Scholars trace the legacy of literary horror back to the British Gothic fictions of the eighteenth century, when castles were haunted, monks were evil, and anywhere beyond the edges of Protestant England was tinged sinister.  Others locate the genre’s origins in a slate of late-Victorian novels and their roster of horror icons.  Dracula, Dorian Gray, Dr. Jekyll--these figures emerged from a culture in crisis, when twin anxieties about masculinity and modernity birthed urban nightmares.  Contemporary readers may look no further than the horror ‘boom’ of the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s.  It was an era dominated by brand-name authors, with epic sales and matching page-lengths.  Read a list of the “50 best horror books of all time” by Neil McRobert at https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/g37676766/scary-horror-books/

On June 4, 2017, nearly 200 people descended on a quiet block in Albuquerque, N.M.  While the Jir Project, a band from Cochiti Pueblo, played in the shade, visitors from across the state poured into Red Planet Books and Comics, which claims to be the only Native comic book store in the world.  Outside, artists exhibited their work and signed books, and inside, comic fans browsed the graphic novels, children’s books, and nonfiction works—mostly by Indigenous creators.  The store’s founder, Lee Francis IV, a member of the Laguna Pueblo, hadn’t expected such a turnout and said that he sold nearly all the books shop had.  The warm, festival-like atmosphere and scores of fans had welcomed the bookstore to the community.  https://www.thenation.com/article/culture/red-planet-comics-new-mexico/ 

All 27 Amendments to the United States Constitution http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/education/all_amendments_usconst.htm 

The Bill of Rights resulted from compromises between federalist and anti-federalist framers of the Constitution of the United States.  The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was convened to solve the problems related to the weak national government under the Articles of Confederation.  Prominent federalists like James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay advocated for a completely new government under the United States Constitution.  Anti-federalists like Patrick Henry, Melancton Smith, and George Clinton argued that the national government proposed under the Constitution would be too powerful and would infringe on individual liberties.  They thought the Articles of Confederation needed amended, not replaced.  Although the federalists succeeded in passing the Constitution, anti-federalists won compromises and successfully advocated for the addition of the Bill of Rights, which they thought would protect individual freedoms and rights from national power.  Federalists objected to the addition of the Bill of Rights because they believed it was unnecessary given the enumerated powers of the federal government.  Federalists thought the Bill of Rights would undermine the enumerated limits of the government and that the identification of specific rights could give the national government the grounds to destroy rights that were not specifically identified.  The Ninth Amendment was created to mitigate federalist concerns, explicitly stating, "The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."  https://ballotpedia.org/Ninth_Amendment_to_the_U.S._Constitution 

Illusions:  The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah is a novel by writer and pilot Richard Bach.  First published in 1977, the story questions the reader's view of reality, proposing that what we call reality is merely an illusion we create for learning and enjoyment.  Illusions was the author's follow-up to 1970's Jonathan Livingston Seagull. 

Illusions revolves around two barnstorming pilots who meet in a field in the Midwestern United States.  The two main characters enter into a teacher-student relationship that explains the concept that the world that we inhabit is illusory, as well as the underlying reality behind it.  Donald William Shimoda is a messiah who quits his job after deciding that people value the showbiz-like performance of miracles and want to be entertained by those miracles more than to understand the message behind them.  He meets Richard, a fellow barnstorming pilot.  Both are in the business of providing short rides—for a few dollars each—in vintage biplanes to passengers from farmers' fields they find during their travels.  Donald initially captures Richard's attention when a grandfather and granddaughter arrive at the makeshift airstrip.  Ordinarily it is elders who are cautious and the youngsters who are keen to fly.  In this case, however, the grandfather wants to fly but the granddaughter is afraid of flying.  Donald explains to the granddaughter that her fear of flying comes from a traumatic experience in a past life, and this calms her fears and she is ready to fly. Observing this greatly intrigues Richard, so Donald begins to pass on his knowledge to him, even teaching Richard to perform "miracles" of his own.  The novel features quotes from the Messiah's Handbook, owned by Shimoda, which Richard later takes as his own.  An unusual aspect of this handbook is that it has no page numbers.  The reason for this, as Shimoda explains to Richard, is that the book will open to the page on which the reader may find guidance or the answers to doubts and questions in his mind.  It is not a magical book; Shimoda explains that one can do this with any sort of text.  The Messiah's Handbook was released as its own title by Hampton Roads Publishing Company.  It mimics the one described in Illusions, with new quotes based on the philosophies in the novel.  An adaptation of Illusions was serialized in the comic strip Best Sellers Showcase running June 19 through July 30, 1978.  In 2014, Bach published Illusions II:  The Adventures of a Reluctant Student after surviving a serious plane crash.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusions_(Bach_novel) 

Ada Limón was named by the Library of Congress as the nation's 24th poet laureate on July 12. 2022.  She will take over in September from Joy Harjo, who has held the position since 2019.   Harjo was only the second poet laureate to be named to a third term; Robert Pinsky also holds that honor.  Limón's latest collection, The Hurting Kind, was published in May, 2022.  Limón has published six poetry collections and is the host of the podcast The Slowdown.  She also teaches in the MFA program at Queens University of Charlotte.  Meghan Collins Sullivan  https://www.npr.org/2022/07/12/1110804783/ada-limon-named-new-u-s-poet-laureate

 Love is so short and forgetting is so long. - Pablo Neruda, poet, diplomat, Nobel laureate (12 Jul 1904-1973)

 http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2539  July 12. 2022