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Justin Tate

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Literary historian obsessed with Gothic novels, vintage paperbacks, Shakespeare, horror, and everything in between.

Justin Tate No full-length books yet, though I've co-written a festival-winning short film, published several poems, a few short stories, and too many academic pi…moreNo full-length books yet, though I've co-written a festival-winning short film, published several poems, a few short stories, and too many academic pieces to count. Gothic Studies, a peer-reviewed journal by Edinburgh University Press, recently published one of my essays. I'm extra proud of that one since it combines my passion for Gothic literature and queer history. Currently I am deep into research for another non-fiction project. This one will likely end up being several hundred pages.

Writing is tough, but there's so much power in a good story (whether fiction or non) that it's worth the effort. Also, my literary/historical interests are so obscure I fear if I don't write what I want to read, no one else will.(less)

Justin Tate Love this question! It's hard for me to predict every twist and turn before I actually start writing, but I do tend to outline one section at a time. …moreLove this question! It's hard for me to predict every twist and turn before I actually start writing, but I do tend to outline one section at a time. Outlining the entire project in advance isn't as helpful because spontaneity changes the plan constantly.

As for keeping the darkness away, most of my "horror" stories are campy and not something to take too seriously. That said, I did write one story--"Before the Clock Strikes Six"--which still haunts me. It's about spousal abuse and the pressure to make bad relationships work. I think about those characters a lot and how family/society pushes us to do all kinds of things which are terrible for our physical and mental health.(less)

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**Justin Tate**is currently reading The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch The Nightmare Before Kissmas (Royals and Romance, #1) by Sara Raasch (Goodreads Author) Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
Jul 02, 2025 05:00PM · 12 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview ofThe Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch
Justin Tate made a comment onhis reviewofGothictown Gothictown by Emily Carpenter "Thanks! Overall a fun read. If anybody else tries it, definitely let me know :)"
Jul 02, 2025 10:35AM · see review
**Justin Tate**rated a book it was amazing Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder Little House on the Prairie (Little House, #3) by Laura Ingalls Wilder Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
Not as charming as Little House in the Big Woods, though still a riveting read. Anticipating that the government will forcibly relocate indigenous populations once again, the Ingalls daringly move into "Indian Territory" before the official proclamat Not as charming as Little House in the Big Woods, though still a riveting read. Anticipating that the government will forcibly relocate indigenous populations once again, the Ingalls daringly move into "Indian Territory" before the official proclamation so they can get the best land.Much of the book involves anxiety around sharing land with the natives, and to be sure there's plenty of historical accuracy on the mindset of white superiority. Side characters say such common refrains of the era as "the only good Indian is a dead Indian."Ma and Pa don't go this far, but aren't much better. Impressively, Wilder's narrative manages a brilliant dance of both showcasing how they felt as a white family, but also pointing out the obvious injustices directed toward the indigenous. "Won't they be mad?" observes Laura, with a blunt child's perspective upon learning the Indians will be forced to relocate.The tone is somber when we they witness a long trail of indigenous being moved from their homes, especially after much of the book Laura has longed to live as free as the natives. In the end, the Ingalls must relocate too, since their homestead is a few miles into what will still be considered "Indian Territory" under the new law.Obviously the book doesn't go far enough in clarifying the historical injustices of the era, but originally published in 1935, I would argue it manages to be secretly "woke" by standards of the time. There's genuine sympathy for the indigenous plight, even if largely implied and buried in subtext. Just because it's not preachy and obvious doesn't mean it's not effective.But the real star of this novel is Jack, the family dog. Wilder characterizes him masterfully as the family protector and a great intellect. Sometimes he can be too protective, but most of the time he's just perfect. ...more
Jul 02, 2025 09:25AM · 38 likes · like · see review
Justin Tate made a comment onhis reviewofGwendy's Final Task (The Button Box, #3) Gwendy's Final Task by Stephen King "Hi Luca! I think you’ll enjoy Book 3 for the Dark Tower references if nothing else. Book 2 is slow (but short) and the events are important to the ove Hi Luca! I think you’ll enjoy Book 3 for the Dark Tower references if nothing else. Book 2 is slow (but short) and the events are important to the overall plot. Enjoy! ...more"
Jun 30, 2025 01:58PM · see review
**Justin Tate**has read Favorite Old Fairy Tales by Muriel Fuller Favorite Old Fairy Tales by Muriel Fuller Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
Adults need bedtime stories too! This intriguing collection of more obscure fairytales caught my eye. I plan to read one periodically before bed and will update my review as I get to them.Charles Dickens - The Magic Fishbone - 5/5Wow. What a wild ope Adults need bedtime stories too! This intriguing collection of more obscure fairytales caught my eye. I plan to read one periodically before bed and will update my review as I get to them.Charles Dickens - The Magic Fishbone - 5/5Wow. What a wild opener. This is the tale of "manly" King Watkins and his "lovely" queen who have nineteen children together when the tale begins and "were always having more." Unless they're stealing babies, adopting or having quadruplets each time, there's a math issue. The 19 kids are aged between "seven years to seven months."One day the king meets Fairy Grandmarina, who can read minds and appear invisible or visible as desired. She might also be bipolar based on her violent mood swings. She instructs the king to have his Princess Alicia eat a salmon and polish the remaining fishbone. The fishbone will grant her one wish, but ONLY if she uses it at the right time. Of course the fairy doesn't specify when the right time will be.The princess follows these directions. Multiple health mishaps then occur, with the queen suddenly falling ill, a brother getting bit by a dog, and a baby falling down and getting a bruise. Each time the king looks upset that his daughter isn't using the fishbone to improve health of relatives.Meanwhile, the princess confides in her doll which, in her mind, is alive and capable of conversing. At last the "right time" arrives when the king declares himself bankrupt—hey, nineteen kids will do that to ya.The wish brings a windfall of coins, but more importantly, the fairy is pleased the princess saved her wish for the right moment. To celebrate, the fairy marries off seven-year-old princess Alicia to "Prince Certainpersonio" who, unless I missed a sentence somewhere, is a ninety-year-old man transformed into a youth. The animated (haunted?) doll celebrates with the audience.After the wedding, the fairy prophecies that the new royal couple will have thirty-five children together and none will die of measles. The fairy then retrieves the magic fishbone, which she sends down the throat of the dog with biting problems. The dog chokes to death in a fit of convulsions.The End.Dayum. What an opener. I knew Dickens wrote a few fairytales but was not aware of this one. I had to do a bit of research to figure out why it's so freaky. Turns out, Dickens originally published this story under the persona "Miss Alice Rainbird," a fictional seven-year-old author. This explains the lack of logic in the storyline, and how a young couple can have nineteen children. The dog's death seems to be a case of childish revenge fantasy. NOW it all makes sense.A daring choice to open up the collection, but it's certainly a vibe I can get into. Can't wait to read what's next!George MacDonald - Princess Daylight - 4.5/5When a princess is born, the good fairies of the wood offer blessings while the bad fairy offers a curse. "Reserve" fairies appear, knowing they likely need to add some caveat to the witch's curse. They provide the solution that a prince's kiss can undo the curse of sleeping all day and with energy at night that waxes and wanes with the moon.Years later, to her luck, there's a prince wandering the woods after an insurrection left him exiled. The witch, sensing her curse will soon be undone, transforms the princess into an old woman in the eyes of the prince. Fortunately the prince doesn't mind a mature woman and gives her a hot kiss on the mouth anyway, thus breaking the curse.Though it lacks the typical moral or deeper meaning commonly found in fairytales, it makes up for it with witty prose and fantastical imagery. There's some interaction with the tropes of classic tales, like Beauty and the Beast, where the gender roles are flipped. This time it's the man who must show his decency by locking lips with an unattractive partner.There's some sassiness as well about the cliches of fairytale palaces. "On one side of every palace there must be a wood" explains the narrator, arguing that if there's NOT a forest nearby, no dwelling, however grand, can be considered a palace.The nearby forest offers interesting world-building as well, with the claim that no one has ever reached the end of the forest. Rumor states that the further you go the "wilder, and wilder, and wilder" the woods gets, until becoming the domain of "wild beasts." Very spooky and interesting, but alas the beasts never make an appearance.Not without flaws, and it's easy to understand why this particular fairytale has not infiltrated popular culture, but still an enjoyable read and a major draw to the collection, which promises more obscure fairytale options than the overdone classics.Bonus facts about George MacDonald (1824-1905):MacDonald was a minister of the Scottish Episcopal Church in addition to a fantasy writer. He published a number of collected sermons and whimsical novels with religious themes. His most enduring achievement, however, may be his role as mentor to Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll). Carroll shared early drafts of Alice in Wonderland with MacDonald, who read it to his children. The kids' rave reviews prompted MacDonald to emphatically encourage Carroll to complete the book and get it published. Later, reminiscing on his childhood, George's son Greville recalled loving the Alice book so much he wanted "60,000 volumes" of it.Ellis Markham - The Princess without a Heart - 4/5Another wacky one! This time there's a middle-aged, childless king and queen who finally have a baby. Gasp: it’s a girl. Determined to make the best of it, they hire a magician to jazz her up.“Can you make her a boy?” asks the king.“I could, but she’d just end up a tomboy,” shrugs the magician.Instead, the magician offers them three options: "I can make her either very amiable, or very beautiful, or very clever."The king votes clever. The queen says, “What good is that to a woman?” (Oof.) She votes amiability, because it runs in her family. The king disagrees with that statement.At last they compromise: beauty it is.The magician says great, but there is one more thing. To make her beautiful, he'll have to cut out her heart.“Awkward,” says the king.“Expected,” says the queen.Since clearly letting her remain a normal girl is not an option, the princess's heart is cut out and placed in a locket. If the locket is ever removed, their daughter will transform into a bird and fly away.It would've been nice to know that in advance, remarks the queen, but not in a tone which suggests it would change the outcome.As expected, our dear princess grows into a great beauty and eventually does lose her locket. She becomes a swan but fortunately there's a hunk to break the spell. She moves away from her crazy sexist parents (no loss there) and lives her best life with hottie husband and returned heart. The end.The moral here is a little clearer than the prior fairytales, with suggestion that beauty is meaningless without a heart. There might also be a message that if your parents are nutjobs, it's best to find your escape route ASAP.Whatever the message, or lack thereof, it's an entertaining tale. My research found absolutely nothing on Ellis Markham, so this appears to be a truly obscure fairytale unique to the collection. An editor's note merely states that it was originally published about seventy years ago, so around 1880. Likely it is an adaptation of "The Heart of Princess Joan" which was published in 1880 by Mary De Morgan. There's a lot of similarities between the two stories anyway.No misses yet. On to the next![Unknown German Author] - The Three Sisters - 4/5The craziest one yet! It's about a Baron who hosts extravagant parties and is everybody's favorite person, until the money runs out and he has to sell off all his splendor. He moves his wife and three daughters to a "lonely old tower" where they all struggle to feed themselves without the aid of a hired cook. The only food they manage is boiled potatoes.One day, after becoming sick of potatoes, the Baron ventures into the foreboding woods to hunt. In the woods he is confronted by a talking bear who accuses him of trying to steal his honeycomb. "Thou shalt pay for thy crime with thy life!" declares the bear."Lord Bear," pleads the Baron. "I have no wish to steal your honey or any of your property."As a token of his apologies, the Baron offers the bear his last supply of boiled potatoes."Miserable wretch!" growls the unimpressed bear. "If thou wilt promise to give me [your eldest daughter], Wulfilda, to wife, thou shalt not die."Of course the Baron is quick to agree to this bargain. And thus the oldest of his three daughters becomes engaged to a large, ferocious forest bear. The Baron returns home and informs the family. Neither Wulfilda nor wife nor other daughters take it well. The Baron decides to fortify the crumbling tower as to lock the bear out.This doesn't work. The Bear claims his wife and off she goes into the deep forest. However, the Bear does follow marriage protocol and offers the family a handsome fortune for their daughter.Immediately the Baron and Countess return to their lavish lifestyle of old. But soon enough their wealth is gone again. And again, the Baron finds himself in danger. This time he offers his daughter to an eagle. Finally, his youngest daughter is betrothed to a big fish.The Baron is so ashamed of himself for giving up his final daughter to a wild animal, he skips town when the beast is scheduled to claim his bride.Naturally the wife is upset. But she settles down when discovering she is with child once more -- and this time it's a boy.The boy grows to become an impressive knight and, upon learning of his sisters fate, he vows to free them of their marriage to creatures.Reinaldo cuts through the dense, spooky forest and finds his lost sister holding a baby bear in her arms, while other young bears play about, imitating a human gait on two legs and rolling about.He learns of the curse that causes the bear to be human part of the time and vicious bear the other part. He proceeds to follow a knight's quest, investigating his other two sisters' predicaments and ultimately slaying who he needs to slay to turn them all back to human.As a four-chapter fairytale, this is a pretty long mini quest. In the end, the story is revealed to be the explanation why the arms of various German municipalities are of animals. Bernburg is a bear, Aarburg is an Eagle and Dauphine is a whale/dolphin.While overlong, you gotta love a story about a dad who sells off his daughters to monstrous talking animals in the blink of an eye. Not my fave, but far from boring.Rebecca Sophia Clarke (AKA Sophie May) - Nine Fairy Tales1. Cristobal: A Christmas Legend - 3/5Rushing home from Christmas midnight mass, Cristobal accidentally bumps into Jasper. Jasper is an easily-agitated boy who rages because his Christmas candle was broken in the collision. He punches Cristobal blind.Now sightless, Cristobal stews in fury over what Jasper did. He has vengeful fantasies where Jasper suffers a similar fate, if not a worse one.A year goes by. It's yet another Christmas Eve. Everyone is festive except blind Cristobal, who still churns with hatred. "No doubt Jasper's chestnuts are popping merrily, and his shoes will be full of presents. And here am I! My head aches and my eyeballs burn."He excuses himself to his room for privacy. Suddenly he has a vision of a painting of baby Jesus he saw last year right before the confrontation. Painting baby Jesus talks to him and asks if his heart is ready for Christmas. Cristobal confides that he's still very angry."I am tossed up and down by vexation. I am full of hatred against that terrible Jasper. It was all about a miserable Christmas candle he carried. I broke it by pushing him down. Tell me, was he right to fly at me like a wild beast? Ought he not to suffer even as I have suffered?"Baby Jesus advises: "Let him answer for his own sin. Judge not, little brother."Inspired even as the vision of painting baby Jesus fades, Cristobal rids his heart of lingering vengeance. "Now I am ready for Christmas," he thinks. Though still blind as a bat, he embraces Christmas cheer to the fullest.But wait! Amidst the merrymaking it is discovered that Jasper's house has caught flame, and he's trapped behind a curtain of fire. Cristobal prays to "little Jesus" asking for his eyesight to return so that he may save Jasper. Instantly his prayer is granted. He rushes into the flaming building with a shout "In the name of the Little Jesus!"Cristobal, also aided by Baby Jesus super strength, carries the half-conscious ex-enemy Jasper down a ladder to safety. Jasper apologies for the tiff last year and Cristobal accepts, urging his new friend to "thank the Little Jesus."The end.Well now, this is a holiday tale I haven't heard before. I'm not usually into moral messaging, especially in the form of animated Jesus paintings, but the dialogue is on point and it's still a cute relic from the era. Rebecca Sophia Clarke's literary career seems to be mostly forgotten at this point, but she was quite prolific between 1864-1897. I look forward to reading her other tales.2. Wild Robin: A Scottish Fairy Tale - 3/5A Scottish family includes four children: cherry-cheeked Janet, brave Sandy and Davie, and the youngest--the "stormy tempered" Robin, whose personality is that of a "reeling hurricane." One time he drove two of his father's cows over a cliff to their death, just to make a point.It seems wild Robin has neither "love nor conscience" and his parents don't know what to do with him. The father wishes some fairies had him "for a season" so he can be taught some manners.Little did Father know, of course, that soon Robin would in fact be "carried away to Elfland."The queen of Elfland soon imprisons Robin and whips him into shape. "Weel, my lad, be at work, for naebody idles in Elfland," she says, using a fabulous Scottish dialect shared by the other characters as well.After many days of hard labor and no hope of escape, Robin begins to miss his mother and the easy life he used to scorn.He becomes so depressed he wishes he had died as a baby. He even sings a song about it:_Oh, that my father had ne'er on me smiled!Oh, that my mother had ne'er to me sung!Oh, that my cradle had never been rocked,But that I had died when I was young!_One of the little sprites takes pity on Robin and reveals that his only hope of escape is on Halloween night, while the fairies do their annual parade. The sprite sends a message via dream to Robin's sister with instructions on how to identify her brother among the procession of fairies.The plan works. Robin is rescued and returned to the human world. His siblings and parents forgive his past sins and welcome him home. Presumably Robin has also been changed by the experience, although the text doesn't say that. Who knows if he'll revert back to his prior wicked ways.A rushed conclusion provides an uneven finale to an otherwise intriguing setup. The Scottish dialect is marvelously written and a lot of fun. There's a good lesson in there about how it's uncool to push cows off cliffs just to spite your parents.3. The Vesper Star - 4/5Major drama is happening in the galaxy. Constellations are in a tizzy because a Comet is whizzing by with splendor and glory. There's jealousy all around, except for the Vesper Star, who is no more depressed than usual."Oh, that I could be set on fire like the Comet!" thought the North Star. "I would gladly burn to death if I could astonish the world with my blaze!""Let us die," said the Seven Sisters, "let us die together! We have ceased to be noticed.""So many years as I have kept watch in this sky, and now to be set one side by this upstart of a foreigner!" grumbles the Great Bear constellation. "I've a great mind to go to sleep and never wake up!"The Vesper Star tells them all to "hush" and "trust God."Indeed, the Comet flashes by and is never seen again. The rest of the constellations regret their jealousy and become more content with their lives. The Vesper Star is most awarded (by God?) because she "had done her work without envy and without repining."The extent and creativity that went into quasi-religious fables of old is pretty wild. The touch on jealousy over "foreigners" is interesting. Overall, I really liked the personification of constellations in this one. Cute!4. The Water Kelpie5. The Lost Sylphid6. The Castle of Gems7. The Elf of Light8. The Princess Hilda9. Goldilocks ...more
Jun 29, 2025 01:42PM · 70 likes · like · see review
Justin Tate made a comment onhis reviewofThe Let Them Theory The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins "Hi Nikki! Looks like right now it has a solid 4.12 out of 132,000 ratings. I’d say that’s pretty good. Looks like most of the naysayers don’t feel a s Hi Nikki! Looks like right now it has a solid 4.12 out of 132,000 ratings. I’d say that’s pretty good. Looks like most of the naysayers don’t feel a simple concept needs to be a 400-page book. That’s fair, but you can always stop reading once you feel you “get it” ya know? Let them bash it, and let you enjoy it! ...more"
Jun 29, 2025 08:22AM · see review
**Justin Tate**rated a book it was amazing Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx Brokeback Mountain: Story to Screenplay by Annie Proulx Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
In honor of Brokeback Mountain being nearly 20-years old (!!) and newly released on 4K disc, I'm journeying back to the story and screenplay which changed my life.I was 16.5 years old when the film debuted on December 9, 2005. The limited release in In honor of Brokeback Mountain being nearly 20-years old (!!) and newly released on 4K disc, I'm journeying back to the story and screenplay which changed my life.I was 16.5 years old when the film debuted on December 9, 2005. The limited release in LA/NYC was already a box office smash and critical reviews were stellar. In Oklahoma we had to wait a while longer for it to appear in local theaters. Unlike Utah, where it was banned in at least one cinema due to its "dangerous" portrayal of non-traditional family, I'm not aware of any protests or controversy. Of course everyone was talking about it. Much later, after sweeping the Golden Globes, it even started playing in my small town. The local paper gave it a glowing review. I was shocked.Before it debuted locally, however, I drove over an hour each way to see it on the big screen near Oklahoma City. I also drove any friend willing to go with me. In total, I ended up seeing it around 14 times in theaters. Somewhere I still have the ticket stubs to prove it. Huge thank you to all the box office attendants who let me buy tickets to an R-rated movie without adult accompaniment.Of course I also read Annie Proulx's 1997 short story, originally published in The New Yorker and later included in the Pulitzer-nominated collection Close Range: Wyoming Stories. At the time I remember enjoying the story, but finding it perhaps too veiled in its description of physical love. I was a horny teenager, what can I say?Reading it back now, I appreciate the original story a lot more. All the film's iconic dialogue is pulled straight from these pages, unabridged and in its entirety. Sometimes internal thoughts are converted to dialogue in the film, and occasionally a single word might be exchanged. Otherwise, it's all here, miraculously housed in a mere 28 pages.Annie Proulx's writing is gorgeous and crisp. Arguably too sparse at times. She loves her commas and the best imagery is often breezed through in a string of clauses. It would be wise to read her very slowly and allow the weight of each word to take hold. Or just watch the movie. This is a rare case where I do think the movie is better. Without the masterful delivery of Heath Ledger, Jack Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, Randy Quaid, and Anne Hathaway, the pitch-perfect dialogue doesn't land quite as strong on the page.Reflecting back on my youth, I think there's a number of reasons I found the movie so moving. It was my first experience with high art in popular culture, for one. I often brought notepad and pencil to my cinema viewings, conducting literary analysis in real time. I recall noting how each time Jack and Ennis allow themselves joy, a natural element or interpersonal conflict separates them. In the end, these factors both succeed and fail to keep them apart. I remember doing a lengthy comparison to Romeo & Juliet at one point, but that was only one of my many literary musings.Of course, there was also a more personal impact. Being gay in Oklahoma during the G.W. Bush years, there wasn't a lot of positivity in my life. My peers enjoyed my company more as a curiosity of nature rather than any real friendship. Later, I discovered, they thought my gayness was a ploy for attention. When I actually started having relationships with guys, they rebuked me. My family was exceedingly homophobic. I lived with the fear they would place me in conversion therapy at any moment. Every day I wasn't 18 felt like a day of danger, when somebody might use their parental authority to destroy my life.Separate from the ground-breaking plot of Brokeback Mountain, I think the critical acclaim changed my life. Gay pop culture references at this time were largely farces (Will & Grace, for example). The mere concept that a gay storyline could be profound and award-worthy was completely new to me. I checked its Rotten Tomatoes score daily, almost in tears to see it so overwhelmingly "Fresh."I don't think I was alone in feeling this way. It's likely why there's still so much fury that Crash won Best Picture over Brokeback. I was furious too. But in hindsight, I'm okay with it. Crash is a great movie too. At the time, though, that critical validation felt like everything. Our lives mattered, our stories mattered. Our love was just as worthy of analysis as straight love.Anyway, these thoughts all came rushing to me after re-reading the short story. I'll pick back up after reading the screenplay, also included in this book.The ScreenplayFor those who never or rarely read screenplays, this is a wonderful place to start. It's certainly among the best I've read, from a technical perspective as well as content. The directions are crisp yet wildly visual, and there's plenty of descriptions which give new insights to iconic scenes I knew by heart. Small things, such as a bottle of "cheap white wine" found in Ennis' refrigerator being a "legacy of Cassie" got me very excited.There's also gorgeous character detail. These words were largely intended for the actor and director, but readers will relish them as well. For example, when Ennis discovers the two shirts in Jack's old bedroom, there's this direction:_ENNIS presses his face into the fabric and breathes in slowly through his mouth, hoping for the faintest smoke and mountain sage and salty sweet stink of JACK. But there is no real scent, only the memory of it, the imagined power of Brokeback Mountain, of which nothing is left but what he now holds in his trembling hands._The screenplay is full of such moments. While the cast somehow managed to convey these emotions without words, the added detail brings new insight into their performance.Also included in the book are a section of glossy images from the film and three short essays from the writers."Getting Movied" by Annie ProulxA marvelous short essay offering insight into Annie Proulx's creative vision behind Brokeback Mountain.She recalls seeing an "older ranch hand" at a bar in 1997. Though the bar was full of beautiful women, she noticed his fixation was on a particular cowboy playing pool. Something about his expression suggested "bitter longing" and Proulx wondered if he might be "country gay."Her creative mind began to whirl with possible backstories for this stranger across the bar, what he might've endured living in "homophobic rural Wyoming."A few days later, Proulx overheard a cafe owner ranting about how two "homos" came in and ordered dinner the other night. Soon the pieces started coming together for her short story.As much as I've watched and read Brokeback Mountain, I hadn't read this essay before. It's surprisingly forthright for an author describing the creative process. It also improves my opinion of Annie Proulx who has come across in recent years as almost annoyed by the emotional reactions to her story. She even said that she "regretted" writing the story after receiving so many manuscripts of fan fiction with alternative happy endings. Probably she was only joking.In this essay, we see her very sympathetic of hardships faced by the gay community. She references Matthew Shepard, the University of Wyoming student who was tortured and murdered just one year after her story was published. She expressions gratitude for the fan letters after the story's publication in The New Yorker and mentions the letters she wrote to Ang Lee, urging him to make certain changes to the film.The essay makes it abundantly clear that Brokeback Mountain was important to Proulx and not just something she whipped up one day on a whim. She believed in the story and feared the movie might be inadequate. In the end, she provides a long list of things the movie got right and even did better than her story.**Larry McMurtry - "Adapting Brokeback Mountain"**As Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Lonesome Dove, Larry McMurtry was no stranger to Western life and fiction. This short essay is less about his process of adapting Brokeback Mountain for screen as it is theoretical musings on the challenges of adapting great literature in general. This thought then trails off to the dangers of picturesque idealism. The West landscape is rich with splendor and beauty, but is also deadly and prone to heartbreak. A fitting setting for the story of Jack and Ennis. McMurtry describes his source material as a modern masterpiece. Also, a story that has been there all along, waiting eons for someone with Proulx's skill to write it.While not as revealing as Proulx's essay, and somehow meandering despite its short length, there are enough reveals from the late master of Western fiction and Academy Award-winner to make it a noteworthy text for anyone studying Brokeback's legacy.**Diana Ossana - "Climbing Brokeback Mountain"**In this essay we learn the backstory of how Brokeback Mountain became a film, from Ossana first reading the story in the New Yorker to the many years of waiting for Hollywood to take a chance on it. The essay oozes with vulnerable reflection, such as obsession with the source material and the fear of failure. There's a short note about the decision to never let threat of political backlash impede on their devotion to the story. Overall, a bit vague at times perhaps but generally satisfying to curious fans like me who want to know how a great film came to be.**Overall...**Revisiting Brokeback Mountain after several years has been an emotional journey. It's brought back memories from my coming-of-age years and reflection in general how this story has shaped my life.Perhaps my favorite memory is of sneaking a piano rendition of the film's iconic "Wings" score into a high school Shakespeare performance. I was Petruchio in Taming of the Shrew and for some reason there was a scene with a piano on stage. I spent weeks learning the Brokeback theme song for just this moment, when my character would randomly play a few bars. It was all a hilarious inside joke for us theater kids. I'd dragged most of them to see the movie with me. After the performance, my mother was prouder of me playing the piano than having the lead role. Of course she had no idea where the tune was from LOL.There's a question of how well Brokeback Mountain has aged. It's set in the 1960s in Wyoming and will be forever timeless of that era, but today our appetite for gay tragedies has lessened, I think. We still like the battle against adversity, but this is a Red, White & Royal Blue era of gay romance. We want that happy ending. We want prejudice to lose. In a way, Brokeback Mountain can feel hopeless at times. What if Ennis had decided to get a ranch with Jack? It's hard to imagine any scenario where things end happily. Of course, Annie Proulx would wag a finger at me for calling the story a romance. It isn't. It's a raw, real-life Western, and all the difficulties that come with the territory. Yes, love is part of it, but it's only a part.Back in 2005, life didn't feel so different from the 1960s. Progress was happening, but not always well-received. Gay sex had just become legal in the 2003 Lawrence v. Texas supreme court case. In 2004, gay marriage became legal in the state of Massachusetts. Rather than celebration, the nation at large—certainly in Oklahoma—was skeptical, fearful, and furious to see gay people normalized. Like Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas still feels today, a majority saw these legal victories as a slippery slope to full gay rights in the United States. And they weren't shy in their disagreement.When I first saw the film, the idea of two cowboys living a happy, normal relationship was about as far-fetched as it appeared in Ennis' imagination. That made the movie more powerful and more real. Even today, that life wouldn't come without hardships. But now, I think, most viewers are more disconnected from the historical context. They might see Ennis as annoyingly stubborn and not a tragic hero of circumstance. The ending might feel played out, too much of a victory for the homophobes. Perhaps that explains the avalanche of fan fiction Annie Proulx receives, almost always with an alternative ending to her story.Regardless of how trends come and go, however, there will always be a need for great tragedy. Revisiting Brokeback now, I didn't find it dated at all. That may or may not be a good thing. It may be a testament to its genius, or a reflection of the dark clouds looming in our current political environment. ...more
Jun 29, 2025 12:44AM · 109 likes · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview ofBrokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx
**Justin Tate**rated a book it was amazing Gwendy's Final Task by Stephen King Gwendy's Final Task (The Button Box, #3) by Stephen King (Goodreads Author) Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
Wasn't expecting Gwendy on a rocket ship for her final adventure, but here she is doing dangerous space tourism a few years before Katy Perry.It's a fantastic conclusion to the trilogy. No offense to Mr. Chizmar, who wrote the mediocre middle book so Wasn't expecting Gwendy on a rocket ship for her final adventure, but here she is doing dangerous space tourism a few years before Katy Perry.It's a fantastic conclusion to the trilogy. No offense to Mr. Chizmar, who wrote the mediocre middle book solo, but it's abundantly clear the King has returned. The plot is tighter and better built toward a riveting climax. Characters are once again front and center. There are still quiet Americana moments that may be Chizmar's influence, but King is no stranger to that either. He just does it better.But the biggest surprise may be heavy, heavy references to The Dark Tower. I would argue this book is technically Dark Tower 7.5. You don't have to be familiar with King's epic fantasy saga to enjoy Gwendy, but those who know will be pleasantly surprised.As for shared universes, there's also a number of references to IT and a creature like the one in The Outsider. We also get a tour through a number of iconic Maine towns, like Castle Rock and Derry.It's clear from the marketing and small press publisher that King expected the Gwendy trilogy to be more of a gift to Constant Readers than a publishing event like his other books. These books are quieter, shorter, and generally less bold. At least they were before Gwendy's Final Task. I think this one really elevated the series. They took it from being a minorly fascinating supernatural tale to a key plot in the overarching King omniverse. I loved everything about it! ...more
Jun 28, 2025 11:46PM · 32 likes · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview ofGwendy's Final Task by Stephen King. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Gwendy's Final Task by Stephen King
**Justin Tate**has read Favorite Old Fairy Tales by Muriel Fuller Favorite Old Fairy Tales by Muriel Fuller Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
Adults need bedtime stories too! This intriguing collection of more obscure fairytales caught my eye. I plan to read one periodically before bed and will update my review as I get to them.Charles Dickens - The Magic Fishbone - 5/5Wow. What a wild ope Adults need bedtime stories too! This intriguing collection of more obscure fairytales caught my eye. I plan to read one periodically before bed and will update my review as I get to them.Charles Dickens - The Magic Fishbone - 5/5Wow. What a wild opener. This is the tale of "manly" King Watkins and his "lovely" queen who have nineteen children together when the tale begins and "were always having more." Unless they're stealing babies, adopting or having quadruplets each time, there's a math issue. The 19 kids are aged between "seven years to seven months."One day the king meets Fairy Grandmarina, who can read minds and appear invisible or visible as desired. She might also be bipolar based on her violent mood swings. She instructs the king to have his Princess Alicia eat a salmon and polish the remaining fishbone. The fishbone will grant her one wish, but ONLY if she uses it at the right time. Of course the fairy doesn't specify when the right time will be.The princess follows these directions. Multiple health mishaps then occur, with the queen suddenly falling ill, a brother getting bit by a dog, and a baby falling down and getting a bruise. Each time the king looks upset that his daughter isn't using the fishbone to improve health of relatives.Meanwhile, the princess confides in her doll which, in her mind, is alive and capable of conversing. At last the "right time" arrives when the king declares himself bankrupt—hey, nineteen kids will do that to ya.The wish brings a windfall of coins, but more importantly, the fairy is pleased the princess saved her wish for the right moment. To celebrate, the fairy marries off seven-year-old princess Alicia to "Prince Certainpersonio" who, unless I missed a sentence somewhere, is a ninety-year-old man transformed into a youth. The animated (haunted?) doll celebrates with the audience.After the wedding, the fairy prophecies that the new royal couple will have thirty-five children together and none will die of measles. The fairy then retrieves the magic fishbone, which she sends down the throat of the dog with biting problems. The dog chokes to death in a fit of convulsions.The End.Dayum. What an opener. I knew Dickens wrote a few fairytales but was not aware of this one. I had to do a bit of research to figure out why it's so freaky. Turns out, Dickens originally published this story under the persona "Miss Alice Rainbird," a fictional seven-year-old author. This explains the lack of logic in the storyline, and how a young couple can have nineteen children. The dog's death seems to be a case of childish revenge fantasy. NOW it all makes sense.A daring choice to open up the collection, but it's certainly a vibe I can get into. Can't wait to read what's next!George MacDonald - Princess Daylight - 4.5/5When a princess is born, the good fairies of the wood offer blessings while the bad fairy offers a curse. "Reserve" fairies appear, knowing they likely need to add some caveat to the witch's curse. They provide the solution that a prince's kiss can undo the curse of sleeping all day and with energy at night that waxes and wanes with the moon.Years later, to her luck, there's a prince wandering the woods after an insurrection left him exiled. The witch, sensing her curse will soon be undone, transforms the princess into an old woman in the eyes of the prince. Fortunately the prince doesn't mind a mature woman and gives her a hot kiss on the mouth anyway, thus breaking the curse.Though it lacks the typical moral or deeper meaning commonly found in fairytales, it makes up for it with witty prose and fantastical imagery. There's some interaction with the tropes of classic tales, like Beauty and the Beast, where the gender roles are flipped. This time it's the man who must show his decency by locking lips with an unattractive partner.There's some sassiness as well about the cliches of fairytale palaces. "On one side of every palace there must be a wood" explains the narrator, arguing that if there's NOT a forest nearby, no dwelling, however grand, can be considered a palace.The nearby forest offers interesting world-building as well, with the claim that no one has ever reached the end of the forest. Rumor states that the further you go the "wilder, and wilder, and wilder" the woods gets, until becoming the domain of "wild beasts." Very spooky and interesting, but alas the beasts never make an appearance.Not without flaws, and it's easy to understand why this particular fairytale has not infiltrated popular culture, but still an enjoyable read and a major draw to the collection, which promises more obscure fairytale options than the overdone classics.Bonus facts about George MacDonald (1824-1905):MacDonald was a minister of the Scottish Episcopal Church in addition to a fantasy writer. He published a number of collected sermons and whimsical novels with religious themes. His most enduring achievement, however, may be his role as mentor to Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll). Carroll shared early drafts of Alice in Wonderland with MacDonald, who read it to his children. The kids' rave reviews prompted MacDonald to emphatically encourage Carroll to complete the book and get it published. Later, reminiscing on his childhood, George's son Greville recalled loving the Alice book so much he wanted "60,000 volumes" of it.Ellis Markham - The Princess without a Heart - 4/5Another wacky one! This time there's a middle-aged, childless king and queen who finally have a baby. Gasp: it’s a girl. Determined to make the best of it, they hire a magician to jazz her up.“Can you make her a boy?” asks the king.“I could, but she’d just end up a tomboy,” shrugs the magician.Instead, the magician offers them three options: "I can make her either very amiable, or very beautiful, or very clever."The king votes clever. The queen says, “What good is that to a woman?” (Oof.) She votes amiability, because it runs in her family. The king disagrees with that statement.At last they compromise: beauty it is.The magician says great, but there is one more thing. To make her beautiful, he'll have to cut out her heart.“Awkward,” says the king.“Expected,” says the queen.Since clearly letting her remain a normal girl is not an option, the princess's heart is cut out and placed in a locket. If the locket is ever removed, their daughter will transform into a bird and fly away.It would've been nice to know that in advance, remarks the queen, but not in a tone which suggests it would change the outcome.As expected, our dear princess grows into a great beauty and eventually does lose her locket. She becomes a swan but fortunately there's a hunk to break the spell. She moves away from her crazy sexist parents (no loss there) and lives her best life with hottie husband and returned heart. The end.The moral here is a little clearer than the prior fairytales, with suggestion that beauty is meaningless without a heart. There might also be a message that if your parents are nutjobs, it's best to find your escape route ASAP.Whatever the message, or lack thereof, it's an entertaining tale. My research found absolutely nothing on Ellis Markham, so this appears to be a truly obscure fairytale unique to the collection. An editor's note merely states that it was originally published about seventy years ago, so around 1880. Likely it is an adaptation of "The Heart of Princess Joan" which was published in 1880 by Mary De Morgan. There's a lot of similarities between the two stories anyway.No misses yet. On to the next![Unknown German Author] - The Three Sisters - 4/5The craziest one yet! It's about a Baron who hosts extravagant parties and is everybody's favorite person, until the money runs out and he has to sell off all his splendor. He moves his wife and three daughters to a "lonely old tower" where they all struggle to feed themselves without the aid of a hired cook. The only food they manage is boiled potatoes.One day, after becoming sick of potatoes, the Baron ventures into the foreboding woods to hunt. In the woods he is confronted by a talking bear who accuses him of trying to steal his honeycomb. "Thou shalt pay for thy crime with thy life!" declares the bear."Lord Bear," pleads the Baron. "I have no wish to steal your honey or any of your property."As a token of his apologies, the Baron offers the bear his last supply of boiled potatoes."Miserable wretch!" growls the unimpressed bear. "If thou wilt promise to give me [your eldest daughter], Wulfilda, to wife, thou shalt not die."Of course the Baron is quick to agree to this bargain. And thus the oldest of his three daughters becomes engaged to a large, ferocious forest bear. The Baron returns home and informs the family. Neither Wulfilda nor wife nor other daughters take it well. The Baron decides to fortify the crumbling tower as to lock the bear out.This doesn't work. The Bear claims his wife and off she goes into the deep forest. However, the Bear does follow marriage protocol and offers the family a handsome fortune for their daughter.Immediately the Baron and Countess return to their lavish lifestyle of old. But soon enough their wealth is gone again. And again, the Baron finds himself in danger. This time he offers his daughter to an eagle. Finally, his youngest daughter is betrothed to a big fish.The Baron is so ashamed of himself for giving up his final daughter to a wild animal, he skips town when the beast is scheduled to claim his bride.Naturally the wife is upset. But she settles down when discovering she is with child once more -- and this time it's a boy.The boy grows to become an impressive knight and, upon learning of his sisters fate, he vows to free them of their marriage to creatures.Reinaldo cuts through the dense, spooky forest and finds his lost sister holding a baby bear in her arms, while other young bears play about, imitating a human gait on two legs and rolling about.He learns of the curse that causes the bear to be human part of the time and vicious bear the other part. He proceeds to follow a knight's quest, investigating his other two sisters' predicaments and ultimately slaying who he needs to slay to turn them all back to human.As a four-chapter fairytale, this is a pretty long mini quest. In the end, the story is revealed to be the explanation why the arms of various German municipalities are of animals. Bernburg is a bear, Aarburg is an Eagle and Dauphine is a whale/dolphin.While overlong, you gotta love a story about a dad who sells off his daughters to monstrous talking animals in the blink of an eye. Not my fave, but far from boring.Rebecca Sophia Clarke (AKA Sophie May) - Nine Fairy Tales1. Cristobal: A Christmas Legend - 3/5Rushing home from Christmas midnight mass, Cristobal accidentally bumps into Jasper. Jasper is an easily-agitated boy who rages because his Christmas candle was broken in the collision. He punches Cristobal blind.Now sightless, Cristobal stews in fury over what Jasper did. He has vengeful fantasies where Jasper suffers a similar fate, if not a worse one.A year goes by. It's yet another Christmas Eve. Everyone is festive except blind Cristobal, who still churns with hatred. "No doubt Jasper's chestnuts are popping merrily, and his shoes will be full of presents. And here am I! My head aches and my eyeballs burn."He excuses himself to his room for privacy. Suddenly he has a vision of a painting of baby Jesus he saw last year right before the confrontation. Painting baby Jesus talks to him and asks if his heart is ready for Christmas. Cristobal confides that he's still very angry."I am tossed up and down by vexation. I am full of hatred against that terrible Jasper. It was all about a miserable Christmas candle he carried. I broke it by pushing him down. Tell me, was he right to fly at me like a wild beast? Ought he not to suffer even as I have suffered?"Baby Jesus advises: "Let him answer for his own sin. Judge not, little brother."Inspired even as the vision of painting baby Jesus fades, Cristobal rids his heart of lingering vengeance. "Now I am ready for Christmas," he thinks. Though still blind as a bat, he embraces Christmas cheer to the fullest.But wait! Amidst the merrymaking it is discovered that Jasper's house has caught flame, and he's trapped behind a curtain of fire. Cristobal prays to "little Jesus" asking for his eyesight to return so that he may save Jasper. Instantly his prayer is granted. He rushes into the flaming building with a shout "In the name of the Little Jesus!"Cristobal, also aided by Baby Jesus super strength, carries the half-conscious ex-enemy Jasper down a ladder to safety. Jasper apologies for the tiff last year and Cristobal accepts, urging his new friend to "thank the Little Jesus."The end.Well now, this is a holiday tale I haven't heard before. I'm not usually into moral messaging, especially in the form of animated Jesus paintings, but the dialogue is on point and it's still a cute relic from the era. Rebecca Sophia Clarke's literary career seems to be mostly forgotten at this point, but she was quite prolific between 1864-1897. I look forward to reading her other tales.2. Wild Robin: A Scottish Fairy Tale - 3/5A Scottish family includes four children: cherry-cheeked Janet, brave Sandy and Davie, and the youngest--the "stormy tempered" Robin, whose personality is that of a "reeling hurricane." One time he drove two of his father's cows over a cliff to their death, just to make a point.It seems wild Robin has neither "love nor conscience" and his parents don't know what to do with him. The father wishes some fairies had him "for a season" so he can be taught some manners.Little did Father know, of course, that soon Robin would in fact be "carried away to Elfland."The queen of Elfland soon imprisons Robin and whips him into shape. "Weel, my lad, be at work, for naebody idles in Elfland," she says, using a fabulous Scottish dialect shared by the other characters as well.After many days of hard labor and no hope of escape, Robin begins to miss his mother and the easy life he used to scorn.He becomes so depressed he wishes he had died as a baby. He even sings a song about it:_Oh, that my father had ne'er on me smiled!Oh, that my mother had ne'er to me sung!Oh, that my cradle had never been rocked,But that I had died when I was young!_One of the little sprites takes pity on Robin and reveals that his only hope of escape is on Halloween night, while the fairies do their annual parade. The sprite sends a message via dream to Robin's sister with instructions on how to identify her brother among the procession of fairies.The plan works. Robin is rescued and returned to the human world. His siblings and parents forgive his past sins and welcome him home. Presumably Robin has also been changed by the experience, although the text doesn't say that. Who knows if he'll revert back to his prior wicked ways.A rushed conclusion provides an uneven finale to an otherwise intriguing setup. The Scottish dialect is marvelously written and a lot of fun. There's a good lesson in there about how it's uncool to push cows off cliffs just to spite your parents.3. The Vesper Star - 4/5Major drama is happening in the galaxy. Constellations are in a tizzy because a Comet is whizzing by with splendor and glory. There's jealousy all around, except for the Vesper Star, who is no more depressed than usual."Oh, that I could be set on fire like the Comet!" thought the North Star. "I would gladly burn to death if I could astonish the world with my blaze!""Let us die," said the Seven Sisters, "let us die together! We have ceased to be noticed.""So many years as I have kept watch in this sky, and now to be set one side by this upstart of a foreigner!" grumbles the Great Bear constellation. "I've a great mind to go to sleep and never wake up!"The Vesper Star tells them all to "hush" and "trust God."Indeed, the Comet flashes by and is never seen again. The rest of the constellations regret their jealousy and become more content with their lives. The Vesper Star is most awarded (by God?) because she "had done her work without envy and without repining."The extent and creativity that went into quasi-religious fables of old is pretty wild. The touch on jealousy over "foreigners" is interesting. Overall, I really liked the personification of constellations in this one. Cute!4. The Water Kelpie5. The Lost Sylphid6. The Castle of Gems7. The Elf of Light8. The Princess Hilda9. Goldilocks ...more
Jun 26, 2025 12:31AM · 70 likes · like · see review

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“Give your ghost time, for they never grow old; Consider their voice as they woo your soul: “Shed thy fair skin and forsake thy warm breath, With me, thou shalt have true love after death.”
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“Give your ghost time, for they never grow old; Consider their voice as they woo your soul: “Shed thy fair skin and forsake thy warm breath, With me, thou shalt have true love after death.”
― Justin Tate, The Death Sonnets

“Someone once asked me what I thought horror fiction did. What its purpose was . . . I replied that when I wrote horror fiction, I tried to take the improbable, the unimaginable, and the impossible, and make it seem not only possible--but inevitable.”
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