Category Archives: Books and reading

Getting in on the discussion of F. Scott Fitzgerald and football’s two-platoon system

Posted on September 29, 2025 by Katherine Wikoff

This morning, I noticed that a blog post I wrote 11 years ago was getting lots of views, and traffic seemed to be coming from both Reddit and Bluesky. So I did some quick digging and found that, for whatever … Continue reading →

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Only murders . . . and criminal negligence?

Posted on May 23, 2025 by Katherine Wikoff

A stairwell on campus is closed for painting, and when I noticed the yellow “CAUTION” tape blocking off the doorway, I suddenly thought about Season 3 of “Only Murders in the Building.” Season 3, you may remember, is the storyline … Continue reading →

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Extinction immanent? (and imminent?) Michael Crichton on “cyberspace” dooming human innovation/evolution and forecasting the end of the species

Posted on January 29, 2025 by Katherine Wikoff

I’m teaching “Digital Society” this semester, and as fate would have it, over my holiday break I decided to read Michael Crichton’s The Lost World, a novel I’d never read before even though I love Michael Crichton and have probably … Continue reading →

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The Invention of Morel

Posted on October 9, 2024 by Katherine Wikoff

Our MSOE (Milwaukee School of Engineering) Faculty and Staff Book Club met Monday night to discuss this short but fascinating novel. But first a “prologue,” complete with photo. We meet at a place called The Explorium Brewpub, which is located … Continue reading →

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Autumn Synchronicity

Posted on October 8, 2024 by Katherine Wikoff

 The leaves on the inside of my office window are attached to a long-dead branch from our birch tree, which my daughter and her classmate turned into a work of art about 12 years ago with the aid of … Continue reading →

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From Barbara Kingsolver on Hurricane Helene

Posted on October 5, 2024 by Katherine Wikoff

The ubertalented author, who lives in the Appalachian region affected by Helene last week, posted this on Facebook. I am sharing here to amplify the info she provides at the end for two organizations she suggests donating to if you … Continue reading →

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Revisiting the Bill Moyers series of interviews with Joseph Campbell

Posted on February 7, 2024 by Katherine Wikoff

This is revisiting only in a general sense. During discussion in my political science class this morning, I had occasion to refer to Joseph Campbell. My students had not heard of him, so I gave some quick background, referring to … Continue reading →

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A new book for my “To Read” list

Posted on October 16, 2023 by Katherine Wikoff

I love maps. Always have. I would far rather study a map than rely on a GPS voice telling me to turn right in 1.4 miles. I took a year of geology in college and loved learning to read topographic … Continue reading →

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The Snowy Day

Posted on January 17, 2023 by Katherine Wikoff

Is it just me, or does this Lands’ End catalog cover remind you of that beautiful childhood picture book classic by Ezra Jack Keats? Something about the bright red coat and stark, crisp, clean blocks of color contrast, I don’t … Continue reading →

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The Charles Manson – Dennis (“Beach Boys”) Wilson Connection

Posted on January 7, 2022 by Katherine Wikoff

Well. Here is something I’d never heard about before, never once in all the years since I first read the grisly details of Sharon Tate’s murder in the Sunday newspaper’s Parade magazine when I was just a kid under ten … Continue reading →

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