Lowell Celebrates Kerouac, Inc., the tireless community group that produces literary and cultural events in March and October each year as a tribute to the lasting inspiration of Jack Kerouac, posted on its Facebook page several photographs of the Kerouac Commemorative in Kerouac Park at Bridge and French streets. The…
Jacquelyn Malone’s new book of poems, “All Waters Run to Lethe,” will be released at at book party on Sunday, July 17, at 2 p.m., at 153 Sanders Ave. in Lowell. The publisher is Finishing Line Press of Kentucky. Jackie’s work has appeared in many literary journals, including Poetry Magazine, Ploughshares,…
Who knew? There’s a sustainability trap in the cable TV box. Front page report in NYTimes today about the energy-sucking cable TV boxes and allied home entertainment gadgets that are not designed with “green” in mind at all “because nobody asked us to use less [energy],” according to one “box…
Mass Moments, the electronic almanac of Massachusetts history, reminded us that yesterday was the 336th anniversary of the start of King Philip’s War which, when measured by the percentage of population killed, was the deadliest war in the history of North America. Although the fighting broke out in Plymouth, it…
The Globe’s writers have stepped up their game for the crime saga unfolding in real time in Boston. In today’s paper, commentators James Carroll and Kevin Cullen have their say about the James Whitey Bulger horror show. Carroll has a masterful essay that puts the crime story in perspective, both…
In today’s NYTimes, opinion writer Charles Blow thinks about poverty. Read his column here, and get the NYT if you want more. I’ve never heard of unemployed people voting to limit how many weeks they’ll be eligible for unemployment checks or people without medical insurance voting to deny themselves access…
To celebrate St. Jean-Baptiste Day in 1880, the Lieutenant Governor of Québec, Théodore Robitaille, commissioned Calixa Lavallée to compose O Canada to a patriotic poem by Adolphe-Basile Routhier. Born in Quebec – in 1857, Lavallée moved to the U.S. and lived in Rhode Island where he enlisted in the 4th…
In 1996-97, there was a lot of activity in Lowell around a concept called “Lowell: The Flowering City.” At the Gorham Street/Back Central branch of Enterprise Bank you can see a tall sign with the logo from the project, a gesture meant to help shift the nickname of the city…
In today’s NYTimes, columnist Tim Egan offers a eulogy for Clarence Clemons and tells what it meant for him to see a black guy and a white guy making music together. Read his essay here, and get the NYT if you want more.
Mediabistro.com reports that Penguin Books’ new app for Jack Kerouac’s legendary novel “On the Road” is selling well and ranked at #4 on Apple’s iPad apps list. Read the news bulletin here.