Brief Candles

Not since W. H. Auden's Academic Graffiti has a poet of serious substance indulged so thoroughly in clerihews, those miniature (and often outrageously fictional) biographies invented just over 100 years ago by E. C. Bentley (1875-1956). In Brief Candles, Pulitzer Prize winner Henry Taylor takes on with hilarious irreverence people usually taken most seriously -- members of the Supreme Court, poets laureate, literary theorists, Whitewater celebrities, and New Testament figures -- demonstrating through 101 clerihews that one of the primary purposes of poetry is to have fun, even while craftsmanship remains paramount. Taylor's shimmering wit and resourceful use of rhyme combine with whimsical illustrations by Heather Alexander to make these tiny, playful pieces a rare treat for all readers. We learn the rules quickly enough (the form demands a beginning with a proper name and then a rhymed surprise or payoff), and read with delight such quick riffs as: Antonin Scalia likes to sing "The Rose of Tralee" -- a treat for all students of his jurisprudence. and Friedrich Nietzsche strove vainly to reach a steadfast decision between Apollonian and Dionysian. In times of tribulation, we can read the Book of Lamentations, or the Psalms, or just as likely, Henry Taylor's clerihews. They are, as he calls them, Brief Candles, but they do give a satisfying light.

DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "Brief Candles" by Cyril Henry Coles, Adelaide Frances Oke Manning. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

This second volume of ‘Brief Candles’ once again looks at the lives, in and out of cricket, of a batch of players who flickered only briefly on the first-class scene. Most earn their inclusion because of an unusual achievement that they recorded during their brief careers at that level. So you can read here about the five cricketers who played an innings in the 90s in their debut game, and the five who shared in century partnerships on debut when batting at number 11 - and yet none of them was ever picked again. Others are included because of something that happened to them during their one-and-only first-class matches - like the three cricketers who were no-balled for throwing on their debuts, whereupon they disappeared from the first-class game altogether. Another two earn their appearance because of a pair of unhappy coincidences: though unrelated they shared the same unusual surname, and both met their deaths in the most tragic of circumstances. And finally there’s the clergyman who played his only first-class match when just six months short of his 60th birthday. Brief Candles 2 explores the lives of these and some others who deserve to be better remembered for their unusual, if very short, contributions to the history of the first-class game.

Playing in a first-class match gives a cricketer a certain cachet. For ever after, opponents know that such-and-such played ‘big cricket’ and will expect him to perform accordingly. Even when his achievements lie elsewhere, biographers and obituarists will sagely note his appearances, however limited, and readers will infer that the subject has a special talent for the game. Nine thousand cricketers have played in just one first-class match, but for some their one appearance was more memorable than for others, for good reasons or otherwise. In 1924, Fred Hyland spent less than ten minutes on the field of play before rain washed out the game. Poor Josiah Coulthurst didn’t even step onto the playing area in a damp Lancashire contest in 1919. Emile McMaster’s only match, in South Africa in 1889, was later awarded Test match status. Bob Richards, playing for Essex at Leyton in 1970, didn’t learn till afterwards that his solitary appearance was a first-class game. Nobody can now be sure who was the Wilkinson who played a match at Oxford in 1939. Some one-match wonders have achieved much in their brief days in front of the cricket-watching public, centuries even and ‘eight-fors’: others have gone on to exceptional achievements in fields sporting, political and military. Keith Walmsley reports on the ‘struts’ and ‘frets’ of some players who appeared just once on the first-class ‘stage’ and then were ‘heard no more’.

Not since W. H. Auden's Academic Graffiti has a poet of serious substance indulged so thoroughly in clerihews, those miniature (and often outrageously fictional) biographies invented just over 100 years ago by E. C. Bentley (1875--1956). In Brief Candles, Pulitzer Prize winner Henry Taylor takes on with hilarious irreverence people usually taken most seriously -- members of the Supreme Court, poets laureate, literary theorists, Whitewater celebrities, and New Testament figures -- demonstrating through 101 clerihews that one of the primary purposes of poetry is to have fun, even while craftsmanship remains paramount. Taylor's shimmering wit and resourceful use of rhyme combine with whimsical illustrations by Heather Alexander to make these tiny playful pieces a rare treat for all readers. In times of tribulation, we can read the Book of Lamentations, or the Psalms, or just as likely, Henry Taylor's clerihews. They are, as he calls them, Brief Candles, but they do give a satisfying light.

"Brief Candles" is a collection of four short stories by Aldous Huxley. The stories included are: "Chawdron" - "The Rest Cure" - "The Claxtons" - "After the Fireworks." Each story offers a unique narrative and explores different themes and characters.

In this spirited introduction to Kwanzaa, Andrea Davis Pinkney explains the meaning of the week-long African-American winter holiday and the special way each day is celebrated. The text is simple and straightforward, and pronunciation guides are provided for the Swahili words sprinkled throughout. Filled with facts about the festival, this is a perfect selection for anyone interested in learning more about this unique holiday." A congenial combination of text and pictures that can be used by older children as well as picture book readers."-- Booklist, starred review