVabvKdA_UFdacQuqvTm9gutOYCqWtL_xXngK7-DcypBrRcT5LsWxTdoceEaVxE4TgRQ_HCeq4O-8Pe0vx8OtYCidB7w2tjVS-WuiqRNT6vlt1BBGOnYo0h04Aw/s1600/Game+Church.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQXN7TTbccQFvFj5vSvVabvKdA_UFdacQuqvTm9gutOYCqWtL_xXngK7-DcypBrRcT5LsWxTdoceEaVxE4TgRQ_HCeq4O-8Pe0vx8OtYCidB7w2tjVS-WuiqRNT6vlt1BBGOnYo0h04Aw/s320/Game+Church.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Our next event stop was Cog County Faire V, held June 1-3 at the White Lake Beach Resort near Montello, Wis., which we last attended in 2016. This event has an old-time county fair theme with vintage carnival games, a Victorian swimsuit contest, and live performances by musicians, storytellers, and others.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This event draws Steampunk fans from Wisconsin and neighboring states to enjoy some old-fashioned fun and show off their Steampunk gear. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Several Faire attendees bought copies of Angel of the Revolution and Syren of the Skies, including Jess, part of the Faire security team....</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5wCB07AZAwkXTD4cavnR0OKqYE50PJ306BtWZNpbZ7yQqqThcmmm434UXdBa2Ojy5rVmUsvRioAnY0Xqe-CJXJC-hORI4vPXJNfuAhZ1C4kHyCvy-p6BTLecgcXEj7y6k5M6VLhmOPg/s1600/Jess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5wCB07AZAwkXTD4cavnR0OKqYE50PJ306BtWZNpbZ7yQqqThcmmm434UXdBa2Ojy5rVmUsvRioAnY0Xqe-CJXJC-hORI4vPXJNfuAhZ1C4kHyCvy-p6BTLecgcXEj7y6k5M6VLhmOPg/s320/Jess.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Gayle and Elliott, from Minneapolis-St. Paul....</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCVlt_bvivUuebflnxq5QPWr6fITvfto9HlRZBC_6AHwlCvl4bUC-dxMvkWixA-BMQckYZ7uLu1pfC4RU9q7COpsz1YlVplLvc3fhgcIFi3hQUMdM8oWCH1kjRfzgjb5pxwUGPRJ3VyAA/s1600/Gayle+and+Elliot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCVlt_bvivUuebflnxq5QPWr6fITvfto9HlRZBC_6AHwlCvl4bUC-dxMvkWixA-BMQckYZ7uLu1pfC4RU9q7COpsz1YlVplLvc3fhgcIFi3hQUMdM8oWCH1kjRfzgjb5pxwUGPRJ3VyAA/s320/Gayle+and+Elliot.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Paul, from Madison....</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP1gqJPRTsFScG9dSUkZ0rXhxQ3BXuTprYd1e5li70ebWChuHbPR-VMM50FKzH1SbpcoaxYH3tebatHfTziUmtKincOkJ0A3SqY4CZpycEm1_1_4ad74Gb7xFLU5n0PyYi9Ldx0I7k7_8/s1600/Paul+from+Madison+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP1gqJPRTsFScG9dSUkZ0rXhxQ3BXuTprYd1e5li70ebWChuHbPR-VMM50FKzH1SbpcoaxYH3tebatHfTziUmtKincOkJ0A3SqY4CZpycEm1_1_4ad74Gb7xFLU5n0PyYi9Ldx0I7k7_8/s320/Paul+from+Madison+.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">and Daniel, from St. Louis.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHVNAUMDqEfpyK_LEUhbDz1x8SXQ8roFunaIXSPL3wYYajK7kDYEByB2G-rlCzPBk2iupYE-R2cyu8l6f2RCOc7vNT3Zr95EgTCVbKr9UG3zueH8oboyCCo0NIjL3g8wbX7gG18ryMnk/s1600/Daniel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHVNAUMDqEfpyK_LEUhbDz1x8SXQ8roFunaIXSPL3wYYajK7kDYEByB2G-rlCzPBk2iupYE-R2cyu8l6f2RCOc7vNT3Zr95EgTCVbKr9UG3zueH8oboyCCo0NIjL3g8wbX7gG18ryMnk/s320/Daniel.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We enjoyed making new friends and catching up with old friends at these events. Our thanks also to the organizers of these events, who put a LOT of work into making everyone feel welcome.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. Press' next event will be the Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Mo., on Labor Day weekend (Aug. 31-Sept. 3). See you there!</span><br />
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<br />Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-85906923395691708792018-05-09T05:30:00.001-07:002018-05-09T05:30:54.919-07:00<span style="font-size: large;">Monroe St. recording artist That That Is (TTI) has released their third album, Neidan. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Neidan, the new album from TTI, brings you a whole lot of dance-centric rhythm with just a tinge of funk and a dab of experimental folk. Combining hard rock, electronic dance music, and classic Mandarin instruments, Neidan yields fresh-sounding songs with mass appeal — a true blend of techno-pop, folk, ambient and fusion. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Check it out at thatthatis1.bandcamp.com </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Released May 8, 2018</span><br />
<br />Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-28525821248394270892018-05-09T05:25:00.000-07:002018-05-09T05:26:15.132-07:00<iframe style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 120px;" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1474285522/size=large/bgcol=333333/linkcol=e32c14/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" seamless><a href="http://thatthatis1.bandcamp.com/album/neidan">Neidan by That That Is</a></iframe>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-33498467904845679582018-04-25T10:58:00.003-07:002018-04-25T10:58:41.932-07:00A real-life Victorian horror story For those of you who enjoyed reading <i>Around the World in 72 Days</i>, Monroe St. Press has released another work by the indomitable Nellie Bly that explores a much darker side of Victorian America.<br />
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<i>Ten Days in a Mad-House </i>recounts Bly's undercover investigation of conditions at the New York City insane asylum on Blackwell's Island (now Roosevelt Island) in 1887.<br />
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Bly, then 23 years old, had already left a newspaper job in Pittsburgh and in an effort to get hired by Joseph Pulitzer's New York World, proposed a daring story idea: she would pretend to be insane and get herself committed to the asylum so she could see for herself how its patients were being treated.<br />
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Under the name Nellie Brown, she checked into a boarding house, began acting "crazy" and claimed to have amnesia. Within days she had been hauled away by the police, declared insane by a judge and doctors and packed off to Blackwell's Island. For 10 days she witnessed, and experienced, the filth, neglect and abuse to which women patients were subjected by callous and largely untrained staff.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNj-wHt7uPKu5K72w2f0384AW3wKCJZQArNyT80r_sFCHQpZ6JlumkD3jzyCjZCJ8zPcGJQEnq3wIDWMdru0_TWLX9bcW6NltTiLSmLCSOZ-AyM-uarHdEpnOENVP8LeRV3rcD6ggGvLo/s1600/Ten_Days_in_a_MadHo_Cover_for_Kindle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1001" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNj-wHt7uPKu5K72w2f0384AW3wKCJZQArNyT80r_sFCHQpZ6JlumkD3jzyCjZCJ8zPcGJQEnq3wIDWMdru0_TWLX9bcW6NltTiLSmLCSOZ-AyM-uarHdEpnOENVP8LeRV3rcD6ggGvLo/s320/Ten_Days_in_a_MadHo_Cover_for_Kindle.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Her stories shocked readers, prompted improvements in the treatment of the mentally ill and remains a landmark in the history of investigative journalism.<br />
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<i>Ten Days </i>is priced at $5.99 and is available on the "History, Mystery and Miscellany" page at the Monroe St. Press website.<br />
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<br />Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-16384305263680198742018-04-05T17:58:00.000-07:002018-04-05T17:58:20.868-07:00"Idle Thoughts" Our newest offering is <i>Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow</i> by British author Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927).<br />
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Published in 1886, this collection of reflections on daily life in late Victorian England helped establish Jerome's reputation as a humorist, and contains many observations that are as accurate today as when they were written more than 130 years ago.<br />
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For example, in the very first essay, "On Being Idle," Jerome makes an important distinction between being idle and being merely lazy:<br />
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There are plenty of lazy people and plenty of slow-coaches, but a genuine idler is a rarity. He is not a man who slouches about with his hands in his pockets. On the contrary, his most startling characteristic is that he is always intensely busy.<br /> It is impossible to enjoy idling thoroughly unless one has plenty of work to do. There is no fun doing nothing when you have nothing to do. Wasting time is merely an occupation then, and a most exhausting one. Idleness, like kisses, to be sweet must be stolen. </blockquote>
Other topics addressed in <i>Idle Thoughts</i> include food, drink, fashion, money, apartment hunting, weather, shyness, depression, pets, babies, and love. There are many reflections that are witty and poignant as well as humorous:<br />
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"Love is like the measles; we all have to go through it. Also like the measles, we take it only once. One never need be afraid of catching it a second time."<br />"Each of us have an inborn conviction that the whole world, with everybody and everything in it, was created as a sort of necessary appendage to ourselves. Our fellow men and women were made to admire us and to minister to our various requirements.... I fear we are most of us like Mrs. Poyser's bantam cock, who fancied the sun got up every morning to hear him crow."<br />"If you are foolish enough to be contented, don't show it, but grumble with the rest; and if you can do with a little, ask for a great deal. Because if you don't, you won't get any.... If you can feel satisfied with a hundred, begin by insisting on a thousand; if you start by suggesting a hundred you will only get ten."<br />"I think it is only to us in cities that all weather is so unwelcome. In her own home, the country, Nature is sweet in all her moods... Weather in towns is like a skylark in a counting-house—out of place and in the way." </blockquote>
The author, born Jerome Clapp Jerome in Caldmore, England, changed his middle name to Klapka, apparently in honor of a Hungarian military hero (Gyorgy Klapka). After dropping out of school at age 15 due to his family's financial straits, he worked for a railroad, joined a traveling acting troupe, and worked as a clerk and a teacher. His first reasonably successful book was <i>On the Stage—and Off </i>(1885), a memoir of his years as an actor. <i>Idle Thoughts</i> was published the following year.<br />
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His best known work is <i>Three Men in a Boat</i> (1889), a comical tale of a trip down the Thames River. Other works by Jerome include its sequel <i>Three Men on the Bummel</i> (1898), the autobiographical novel <i>Paul Kelver</i> (1902), and <i>Diary of a Pilgrimage</i> (1891). He also composed numerous essays, articles, and stage plays and published his autobiography, <i>My Life and Times</i> (1926), a year before his death at age 68.<br />
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<i><a href="http://www.monroestpress.com/Gaming--How-To--and-Informational.html" target="_blank">Idle Thoughts</a></i> is now available at our website.Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-58175183796943762942018-03-27T20:30:00.001-07:002018-03-27T20:32:39.382-07:00Two new swashbuckling tales<span style="font-size: large;">Now that spring has arrived (sort of), if you're in the mood for some adventure, Monroe St. Press is offering two well-known swashbuckling tales, one set in Medieval England and the other during the French Revolution.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Men of Iron</i> (1891) by Howard Pyle tells the story of young Myles Falworth and his quest to restore the honor of his family during the reign of King Henry IV in the early 15th century. The novel includes illustrations by Pyle —who was also a well-known artist — and inspired the 1954 film <i>The Black Shield of Falworth</i> starring Tony Curtis. Its detailed description of the training and initiation process for aspiring knights have made it a favorite "coming of age" story for generations.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPKWf-lOjArBkwmY5OIFzz-1c34cV70pHFbwW4vyX7C_wJPuT8Ynfrgx658NwDM5yX4h65O0vSYvIhz6NiuIzJqzpIKg2DhzpJa-rNDoEvZl-I8lJO-zbbW7C_A0hanNWVoehNEFa7GuY/s1600/Men+of+Iron+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="313" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPKWf-lOjArBkwmY5OIFzz-1c34cV70pHFbwW4vyX7C_wJPuT8Ynfrgx658NwDM5yX4h65O0vSYvIhz6NiuIzJqzpIKg2DhzpJa-rNDoEvZl-I8lJO-zbbW7C_A0hanNWVoehNEFa7GuY/s320/Men+of+Iron+cover.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Meanwhile, <i>Scaramouche: A Romance of the French Revolution </i>by Rafael Sabatini (1921) recounts the adventures of Andre-Louis Moreau, a young lawyer caught up in the intrigues of a nation in upheaval. Born with "a gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad", Andre-Louis assumes several disguises in his quest for justice and truth, including that of a comedic actor in a traveling theater troupe. This novel also inspired a silent film in 1923 and a 1952 movie starring Stewart Granger that includes one of the longest sword fight scenes ever filmed.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZteTS4Rik8BSeb_esRyAfcUesv7mnUtRPVuo5o6ZZTGhBDCJFtZ0kwVqvAV5CscUsql-zgPhBjTqTf7uvNmd2C1OxIsL9-ogqq4chDOY9QIQKjHqEXAmdX96WH0aI1joI-Z25lCF5QtM/s1600/Scaramouche.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="313" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZteTS4Rik8BSeb_esRyAfcUesv7mnUtRPVuo5o6ZZTGhBDCJFtZ0kwVqvAV5CscUsql-zgPhBjTqTf7uvNmd2C1OxIsL9-ogqq4chDOY9QIQKjHqEXAmdX96WH0aI1joI-Z25lCF5QtM/s320/Scaramouche.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Both titles can be purchased <a href="http://www.monroestpress.com/" target="_blank">at our website</a>.</span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-10909161303944345742018-01-08T23:13:00.001-08:002018-01-08T23:13:31.238-08:00Two new vintage gaming guides<span style="font-size: large;">If you're looking for ways to entertain yourself or your family during these cold winter days, or if you have made a New Year's resolution to learn something new or challenge your mind, Monroe St. Press has just released two new titles that may be of interest. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Blue Book of Chess</i> by Howard Staunton was among the first comprehensive guides to the game of chess, composed by the British chess master (1810-1874) who organized the first international chess tournament in 1851 and popularized the "Staunton Design" for chess pieces still used today. First published in 1870, a later edition in 1910 added games and strategies used by other chess masters such as Emmanuel Lasker, Wilhelm Steinitz, Paul Morphy, and Adolf Anderssen. Monroe St. Press has reprinted the 1910 edition complete with diagrams and instructions. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Meanwhile,<i> Cassell's Book of In-door Amusements, Card Games, and Fireside Fun </i>(third edition, 1881) features hundreds of games and activities for all ages, including: </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">– classic party games such as Charades, Simon Says, and Blind Man's Buff</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">– rules for numerous card games including poker, whist, euchre, vingt-un (Twenty-One/Blackjack), and many variations</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">—directions and diagrams for do-it-yourself toys, puzzles, and crafts</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">—word and number puzzles and brain teasers </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">—sleight of hand magic tricks</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This book is a great resource for families, classrooms, historical presenters and reenactors, and for Victorian or Steampunk-themed events. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-2241320596821626132017-12-31T05:12:00.001-08:002018-03-31T14:43:26.823-07:00As we enter a new year....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">.... Monroe St. Press takes a quick look back at 2017. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We released 9 new titles this year, branching out into genres such as utopian/dystopian, non-fiction and satire: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>The Mystery of Edwin Drood</i> by Charles Dickens</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>The Iron Heel</i> by Jack London</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>Lord of the World</i> by Robert Hugh Benson</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>Edison's Conquest of Mars</i> by Garrett P. Serviss</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket</i> by Edgar Allan Poe</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>Around the World in 72 Days</i> by Nellie Bly</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>The Ladies' Guide to Perfect Manners</i> by Eliza Leslie</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>Scaramouche </i>by Rafael Sabatini </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-- <i>To Venus in Five Seconds</i> by Fred T. Jane </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Events that Monroe St. Press took part in this year were Winter War 44 in Champaign, Ill.; the Geneva Steam Convention in Delavan, Wis.; Heroicon in Decatur, Ill.; the Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Mo.; and Archon in Collinsville, Ill. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We plan to return to all these events in 2018, and also plan to make another appearance at Cog County Faire in Montello, Wis., which we attended in 2016. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">New titles for 2018 are already in the works, including vintage gaming books. We hope to add more non-fiction titles that could be used as reference guides for Victorian and Steampunk aficionados, historical reenactors, and others interested in preserving or learning more about the era. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Thanks to everyone who has visited our website, Facebook page or vendor table/booth this year! Hope your new year is as prosperous and creative as you wish it to be. </span><br />
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Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-2746633689496101462017-12-14T07:37:00.001-08:002017-12-14T07:37:20.438-08:00A rare and witty sci-fi satire<span style="font-size: large;">The author of Monroe St. Press' latest release is best known as the founder of the <i>Jane's</i> series of reference books on warships and aircraft. But Fred T. Jane was also known during his lifetime (1865-1916) as a fiction author and illustrator in his own right. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>To Venus in Five Seconds: An Account of the Strange Disappearance of Thomas Plummer, Pillmaker</i> (1897) pokes fun at the conventions of what was then known as "scientific romance", such as lost/hidden worlds, Egyptology, super-intelligent aliens, impossibly handsome Anglo-Saxon heroes, etc. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGi0y0yGqwntJ9Ij5e4SiqlT9yR6RoJghIumlK4LGwdxHfsXDEBDKnmTI-g_iuplNTlIwCtPHMvY3NN6E06iExxVGTrxHGQzSXcICI33RZnjxYqyf4GpKzWAK0y0NNCZ_AvQIQnkgkqnM/s1600/To_Venus_in_Five_Sec_Cover_for_Kindle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1001" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGi0y0yGqwntJ9Ij5e4SiqlT9yR6RoJghIumlK4LGwdxHfsXDEBDKnmTI-g_iuplNTlIwCtPHMvY3NN6E06iExxVGTrxHGQzSXcICI33RZnjxYqyf4GpKzWAK0y0NNCZ_AvQIQnkgkqnM/s320/To_Venus_in_Five_Sec_Cover_for_Kindle.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The title itself parodies the full title of Jules Verne's <i>From the Earth to the Moon, Direct Course in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes.</i> It recounts the improbable adventure of a young medical student with (as the reader is repeatedly reminded) a "splendid physique" but not so splendid intellect, who finds himself transported to Venus by a mysterious "lady doctor". </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In his quest to return to Earth, our hero faces multiple obstacles such as blinding sunlight, giant bug-like creatures, humanoid vivisectionists bent on capturing him for ghastly medical experiments, and tedious scientific discourses. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Venus</i> was one of several speculative fiction works that Jane wrote and illustrated. His other works include <i>Blake of the "Rattlesnake"</i> (1895), a future submarine war adventure; <i>The Incubated Girl</i> (1896), in which a young woman is hatched from an egg found in an ancient Egyptian tomb; and <i>The Violet Flame</i> (1899), an end-of-the-world tale. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Contemporary works that Jane illustrated include George Griffith's <i>Angel of the Revolution</i> (1893) and <i>Olga Romanoff/The Syren of the Skies</i> (1894). His interest in and talent for drawing ships eventually prompted him to publish <i>All the World's Fighting Ships</i> (1898), the first in what would become an annual series of guidebooks to naval vessels and military aircraft. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>To Venus in Five Seconds</i> is <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Venus-Five-Seconds-Disappearance-Pillmaker/dp/1981525475/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1513251804&sr=8-1&keywords=to+venus+in+five+seconds" target="_blank">now available</a> at Amazon for $5.99. </span><br />
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Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7945287571507513984.post-15592589782558729462017-11-27T07:38:00.000-08:002017-11-27T07:40:46.909-08:00The Victorian Era's "Miss Manners" <span style="font-size: large;">Our newest offering at Monroe St. Press is <i>The Ladies' Guide to Perfect Manners</i> by Eliza Leslie (1787-1858), one of the first recognized domestic experts in antebellum America. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Originally published in 1853 as "Miss Leslie's Behaviour Book", the<i> Ladies' Guide </i>covers almost every subject of interest to the middle/upper class woman of the era -- entertaining family and friends, travel tips, shopping, correspondence, how to address and introduce others, imparting good manners to children, and much more. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Born in Philadelphia, Eliza Leslie spent six years of her childhood in England. After her father's death, her mother managed a boardinghouse. These experiences likely influenced her tips on how travelers and boarders should behave courteously toward other guests and staff. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Miss Leslie attended a cooking school operated by Elizabeth Goodfellow, a well-known confectionery/bakery owner in Philadelphia. This experience inspired her to collect and publish her favorite recipes (then referred to as "reciepts") in her book <i>Seventy-Five Reciepts for Pastries, Cakes and Sweetmeats</i> (1828). The success of this book led to her publishing others, including her best known work, <i>Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches </i>(1837), which stayed in print through the 1890s. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the 1840s she began branching out into popular literature. She published an annual collection of fiction titled <i>The Gift: A Christmas and New Year's Present, </i>which included short stories and poems by Edgar Allan Poe, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and others. She also contributed to Godey's Lady's Book, the Saturday Evening Post, and other popular periodicals. The effects of her fame as a writer are addressed in one chapter of <i>The Ladies' Guide</i>, which discusses how to communicate courteously with authors. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">While much of the book's advice addresses now-obsolete or rarely used forms of transportation and technology (such as maintaining coal or wood stoves or traveling by steamship) and inevitably reflects the ideas, culture and prejudices of her era, there is much that is still useful and practical. It also can be used as a reference work by Victorian and Steampunk aficionados and historical reenactors. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Ladies' Guide to Perfect Manners</i> is now available at the Monroe St. Press website. Cost is $10. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Bookwormhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12891452878064992022noreply@blogger.com0