Jeeves, family, cyberpunk and fables in Second Life

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home at Holly Kai Park, unless otherwise indicated.

Sunday, July 28th 13:30: Tea Time with Jeeves

Just for summer, Seanchai Library takes a dive into the world of Reginald Jeeves, a well-educated, intelligent valets of indeterminate age who is employed by the amiable young man-about-town, Bertie Wooster, whom Jeeves routinely has to benignly rescue from the consequences of his idiocy.

Created by author, humorist, and lyricist (working with Guy Bolton and Jerome Kern) Pelham Grenville Wodehouse (October 1881 – February 1975), Jeeves and Wooster are perhaps his most iconic characters, their adventures eventually growing to 35 short stories and 11 novels, the majority of which are first-person narrated from the perspective of Bertie Wooster.

In The Aunt and the Sluggard Bertie again finds things getting a little problematic as a result of a relative of a friend.

Rockmetteller “Rocky” Todd is the kind who prefers quiet country living, but his aunt wants him to make a move to New York City so he can send her a weekly letter describing city life. Thus he faces a dilemma. The allowance his aunt is willing to pay Rocky to help with living in New York would be most welcome – as would continuing to be remembered in her will. But living in the city is something Rocky would rather not contemplate – and so he turns to Bertie for help.

Inevitably, it is Jeeves who comes up with a possible solution: why not pay someone else to stay in New York and write notes on city life that Rocky can then incorporate into letters to his aunt? Bertie takes the idea a stage further: Jeeves can write about his evenings at his club, about the celebrities there, and more.

Everything proceeds swimmingly until Rocky’s aunt arrives on Bertie’s doorstep – his apartment is the address Rocky has been using for his letters, so she believes it is Rocky’s New York home. And thus things threaten to unravel…

Join Da5id Abbot, Kayden Oconnell, and Caledonia Skytower as they read this delightful series at Ceiliuradh Glen.

Monday, July 29th 19:00: The Ice is Coming

Gyro Muggins reads Patricia Wrightson’s 1977 novel.

Frost is seen in summer and ice patches form in spite of the hot Australian sun. To the Happy Folk, living on the continent’s green edges, the frost is a reason to laugh and joke. For the Inlanders (Wrightson’s fantasy view of the Australian Aboriginals), however, the frost was once seen as a warning that an ancient foe, the ice-bearded Ninya, were on the rise – and so it might be that they are again.

The first to recognise the rise of the old threat is young Wirrun of the People. He leaves his job and sets out to meet the Ninya, taking with him as a sidekick, the petulant Mimi, and for protection, the Power bestowed by the first of the creatures in their path.

To assist in his quest, Wirrun sends for the men from Mount Conner to sing the Ninya down and keep them in their caves. But he must also beat the Ninya to the Eldest Nargun, source of fire, and use it to hold the Ninya until the men from Mount Conner arrive. And so his adventure begins.

Tuesday, July 30th 19:00: The Penderwicks in Spring

Springtime is finally arriving on Gardam Street, and there are surprises in store for each member of the family. Some surprises are just wonderful, like neighbour Nick Geiger coming home from war. And some are ridiculous, like Batty’s new dog-walking business.

Batty is saving up her dog-walking money for an extra-special surprise for her family, which she plans to present on her upcoming birthday. But when some unwelcome surprises make themselves known, the best-laid plans fall apart.

Filled with all the heart, hilarity, and charm that has come to define this beloved clan, The Penderwicks in Spring is about fun and family and friends (and dogs), and what happens when you bring what’s hidden into the bright light of the spring sun.

Dive into Jeanne Birdsall’s classic revisiting to the lives of the Penderwicks, read by Caledonia Skytower.

Wednesday, July 31st: A Cyberpunk Summer

Short stories with Finn Zeddmore.

Thursday, August 1st 19:00: The Sea King’s Daughter

Deep beneath the Irish Sea lies a kingdom beyond mortal men’s imagining… Until one day a fisherman finds a beautiful maiden washed ashore. She cannot speak to him in any voice, though her yearning shines from her eyes. But with forces of land and sea arrayed between them, will they ever find their happy ending?

With Shandon Loring, also Also in Kitely – teleport from the main Seanchai World grid.kitely.com:8002:SEANCHAI.

 

NOTE: Seanchai library is taking a break between August 5th and 10th for a summer break.

Peaches, ice, spring and summer in Second Life

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home at Holly Kai Park, unless otherwise indicated.

Sunday, July 21st 18:30: James and the Giant Peach

Caledonia Skytower reads Roald Dahl’s first and most widely celebrated book for young people at a part of the Magicland Storytime series.

When his parents are killed by a rhinoceros that has escaped from the zoo, 4-year-old James Henry Trotter is forced to live with Spiker and Sponge, his mean-spirited aunts, who treat him badly.

One day, after an argument with his aunts, James runs from the house, only to meet a strange man who gives him a small sack. He tells James that if he goes home and makes a potion using the sack’s contents, something spectacular will happen.

Excited, James runs home to carry out the instructions, but he trips, spilling the contents of the sack, which fall into the ground alongside of a barren peach tree, apparently lost, and a despondent, James re-enters the cruel world of his aunts. But then Things begin to happen: a peach starts to grow at the top of the tree. And it grows, and grows and grows, until it is as big as a house.

Then, by chance, James discovers a secret entranceway into the fruit and crawls in. Once inside, he meets wonderful new friends: the Old-Green-Grasshopper, the dainty Ladybug, and the Centipede of the multiple boots. After years of loneliness, James finally found a place where he belongs. With a snip of the stem, the peach household starts rolling away – and the adventure begins!

Monday, July 22nd 19:00: The Ice is Coming

Gyro Muggins reads Patricia Wrightson’s 1977 novel.

Frost is seen in summer and ice patches form in spite of the hot Australian sun. To the Happy Folk, living on the continent’s green edges the frost is a reason to laugh and joke. For the Inlanders (Wrightson’s fantasy view of the Australian Aboriginals) however, the frost was once seen as a warning that an ancient foe, the ice-bearded Ninya, were on the rise – and so it might be that they are again.

The first to recognise the rise of the old threat is young Wirrun of the People. He leaves his job and sets out to meet the Ninya, taking with him as a sidekick, the petulant Mimi, and for protection, the Power bestowed by the first of the creatures in their path.

To assist in his quest, Wirrun sends for the men from Mount Conner to sing the Ninya down and keep them in their caves. But he must also beat the Ninya to the Eldest Nargun, source of fire, and use it to hold the Ninya until the men from Mount Conner arrive. And so his adventure begins.

Tuesday, July 23rd 19:00: The Penderwicks in Spring

Springtime is finally arriving on Gardam Street, and there are surprises in store for each member of the family. Some surprises are just wonderful, like neighbour Nick Geiger coming home from war. And some are ridiculous, like Batty’s new dog-walking business.

Batty is saving up her dog-walking money for an extra-special surprise for her family, which she plans to present on her upcoming birthday. But when some unwelcome surprises make themselves known, the best-laid plans fall apart.

Filled with all the heart, hilarity, and charm that has come to define this beloved clan, The Penderwicks in Spring is about fun and family and friends (and dogs), and what happens when you bring what’s hidden into the bright light of the spring sun.

Dive into Jeanne Birdsall’s classic revisiting to the lives of the Penderwicks, read by Caledonia Skytower.

Wednesday, July 24th: A Cyberpunk Summer

Short stories with Finn Zeddmore.

Thursday, July 25th

19:00: Sarra Cannon’s Loxley

In a dystopian world where citizens log into The Realm, an on-line world, to escape from their dark reality, one hacker fights to make a difference as she goes in search of a rare artefact. From Once Upon A Star: 14 SF-Inspired Faerie Tales. Also in Kitely – teleport from the main Seanchai World grid.kitely.com:8002:SEANCHAI.

21:00 Seanchai Late Night

Contemporary sci-fi with Finn Zeddmore.

 

Relatives, ice men, family, and telling life’s story

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home at Holly Kai Park, unless otherwise indicated.

Sunday, July 14th 13:00: Tea Time with Jeeves

Just for summer, Seanchai Library takes a dive into the world of Reginald Jeeves, a well-educated, intelligent valets of indeterminate age who is employed by the amiable young man-about-town, Bertie Wooster, whom Jeeves routinely has to benignly rescue from the consequences of his idiocy.

Created by author, humorist, and lyricist (working with Guy Bolton and Jerome Kern) Pelham Grenville Wodehouse (October 1881 – February 1975), Jeeves and Wooster are perhaps his most iconic characters, their adventures eventually growing to 35 short stories and 11 novels, the majority of which are first-person narrated from the perspective of Bertie Wooster.

In Jeeves and the Hard-Boiled Egg things get very turned around as – once again – things go sideways, thanks to the relative of one of Bertie’s friends.

Set in New York, the tale sees Bertie visited by his friend “Bicky” Bickersteth, who is in something of a panic. Bicky has been living off of an allowance supplied to him by his uncle, the Duke of Chiswick – the condition being that Bicky use the allowance to improve himself financially, which he hasn’t found particularly appealing. Now his uncle is coming to New York to see just how well he is doing.

At Jeeves’ suggestion, Bertie and Bicky hit on a plan: Bicky will pretend to own Bertie’s apartment and Bertie will pose as his valet. To ensure things don’t get too out of hand, Jeeves will take on the role of Bicky’s visiting friend.

Things start out well enough: the Duke of Chiswick arrives and is duly impressed with the apartment and Bicky’s apparent success. Perhaps a little too well: the Duke has decided that since Bicky is doing so well, he doesn’t actually require any allowance.

From here, confusion steps in, involving chickens, handshakes-for-money, and a touch of blackmail; but it all leads to a satisfactory outcome, one that also includes the loss of a moustache that has caused some distress…

Join Da5id Abbot, Kayden Oconnell, and Caledonia Skytower as they read this delightful series at Ceiliuradh Glen.

Monday, July 15th 19:00: The Ice is Coming

Gyro Muggins reads Patricia Wrightson’s 1977 novel.

Frost is seen in summer and ice patches form in spite of the hot Australian sun. To the Happy Folk, living on the continent’s green edges, the frost is a reason to laugh and joke. For the Inlanders (Wrightson’s fantasy view of the Australian Aboriginals), however, the frost was once seen as a warning that an ancient foe, the ice-bearded Ninya, were on the rise – and so it might be that they are again.

The first to recognise the rise of the old threat is young Wirrun of the People. He leaves his job and sets out to meet the Ninya, taking with him as a sidekick, the petulant Mimi, and for protection, the Power bestowed by the first of the creatures in their path.

To assist in his quest, Wirrun sends for the men from Mount Conner to sing the Ninya down and keep them in their caves. But he must also beat the Ninya to the Eldest Nargun, source of fire, and use it to hold the Ninya until the men from Mount Conner arrive. And so his adventure begins.

Tuesday, July 16th 19:00: The Penderwicks in Spring

Springtime is finally arriving on Gardam Street, and there are surprises in store for each member of the family. Some surprises are just wonderful, like neighbour Nick Geiger coming home from war. And some are ridiculous, like Batty’s new dog-walking business.

Batty is saving up her dog-walking money for an extra-special surprise for her family, which she plans to present on her upcoming birthday. But when some unwelcome surprises make themselves known, the best-laid plans fall apart.

Filled with all the heart, hilarity, and charm that has come to define this beloved clan, The Penderwicks in Spring is about fun and family and friends (and dogs), and what happens when you bring what’s hidden into the bright light of the spring sun.

Dive into Jeanne Birdsall’s classic revisiting to the lives of the Penderwicks, read by Caledonia Skytower.

Wednesday, July 17th: The Faraway Nearby

In this exquisitely written personal, lyrical narrative about storytelling and empathy, Rebecca Solnit explores the ways we make our lives out of stories, and how we are connected by empathy, by narrative and by imagination.

In the course of unpacking some of her own stories – of her mother and her decline from memory loss, of a trip to Iceland, of an illness – Solnit revisits fairy tales and other stories as she considers life. Her ruminations carry her through tales of Arctic explorers and of Che Guevara’s time among the lepers of the San Pablo colony in Peru during his great motorcycle ides around and through South America in 1951 and 1952; through to the romantic horror of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and more.

Through these and other stories, Solnit consider the lives and works of artists and activists who experienced tremendous growth after witnessing or enduring great pain, and uses fairy tales to examine the idea of self-transformation. In doing so, she weaves these stories, real and fantastical, into a tapestry that charts the territories and extent of storytelling and shows how it allows us to explore, understand and even reframe who we are and how we might tell our own story.

Join Caledonia Skytower as she reads selections from this remarkable book.

Thursday, July 18th 19:00: Monsters and Myths

Shandon Loring resumes a tour through Bernard Evslin’s examination of monsters and myths with The Sphinx – Part 1. Also Also in Kitely – teleport from the main Seanchai World grid.kitely.com:8002:SEANCHAI.

 

A little more Jeeves and ice for summer in Second Life

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home at Holly Kai Park, unless otherwise indicated.

Sunday, July 7th

13:00: Tea Time with Jeeves

Just for summer, Seanchai Library takes a dive into the world of Reginald Jeeves, a well-educated, intelligent valets of indeterminate age who is employed by the amiable young man-about-town, Bertie Wooster, whom Jeeves routinely has to benignly rescue from the consequences of his idiocy.

Created by author, humorist, and lyricist (working with Guy Bolton and Jerome Kern) Pelham Grenville Wodehouse (October 1881 – February 1975), Jeeves and Wooster are perhaps his most iconic characters, although they didn’t arrive until he was into his “second” period as a writer, which commenced in 1915 (the first having ended in 1908), when they had their first outing in the short story Extricating Young Gussie, published by the Saturday Evening Post in September 1915. However, it was arguably not until Leave It to Jeeves, published in 1916, that the pair were recognisably “themselves”.

The Jeeves series came at a time when Wodehouse also enjoy Broadway success through his partnership with Bolton and Kern (1915-1919). However with the popularity of his stories increasing in both the US and back in the UK, Wodehouse started to focus more on his stories and novels. This allowed the Jeeves series to eventually grow to 35 short stories and 11 novels, the majority of which are first-person narrated from the perspective of Bertie Wooster.

As the popularity of the series grew, so too did it start to be translated to film, radio and, later, to television. In the latter regard, the comedy team of Hugh Laurie (Wooster) and Stephen Fry (Jeeves) in Jeeves and Wooster, is perhaps the quintessential representation of the pair. Airing from 1990 through 1993 in the UK, the series set all the stories in a period spanning the 1920-1930s, with each 50-minute episode taking its title from a Jeeves story, but often combining two or more of the tales into its plot. It is not unfair to say the series introduced Wodehouse, Jeeves and Wooster to a new generation of fans.

For their outing in Jeeves’ world, Seanchai Library delve into My Man Jeeves. Published in 1919, it draws together four early outings for the series, all originally published in the Saturday Evening Post, with Jeeves and the Unbidden Guest, first published in December 1916, the subject for this session.

Join Da5id Abbot, Kayden Oconnell, and Caledonia Skytower as they read this delightful series at Ceiliuradh Glen.

18:00: James and the Giant Peach

Caledonia Skytower continues Roald Dahl’s classic at the Magicland Golden Horseshoe.

Monday, July 8th 19:00: The Ice is Coming

Gyro Muggins reads Patricia Wrightson’s 1977 novel.

Frost is seen in summer and ice patches form in spite of the hot Australian sun. To the Happy Folk, living on the continent’s green edges the frost is a reason to laugh and joke. For the Inlanders (Wrightson’s fantasy view of the Australian Aboriginals), however, the frost was once seen as a warning that an ancient foe, the ice-bearded Ninya, were on the rise – and so it might be that they are again.

The first to recognise the rise of the old threat is young Wirrun of the People. He leaves his job and sets out to meet the Ninya, taking with him as a sidekick, the petulant Mimi, and for protection, the Power bestowed by the first of the creatures in their path.

To assist in his quest, Wirrun sends for the men from Mount Conner to sing the Ninya down and keep them in their caves. But he must also beat the Ninya to the Eldest Nargun, source of fire, and use it to hold the Ninya until the men from Mount Conner arrive. And so his adventure begins.

Tuesday, July 9th 19:00: The Penderwicks in Spring

Springtime is finally arriving on Gardam Street, and there are surprises in store for each member of the family. Some surprises are just wonderful, like neighbour Nick Geiger coming home from war. And some are ridiculous, like Batty’s new dog-walking business. Batty is saving up her dog-walking money for an extra-special surprise for her family, which she plans to present on her upcoming birthday. But when some unwelcome surprises make themselves known, the best-laid plans fall apart.

Filled with all the heart, hilarity, and charm that has come to define this beloved clan, The Penderwicks in Spring is about fun and family and friends (and dogs), and what happens when you bring what’s hidden into the bright light of the spring sun.

With Caledonia Skytower.

Wednesday, July 10th: TBA

Check the Seanchai website for updates..

Thursday, July 11th

19:00: Monsters and Myths

Shandon Loring resumes a tour through Bernard Evslin’s examination of monsters and myths with The Sphinx – Part 1. Also Also in Kitely – teleport from the main Seanchai World grid.kitely.com:8002:SEANCHAI.

21:00: Seanchai Late Night

Contemporary Sci-Fi-Fantasy with Finn Zeddmore.

 

Jeeves with ice and a little poetry

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home at Holly Kai Park, unless otherwise indicated.

Sunday, June 30th 13:00: Tea Time with Jeeves

A new series just for summer, featuring Reginald Jeeves, a well-educated, intelligent valets of indeterminate age who is employed by the amiable young man-about-town, Bertie Wooster, whom Jeeves routinely has to benignly rescue from the consequences of his idiocy.

Created by author, humorist, and lyricist (working with Guy Bolton and Jerome Kern) Pelham Grenville Wodehouse (October 1881 – February 1975), Jeeves and Wooster are perhaps his most iconic characters, although they didn’t arrive until he was into his “second” period as a writer, which commenced in 1915 (the first having ended in 1908). They appeared as Wodehouse turned his hand to a more farcical style of writing through what would become his other popular series of stories that documented the goings-on at the fiction English stately home of Blandings Castle.

Jeeves and Wooster had their first outing in the short story Extricating Young Gussie, published by the Saturday Evening Post in September 1915. However, it was arguably not until Leave It to Jeeves, published in 1916, that the pair were recognisably “themselves”.

Both the Blanding Castle and the Jeeves series came at a time when Wodehouse also enjoy Broadway success through his partnership with Bolton and Kern (1915-1919). However with the popularity of his stories increasing in both the US and back in the UK, Wodehouse started to focus more on his stories and novels. This allowed the Jeeves series to eventually grow to 35 short stories and 11 novels, the majority of which are first-person narrated from the perspective of Bertie Wooster.

As the popularity of the series grew, so too did it start to be translated to film, radio and, later, to television. In the latter regard, the comedy team of Hugh Laurie (Wooster) and Stephen Fry (Jeeves) in Jeeves and Wooster, is perhaps the quintessential representation of the pair. Airing from 1990 through 1993 in the UK, the series set all the stories in a period spanning the 1920-1930s, with each 50-minute episode taking its title from a Jeeves story, but often combining two or more of the tales into its plot. It is not unfair to say the series introduced Wodehouse, Jeeves and Wooster to a new generation of fans.

For their outing in Jeeves’ world, Seanchai Library delve into My Man Jeeves. Published in 1919, it draws together four early outings for the series, all originally published in the Saturday Evening Post:

  • Leave It to Jeeves, first published in February 1916.
  • The Aunt and the Sluggard, first published in April 1916.
  • Jeeves and the Unbidden Guest, first published in December 1916.
  • Jeeves and the Hard-boiled Egg, first published in March 1917.

Join Da5id Abbot, Kayden Oconnell, and Caledonia Skytower as the read this delightful series at Ceiliuradh Glen.

Monday, July 1st 19:00: The Ice is Coming

Gyro Muggins reads Patricia Wrightson’s 1977 novel.

Frost is seen in summer and ice patches form in spite of the hot Australian sun. To the Happy Folk, living on the continent’s green edges live the Happy Folk. For the Inlanders (Wrightson’s fantasy view of the Australian Aboriginals), however, the frost was once seen as a warning that an ancient foe, the ice-bearded Ninya, were on the rise – and so it might be that they are again.

The first to recognise the rise of the old threat is young Wirrun of the People. He leaves his job and sets out to meet the Ninya, taking with him as a sidekick, the petulant Mimi, and for protection, the Power bestowed by the first of the creatures in their path.

To assist in his quest, Wirrun sends for the men from Mount Conner to sing the Ninya down and keep them in their caves. But he must also beat the Ninya to the Eldest Nargun, source of fire, and use it to hold the Ninya until the men from Mount Conner arrive. And so his adventure begins.

Tuesday, July 2nd 19:00: The Penderwicks in Spring

Springtime is finally arriving on Gardam Street, and there are surprises in store for each member of the family. Some surprises are just wonderful, like neighbour Nick Geiger coming home from war. And some are ridiculous, like Batty’s new dog-walking business. Batty is saving up her dog-walking money for an extra-special surprise for her family, which she plans to present on her upcoming birthday. But when some unwelcome surprises make themselves known, the best-laid plans fall apart.

Filled with all the heart, hilarity, and charm that has come to define this beloved clan, The Penderwicks in Spring is about fun and family and friends (and dogs), and what happens when you bring what’s hidden into the bright light of the spring sun.

With Caledonia Skytower.

Wednesday, July 3rd 19:00: Poems For America

With Caledonia Skytower.

Thursday, July 4th 19:00: Closed

The Library is dark as people mark July 4th.

 

A little more Shakespeare in Second Life

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home at Holly Kai Park, unless otherwise indicated.

A Midsummer’s Night Dream Events

One of William Shakespeare’s most popular comedies, A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a four-stranded play set within a forest inhabited by the fairy folk under the rule of Titania and Oberon. There is the over-arching theme of the forthcoming wedding of Duke Theseus of Athens and Hippolyta, the Amazon queen, due to take place within the forest. This is to be in part celebrated by a group of six amateur actors staging a play, and who have also come to the forest to prepare. Then there are the four young Athenians who are to be among the guests at the wedding: Hermia, is in love with Lysander, but has been order by Egeus, her face to wed Demetrius, who is deeply loved by Helena, Hermia’s best friend – but whom he dumped to be free to wed Hermia.

Within the forest, Oberon and Titania are somewhat estranged over Titania’s refusal to accede to Oberon’s demand to hand him her Indian changeling. Angered by her actions, Oberon summon Robin “Puck” Goodfellow, his “shrewd and knavish sprite”, with the intent of putting into motion a plan to shame Titania into doing as he wishes through the use of a magical potion. However, as the plot is put into motion, Oberon witnesses assorted actions: the cruel words of Demetrius to Helena, the assery (a deliberately chosen term in the circumstances 🙂 ) of Nick Bottom, one of the amateur players, and the plot inevitably thickens – helped in no small part by a slight case of mistaken identities, until the fairies are forced to convince those with whom they have interacted have just experienced a dream – and Puck suggests that the dream might even extend to the audience.

Seanchai Library continue to celebrate this popular comedy throughout the week with a series of special events:

Saturday, June 22nd, 19:00 The Listening Picnic

Grab a “sammich” and the hand of a friend, and come hang out in Ceilliuradh Glen to celebrate the beginning of summer with a dream or two! Broadcast will be on Stream.

Tuesday, June 25th, 19:00: Making Scenes at A Midsummer’s Night Dream

With Kayden Oconnell and friends at the A Midsummer’s Night Dream installation on LEA 2.

 

A Midsummer’s Night Dream, LEA 2

Wednesday, June 26th, 19:00: A Midsummer’s Night Dream – The Whole Story

With Shandon Loring at the A Midsummer’s Night Dream installation on LEA 2.

The Rest Of The Week at Seanchai Library

Sunday, June 23rd, 18:00: James and the Giant Peach

Caledonia Skytower reads Roald Dahl’s classic at the Magicland Golden Horseshoe.

Monday, June 24th 19:00: Incident at Hawk’s Hill

Gyro Muggins reads naturalist and historian Allan W. Eckert’s popular novel.

In 1870, Manitoba became the fifth province of the (then) three-year-old Canadian Confederation. Over the previous 18 months, it had seen strife and rebellion, but for William MacDonald, his wife, Esther, and their family, the lands around what would eventually become the city of Winnipeg, are ideal for farming, and so they have settled and built Hawk’s Hill.

The open spaces are perfect for the MacDonald’s four children – or should have been; while the three elder children thrived, the youngest, six-year-old Ben, became increasingly introverted.

Small for his age, Ben was reserved and prefers being with animals, learning to imitate the sounds of many, and well as copying their movements and actions. In return, the local animals seem to respond well to him – although members of his family and the other locals consider him odd.

But then came the day when Ben, in seeking new animals to mimic, wandered further than was usual, venturing into unfamiliar territory – only to become hopelessly lost. When a storm breaks, he has no option but to hide in a badger hole – an occupied badger hole. And thus begins a relationship spanning several months between young boy and a female badger, to the benefit and comfort of both.

Thursday, June 27th

  • 19:00: Monsters and Myths: Shandon Loring continues Bernard Evslin’s words on Hecate, variously associated with crossroads, entrance-ways, light, magic, witchcraft, knowledge of herbs and poisonous plants, ghosts, necromancy, and sorcery.
  • 21:00: Seanchai Late Night: contemporary fantasy and science fiction with Finn Zeddmore.