Monthly Archives: August 2019

My Author Interview for NF Reads

Posted on August 28, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

I recently took part in an interview for an author/reader site. I thought perhaps you might be interested – I have placed a link to the entire piece here. What are the real-life stories behind your books? The struggle of … Continue reading →

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On Hong Kong

Posted on August 25, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

The third-most read post on my blog is a simple book review of “In Order To Live”, the auto-biography of Yeonmi Park. More interestingly, most of the hits come from Hong Kong. I didn’t notice this at first; the visits … Continue reading →

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Powerlessness in a Sea of Prosperity

Posted on August 25, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

The dust has settled upon the latest mass-shootings in America. Those seeking political gain from the tragedy of others have wandered off to find another target for their rage, their powerlessness. Powerless to maneuver the course of a country in … Continue reading →

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Heart of Darkness

Posted on August 22, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

There is something magical about Joseph Conrad’s writing – enrapturing, eloquent, filled with spirit and yearning. Full of humanity; lost people in lost places doing terrible and wonderful things. And “Heart of Darkness”? His arguably most famous work – written … Continue reading →

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“Six Characters”, Absurdism and Madness

Posted on August 18, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

There’s a scene in The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand which has Ellsworth Toohey forming a new organization called the “Council of American Writers” – a group of bad writers, some who refuse to use punctuation and others who use literature … Continue reading →

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“Why Should I Listen To You?”

Posted on August 17, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

“Why should I listen to you?” wise man said; “You hatched that fool plan in the small of your head; It has no more chance in the world to succeed; Than does son of a horse and a donkey to … Continue reading →

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“After The Flight 93 Election” – A Book Review

Posted on August 12, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

Most of humanity lead lives of quiet desperation. Yes, I think I’ve heard that somewhere… We awake, we go to work, we fight with a colleague or eat too much for lunch and then back home fighting traffic – feed … Continue reading →

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“Monsoon” – A Book Review

Posted on August 11, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

I have now read enough of Robert Kaplan to understand the central thesis of his writing on geo-politics: that geography matters. That the world has not changed much, not really, from the days when the dhows plowed the Indian Ocean … Continue reading →

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