Italian Foxes, Poison Pen Letters, Author Fighters, Poem Joy & More: Endnotes 01 March

Italian Foxes, Poison Pen Letters, Author Fighters, Poem Joy & More: Endnotes 01 March

Friday, 1 March, 2024

Every Friday, we celebrate the weekend — and all the reading and relaxing and daydreaming time ahead — with Melissa's favorite book- and travel-related links of the week. Why work when you can read fun stuff?!

This post is part of our Endnotes series.

rule

The pretty red fox above lives in an equally picturesque area: Parco della Maremma (also known as Parco dell’Uccellina) a stretch of coast along the Mediterranean that boasts forest, mountains, and a pristine beach. You can tour on horseback, bicycle, canoe, or on foot — and along the way you might meet deer, badgers, fox, porcupines, hares, martens, maybe a wolf or wild boar, and the ancient Maremma cattle. There are also geese, cranes, osprey, falcons, woodpeckers, and owls. Basically, if you go there, you’re a Disney prince or princess. Enjoy this short video tour (with an excellent soundtrack); this is also a good one.

  • The real-life story on which the new film Wicked Little Letters is based. ‘The unusual part of this is that these letters were tapping into neighboring issues to do with dirty back gardens. It’s a way of understanding neighboring — particularly feminine neighboring — at the time.’

  • Eugène-François Vidocq and the birth of the detective: ‘According to his memoirs, Eugène-François Vidocq escaped from more than twenty prisons (sometimes dressed as a nun). Working on the other side of the law, he apprehended some 4000 criminals with a team of plainclothes agents. He founded the first criminal investigation bureau — staffed mainly with convicts — and, when he was later fired, the first private detective agency. He was one the fathers of modern criminology and had a rap sheet longer than his very tall tales.’

  • Have you ever played Street Fighter and thought to yourself, ‘I would enjoy this game so much more if it was Leo Tolstoy wailing on Charles Dickens. I just can’t enjoy a fighting game unless it’s made up of classic writers!’ This is the game for you:

 
 
 

New Episode of The Library of Lost Time

In each mini-podcast episode, we discuss two books at the top of our TBR, then share a fun book- or travel-related distraction. Get all the episodes and books galore here.

actor david tennant wearing gray and black standing on an empty stage in a spotlight
Photo courtesy of Marc Brenner.

In this episode, we get excited about two books: Lives of the Monster Dogs by Kirsten Bakis and Transient and Strange: Notes on the Science of Life by Nell Greenfieldboyce. Then Mel talks about how she’s delving into Shakespeare. [transcript]

This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/StrongSense and get on your way to being your best self.

Distraction of the Week: Delving into Shakespeare

 

By the pricking of my thumbs, something awesome this way comes.

Top image courtesy of Federico Di Dio Photography/Unsplash.

Want to keep up with our book-related adventures? Sign up for our newsletter!

keep reading

Every Friday, we share our favorite book- and travel-related links. This week, we've got a sneak peek at TV's A Gentleman in Moscow, aphrodisiacs from around the world, colorful cities, a tricksy word quiz, and more.
Every Friday, we share our favorite book- and travel-related links. This week, we've got Rosa Parks' peanut butter pancakes, glass igloos in Greenland, temples carved out of rock, bejeweled book covers, and more.
Every Friday, we share our favorite book- and travel-related links. This week, we've got books at the edge of the world, artistic hummus, a deep dive into a Manet painting, the return of edgy EC Comics, and more.

sharing is caring!

Can you help us? If you like this article, share it your friends!

our mission

Strong Sense of Place is a website and podcast dedicated to literary travel and books we love. Reading good books increases empathy. Empathy is good for all of us and the amazing world we inhabit.

our patreon

Strong Sense of Place is a listener-supported podcast. If you like the work we do, you can help make it happen by joining our Patreon! That'll unlock bonus content for you, too — including Mel's secret book reviews and Dave's behind-the-scenes notes for the latest Two Truths and a Lie.

get our newsletter

Join our Substack to get our FREE newsletter with podcast updates and behind-the-scenes info — and join in fun chats about books and travel with other lovely readers.

no spoilers. ever.

We'll share enough detail to help you decide if a book is for you, but we'll never ruin plot twists or give away the ending.

super-cool reading fun
reading atlas

This 30-page Reading Atlas takes you around the world with dozens of excellent books and gorgeous travel photos. Get your free copy when you subscribe to our newsletter.

get our newsletter
Sign up for our free Substack!
follow us

Content on this site is ©2024 by Smudge Publishing, unless otherwise noted. Peace be with you, person who reads the small type.