#Lady First: The World of First Lady Sarah polk | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

inclineto · 4 years

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Books, July - August 2020

The Lawrence Browne Affair - Cat Sebastian [interesting: I liked this a whole lot more on rereading than I did the first time]

Notes from an Apocalypse: A Personal Journey to the End of the World and Back - Mark O’Connell [much funnier than I expected a book featuring this many libertarians to be; also, god damn Ayn Rand and her community- and compassion-fearing nihilistic fanboys]

Queenie - Candice Carty-Williams

Solitaire - Kelley Eskridge * [the only surprise is that I waited until Day 111 of isolation to reread this]

In Praise of Paths: Walking Through Time and Nature - Torbjørn Ekelund, translated by Becky L. Crook *

Her Body and Other Parties - Carmen Maria Machado

Crystal Line - Anne McCaffrey

A Children’s Bible - Lydia Millet *

Daughter of Witches - Patricia C. Wrede

The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller [you know, I can understand why other people despise this take, but it worked for me]

Folly - Laurie R. King

The Forgotten Beasts of Eld - Patricia McKillip

Boyfriend Material - Alexis Hall [The novel version of spending Friday night home alone on the couch with red wine and French bread-and-butter. Highly satisfying in the moment, and ruthlessly wink-and-nod in-the-know about (a particular sort of) internet culture, in a way that means it should be read now and not later. Although it probably doesn’t really need to be over 400 pages long, I’m not sure what I’d cut, and anyway there’s PINING. (But also: I think this needs a warning for somewhat disordered eating, which is a) a minor but believable characterization detail, and b) not the point of the novel at all, but c) it nagged at me in a really unpleasant way throughout until it was acknowledged)]

An Extraordinary Union - Alyssa Cole

Spirits Abroad - Zen Cho

The Equivalents: A Story of Art, Female Friendship, and Liberation in the 1960s - Maggie Doherty

The Ten Thousand Doors of January - Alix E. Harrow

Something to Talk About - Meryl Wilsner

The Terracotta Bride - Zen Cho

Under Another Sky: Journeys in Roman Britain - Charlotte Higgins

Stormsong - C. L. Polk

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous - Ocean Vuong

The Only Gold - Tamara Allen [new favorite terrible penis euphemism: “the instrument of contention”]

The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin

The Snow Queen - Eileen Kernaghan

Wives and Daughters - Elizabeth Gaskell [her character sketches, my god: ”Let Cynthia be ever so proud, ever so glad, or so grateful, or even indignant, remorseful, grieved or sorry, the very fact that she was expected by another to entertain any of these emotions, would have been enough to prevent her expressing them.”]

Fallen into the Pit - Ellis Peters

These Old Shades - Georgette Heyer *

The Genius of Birds - Jennifer Ackerman

Two Rogues Make a Right - Cat Sebastian [conclusion: the Sedgwicks are simply too wholesome for my taste, but I’m probably going to end up rereading the one with the vicar and the ducks anyway]

The Anarchy: The East India Company, Corporate Violence, and the Pillage of an Empire - William Dalrymple [dnf]

The Doctor’s Discretion - EE Ottoman

The Bishop’s Heir - Katherine Kurtz

The Life and (Medieval) Times of Kit Sweetly - Jamie Pacton

This Other London: Adventures in the Overlooked City - John Rogers [dnf]

Death and the Joyful Woman - Ellis Peters

The Glass Hotel - Emily St. John Mandel

The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water - Zen Cho

The King’s Justice - Katherine Kurtz

Catherine House - Elisabeth Thomas

Flight of a Witch - Ellis Peters

Blackfish City - Sam J. Miller [dnf]

Crooked Hallelujah - Kelli Jo Ford

Devil’s Cub - Georgette Heyer * [on the one hand, it’s appalling that we’re meant to cheer for Dominic; on the other, chapter 18 is a comic masterpiece]

A Duke by Default - Alyssa Cole

The Night Watch - Sarah Waters

It Takes Two to Tumble - Cat Sebastian [just as I predicted! and I remain unconvinced by these ducks; after all, I have met a duck]

Hild - Nicola Griffith

Water, Ice & Stone: Science and Memory on the Antarctic Lakes - Bill Green [dnf]

Have His Carcase - Dorothy L. Sayers [I do appreciate how Sayers juggles tonal registers, in order to break up the novel’s prevailing humor - ”A solitary rock is always attractive. All right-minded people feel an overwhelming desire to scale and sit upon it.” - with those raging gratitude-and-obligation scenes and the occasional peek at decisions mercenary and necessary.

A Study in Honor - Claire O’Dell [there’s something interesting here about the world-building dangers of using the present to establish the near future with too much specificity - I know most the books Watson is reading; I like many of them; I realize they’re name-dropped in part as thanks and homage; and I still found myself thinking, “has no one written anything since 2015?”]

The Sugared Game - KJ Charles [no surprise, Maisie and Phoebe are my favorites...now kiss]

Sorcery and Cecilia, or, The Enchanted Chocolate Pot: being the correspondence of two Young Ladies of Quality regarding Various Scandals in London and the Country - Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer * [yay!]

#books 2020 #books practical and pleasurable #featuring the week in early july when everything was pleasing to me and the stretch of mid august when nothing satisfied

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sciencespies · 3 years

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The Top Ten Online Exhibitions of 2020

https://sciencespies.com/history/the-top-ten-online-exhibitions-of-2020/

The Top Ten Online Exhibitions of 2020

SMITHSONIANMAG.COM | Dec. 31, 2020, 10:48 a.m.

In recent years, curators and educators have increasingly started exploring the many possibilities offered by virtual exhibitions. Hundreds of institutions have made 3-D tours of their galleries available online through Google Arts & Culture and similar platforms, allowing visitors from around the world to virtually “wander” through the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Frida Kahlo’s Casa Azul in Mexico City, the Tokyo National Museum and other significant sites.

But when the Covid-19 pandemic forced museums to shutter for most of 2020, public interest in virtual art experiences skyrocketed like never before. Closed to the public and financially strained, many museums nevertheless managed to create thought-provoking alternatives to in-person viewing.

Digital offerings in the United States ranged from the Morgan Library & Museum’s interactive retrospective of Al Taylor’s drawings to the Museum of Modern Art’s (MoMA) “Virtual Views” of Surrealist women. Abroad, exhibitions such as the Rijksmuseum’s interactive version of a Rembrandt masterpiece offered viewers a chance to literally “zoom in” on a single piece of art—and perhaps notice new details that would’ve otherwise gone unnoticed. In London, meanwhile, Tate Modern adapted its “Andy Warhol” show by creating a curator-led tour that takes users through the exhibition room by room.

The Smithsonian Institution also made impressive forays into the world of online exhibitions. A beautifully illustrated portal created by the National Museum of American History and the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative examined how girls have shaped history, while a landmark show at the Smithsonian American Art Museum spotlighted Chicano activists’ pioneering printmaking. At the National Museum of Natural History, curators catered to science enthusiasts with narrated virtual tours of various exhibits and halls; at the National Air and Space Museum, aviation experts produced panoramic views of famed aircraft’s interiors. Other highlights included the National Museum of Asian Art’s virtual reality tour of six iconic monuments from across the Arab world, the Cooper Hewitt’s walkthrough of “Contemporary Muslim Fashions,” and the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s exploration of black soldiers’ experiences during World War I. (For a more complete list of offerings, visit the Smithsonian’s online exhibitions portal.)

To mark the end of an unprecedented year, Smithsonian magazine is highlighting some of the most innovative ways in which museums helped craft meaningful virtual encounters with history and art. From first ladies to women writers and Mexican muralists, these were ten of our favorite online exhibitions of 2020.

“Every Eye Is Upon Me: First Ladies of the United States”

The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery (Washington, D.C.)

Click this image to view the online exhibition. Depicted clockwise from top left: Mamie Eisenhower, Lady Bird Johnson, Grace Coolidge, Nancy Reagan, Dolley Madison, Abigail Fillmore, Frances Cleveland and Sarah Polk.

(Illustration by Meilan Solly / Photographs via NPG)

Visitors to the National Portrait Gallery’s presidential wing have long called for an exhibition devoted to the U.S.’ first ladies. But as Alicia Ault points out for Smithsonian, these women haven’t always been recognized as important individuals in their own right—a fact reflected in the relative dearth of portraiture depicting them. The gallery itself only began commissioning official portraits of the first ladies in 2006.

“Every Eye Is Upon Me: First Ladies of the United States” seeks to redress this imbalance by presenting 60 portraits—including photographs, drawings, silhouettes, paintings and sculptures—of American presidents’ wives. Though the physical exhibition is currently closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, would-be visitors can explore a virtual version featuring high-resolution images of first ladies from Martha Washington to Melania Trump, as well as brief biographies, podcasts and blog posts. The portraits are as “varied as the women themselves,” who all responded to the unique challenges and pressures of their office in different ways, writes Ault.

Inspiration for the exhibition’s title comes from Julia Gardiner, who was the first woman to marry a president in office. Born into a wealthy Long Island slaveholding family, Gardiner was just 24 years old when she wed John Tyler in 1844. As Gardiner prepared to take on the high-profile role, she wrote in a letter to her mother that she knew she would be scrutinized: “I very well know every eye is upon me, my dear mother, and I will behave accordingly.”

“Jacob Lawrence: The American Struggle”

Peabody Essex Museum (Salem, Massachusetts)

One of black history’s preeminent visual storytellers, Jacob Lawrence employed Modernist forms and bright colors to narrate the American experience through the eyes of the country’s most marginalized citizens. This year, the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, reunited one of Lawrence’s most groundbreaking series—Struggle: From the History of the American People (1954–56)—for the first time in 60 years.

In 30 hardboard panels, each measuring 12 by 16 inches, Lawrence traces American history from the Revolutionary War to 1817, covering such events as the Boston Tea Party and the nation’s bloody, prolonged campaigns against Native Americans, as Amy Crawford wrote for Smithsonian in June. Virtual visitors can stroll through the exhibition, aptly titled “Jacob Lawrence: The American Struggle,” or zoom in on images of each panel. Entries are accompanied by related artworks and reflections from scholars.

When the show traveled to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, it sparked an exciting reunion. A museum visitor recognized the panels’ distinct Modernist style and realized that her neighbors, a couple living on the Upper West Side, had a similar painting hanging in their living room. Curators determined that the panel, which depicts Shay’s Rebellion, was one of five missing works from the Struggle series. No photographs of the panel had survived, and it had been presumed lost for decades—but as curator Randall Griffey told the New York Times, it turned out to be “just across the park” from the museum.

“Vida Americana: Mexican Muralists Remake American Art, 1925–1945”

Whitney Museum of American Art (New York City)

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When the Mexican Revolution drew to a close in 1920 after ten years of armed struggle, the country was left profoundly changed. But among artists of the post-revolutionary period, a new cultural revolution was just beginning. Over the next several decades, artists like the famed Tres Grandes, or Big Three—José Clemente Orozco, Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros—started crafting radical, large-scale works that embraced Mexico’s Indigenous cultures and told epic narratives about the nation’s history.

As “Vida Americana,” an ongoing exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art, argues, these sweeping, dynamic murals also had a major impact on Mexico’s neighbors to the north. As Mexican artists traveled to the U.S. (and vice versa), they taught their peers how to break free of European conventions and create public art that celebrated American history and everyday life. On the show’s well-organized online hub, art lovers can explore short documentaries, audio guides, essays and other resources in both Spanish and English. Click through some of the selected artworks from the show to encounter Rivera’s Detroit Institute of Art masterpiece, a massive 27-mural cycle that offered Americans reeling from the Great Depression a visionary outlook of their country’s future industrial potential, and Siqueiros’ experimental workshop, which directly inspired Jackson Pollock’s Abstract Expressionism.

“Dorothea Lange: Words & Pictures”

The Museum of Modern Art (New York City)

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Recognized today as one of America’s foremost photographers, Dorothea Lange is known for her arresting portraits of the human condition and keen social awareness—qualities perhaps best exemplified by her 1936 image Migrant Mother, which became a de facto symbol of the Great Depression.

But few people know that Lange was also enamored with the written word. As she once said, “All photographs—not only those that are so called ‘documentary’… can be fortified by words.” Lange believed that words could clarify and add context to photographs, thereby strengthening their social impact. In her landmark photobook An American Exodus: A Record of Human Erosion, she became one of the first photographers to incorporate her subject’s own words into her captions, as Smithsonian reported in August.

Through this MoMA exhibition’s online hub, viewers can read selections of Lange’s writing, watch a series of short videos on her work, listen to interviews with curator Sarah Meister, and—of course—take their time studying close-up versions of the artist’s iconic photographs.

“Writing the Future: Basquiat and the Hip-Hop Generation”

Museum of Fine Art, Boston (Boston, Massachusetts)

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Jean-Michel Basquiat is often touted as a singular genius. His large-scale works, which riff on color, phrases and iconography to probe issues of colonialism, racism and celebrity, regularly fetch enormous sums at auction.

But the graffiti artist–turned–painter, who died of a heroin overdose at age 27, didn’t develop his artistic vision in a vacuum: Instead, he was profoundly influenced by a network of peers and close collaborators. “Writing the Future: Basquiat and the Hip-Hop Generation,” which opened at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in October, is the first show to consider the influence of Basquiat’s large circle of mainly black and Latino collaborators, all of whom shaped the painter’s artistic vision in 1980s New York City.

The museum complemented its in-person show with a multimedia-heavy online exhibition, which includes detailed essays, images of works in the show and clips of interviews with the artist. Viewers are encouraged to scour lesser-known artworks from Basquiat’s peers, such as the “Gothic futurist” paintings of Rammellzee and the rebellious murals of Lady Pink, in search of themes and styles that Basquiat echoed in his own work.

“Making the Met, 1870–2020”

Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)

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A group of businessmen and civic leaders purchased the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s first work—a marble sarcophagus from ancient Rome—in 1870. Since then, the museum’s collections have become some of the greatest troves of cultural heritage in the world, constituting an encyclopedic range of artifacts that attracts millions of visitors each year.

This year, the Manhattan museum celebrated its 150th birthday by hosting a celebratory exhibition and slate of virtual offerings: Among others, the list of digital resources includes an hour-long audio tour of some of the exhibition’s highlights, as narrated by actor Steve Martin; an interactive online version of the show; and a virtual walkthrough courtesy of Google Arts and Culture. Met officials also made a rare gem available for public viewing: Behind the Scenes: The Working Side of the Museum, a silent 1928 documentary that depicts curators and janitors at work in the iconic New York building.

“The Museum of the World”

The British Museum (London, England)

Click this image to access the interactive timeline.

(Screenshot via British Museum / Google Arts & Culture)

An innovative example of the possibilities of online exhibitions, the British Museum’s “Museum of the World” debuted in February 2020—and it couldn’t have been better timed. Though the museum remained closed to in-person visitors for much of the year, desktop computer users were able to use this interactive timeline to visualize connections between different items in the museum’s vast collections.

On the website, which the museum developed in partnership with Google Arts & Culture, viewers can trace links through time and space, jumping from a handscroll describing courtly behavior of ladies in the Eastern Jin Dynasty of China to the jade plaque of a Maya king. With a slick interface and audio elements, the timeline encourages viewers to take an interactive, self-directed trip through the material culture of human history.

Notably absent from the project is an acknowledgement of the London museum’s colonialist history, which came under renewed scrutiny this summer amid global protests against systemic racism. In August, the cultural institution moved a bust of its founder, who profited from the enslavement of people in Jamaica, to a new display featuring added contextualization. As Aditya Iyer writes for Hyperallergic, the museum recently made a “promising but flawed start [at] grappling with” this legacy by curating a self-guided tour titled “Empire and Collecting.” Available online in an abbreviated format, the tour traces the “different, complex and sometimes controversial journeys of objects” that entered the collections, according to the museum’s website.

“The Night Watch”

The Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam, the Netherlands)

Click this image to access the interactive portal.

(Screenshot via the Rijksmuseum)

In this new hyper-resolution view of Rembrandt van Rijn’s The Night Watch, art lovers can pore over every detail of the Dutch master’s most famous painting—down to every crack and stray paint splatter, as Theresa Machemer wrote for Smithsonian in May. The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam debuted the interactive version of its prized painting as part of a lengthy restoration process dubbed Operation Night Watch. Last year, experts began restoring the 11- by 15-foot painting in a glass chamber installed in the middle of the museum, offering visitors a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse at the conservation process.

Officially titled Night Watch, Militia Company of District II under the Command of Captain Frans Banninck Cocq, the 1642 painting depicts a captain instructing a cadre of soldiers. In the online guided tour (which comes with options for children and adults), users can zoom in on different aspects of the painting while a soundscape—the swish of a cloak, a horse’s hooves, an eerie melody, a far-off bell—sets the mood. Look for Rembrandt’s signature, his presumed self-portrait lurking in the painting’s background, the striking young girl with a chicken dangling from her belt and other mysterious elements embedded in the action-packed scene.

According to a statement, the image combines 528 exposures into one composite, making it the most detailed rendering of Rembrandt’s masterpiece ever created. The project is a prime example of how online galleries can encourage viewers to engage in repeated, close study of the same piece of art—and proof that they can always discover something new.

“Van Eyck: An Optical Revolution”

Museum of Fine Arts Ghent (Ghent, Belgium)

Click this image to access the virtual experience.

(Screenshot via Museum of Fine Arts Ghent)

Curators and art enthusiasts were crushed when the pandemic forced a blockbuster Jan van Eyck exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent to close less than two months after opening. The once-in-a-generation show—titled “Van Eyck: An Optical Revolution”—represented the largest-ever display of van Eyck’s paintings and was “so unlikely to be repeated that the museum might as well use ’now or never,’” as J.S. Marcus wrote for the Wall Street Journal in January.

In response to the unexpected closure, the museum pivoted, partnering with Belgian virtual reality company Poppr to create a 360-degree tour of the gallery with accompanying audio guides for adults and children. Star items featured in the show included Portrait of a Man (Léal Souvenir) and panels from the spectacular Ghent Altarpiece, whose center panel depicts Jesus as a sacrificial lamb on an altar, alive but bleeding from a wound. Prior to the exhibition, the panels had not left their home in St. Bavo’s Cathedral since 1945, as Sophie Haigney reported for the New York Times earlier this year.

Born in 1390 in what is now Belgium, van Eyck created spectacularly detailed oil paintings of religious scenes. As the show’s website notes, only about 20 of the Flemish master’s paintings survive today.

“Wise and Valiant: Women and Writing in the Golden Age of Spain”

Instituto Cervantes (Madrid, Spain)

Click this image to browse the exhibition’s essays and artworks online.

(Screenshot via Instituto Cervantes)

Spain’s Golden Age is perhaps best known for producing Miguel Cervantes’ Don Quixote, El Greco’s eerily elongated portraits and Lope de Vega’s prolific plays. But as the now-closed exhibition “Wise and Valiant” showed, these individuals and their male peers weren��t the only creative geniuses at work during the 16th and 17th centuries. Though women’s opportunities at the time were largely limited to the domestic and religious spheres, a select few took advantage of the relative intellectual freedom offered by life in a convent to pursue writing professionally.

From Mexican nun Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz to playwright Ana Caro and nun-turned-soldier Catalina de Erauso, hundreds of women across the Spanish Empire published poetry, diaries, novels, dramatic works and travelogues. Though many of these works have since been lost or forgotten, scholars are increasingly taking steps to recover their authors’ hidden stories—a trend reflected in the Madrid show, which explored women writers’ lives through a display of more than 40 documents. As Lauren Moya Ford observed in Hyperallergic’s review of the show, the online version of the exhibition (available in both Spanish and English) presents their stories in a “format well-suited to this dense, delicate material.” Users can delve into digitized historical documents, browse curator commentary and watch a video montage of relevant clips.

#History

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signourneybooks · 5 years

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Intro

You know sometimes I like to challenge myself.

How to Play

This reading challenge consists of 3 sections. Fantasy, Sci-Fi and General for a total of 52 prompts which comes down to about 1 book a week.

You can do 1, 2 or all 3 sections.

With each section you are allowed 1 Double-Up. Double-Up means you can use 1 book for 2 prompts. Preferred is not to at all but if for some reason you are struggling with time or a prompt you can.

In the general sections you can use both fantasy and sci-fi books but not other genres.

Graphic novels, comics, audiobooks and novella’s are allowed. It is all reading in my book.

Rereads count.

You can move the books around throughout the year if things fit better elsewhere and all.

You can step into this reading challenge at any point. I’m starting it in January 2019 but in reality this is a reading challenge you can fit for yourself in anyway you like. If you want to start in May and end April the year after, that is totally fine.

Graphic

Sign-Up

I don’t know if people want to join me but I would love to interact with each other if you do. You can participate anyway you like, with goodreads, twitter, instagram or your blog. I don’t require a sign-up post but I would appreciate if you boosted this.

If there are a nice group of people we can see if we can do a twitter dm group or an fb group or something to chat with each other on how to fill the prompts. 🙂

The widget won’t go into the post because wp sucks so here is the direct link.

If You Need Inspiration: Find Some Fitting Books Per Prompt Here

I figured some of you might like to have a list of options for each prompt so here we are. I’ve read a portion of these, others are on my own TBR and others I just know fit with the prompt. These are in no way meant as real recommendations, just those that fit the prompt. No links because do you see how many books I mention haha.

Fantasy

Classic Fantasy The Dragon Bone Chair by Tad Williams / Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin / The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien / Narnia by C.S Lewis /

Magic School Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling / Tempests and Slaughter by Tamora Pierce / A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. le Guin / The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss / Carry On by Rainbow Rowell / Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones / The Magicians by Lev Grossman / The Novice by Taran Matharu

Necromancers Darkest Powers by Kelley Armstrong / Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride / Sabriel by Garth Nix / The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco / Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews / Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard / Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh / Skullduggery Pleasant by Derek Landry / Give the Dark My Love by Beth Revis

PTSD Witchmark C.L. Polk / The First Law by Joe Abercrombie /

Dragons The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli / Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb / The Copper Promise by Jen Williams / Talon by Julie Kagawa / Seraphina by Rachel Hartman / A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin / Eragon by Christopher Paolini / Eon by Alison Goodman / Temeraire by Naomi Novik / A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan / How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell / Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland / Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aron

Fairytale Retelling Uprooted by Naomi Novik / A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas / Ash by Melinda Lo / Forests of a Thousand Lanters by Julie C. Dao / The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh / The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden / Thorn by Intisar Khanani / To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo

Grimdark Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence / Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson / Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin / A Crown for Cold Silver by Alex Marshall / Skullsworn by Brian Stavely / Red Sister by Mark Lawrence / The Black Prism by Brent Weeks

Ghosts Lockwood & Co. by Jonathan Stroud / The Graveyard Queen by Amanda Stevens / City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab / The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman / The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater / Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Uncommon Fantasy Creatures So not the usual werewolf, dragons, vampires and the like Bones and Bourbon by Dorian Graves (Huldra) / The Golem and the Djinni by Helene Wecker (Golem) / Steel & Stone by Annette Marie (Incubus) / Troll Fell by Katherine Langrish (Trolls) / The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison (Goblins)

Shapeshifters Moon Called by Patricia Briggs / Written in Red by Anne Bishop / Stray by Rachel Vincent / Soulless by Gail Carragher / The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong /

Gods Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan / Magnus Chase by Rick Riordan / Aru Shah at the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi / American Gods by Neil Gaiman / The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin / The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter / The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White / Furyborn by Claire LeGrand / Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor / Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman / Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova / The Gospel of Loki by Joanne Harris

Animal (or in Animal Form) Companion(s) Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb / The Dragon Bone Chair by Tad Williams / Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh / Spellslinger by Sebastien de Castell / The Summoner by Taran Matharu

Matriarchy Seven Realms by Cinda Williams Chima / Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake / Daughter of the Blood by Anne Bishop / Dragonflight by Anne McAffrey / The Cloud Roads by Martha Wells / The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley

Set in Our World The Others by Anne Bishop / Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling / Shadowhunters by Cassandra Clare / American Gods by Neil Gaiman / Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning / Psy-Changeling by Nalini Singh / Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

Witches Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt / The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco / A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness / Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett / The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy / Uprooted by Naomi Novik / Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor

Magical Law Enforcement Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling / Rivers of London by Ben Aaronvitch / The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher / The Golem’s Eye by Jonathan Stroud / Lockwood & Co. by Jonathan Stroud

Thief The Legend of Eli Monpress by Rachel Aaron / The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch / Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo / The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima / The Death of the Necromancer by Martha Wells

Pirates Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo / Magic of Blood and Sea by Cassandra Rose Clarke / Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch / The Nature of a Pirate by A.M. Dellamonica

Portal Fantasy Child of a Hidden Sea by A.M. Dellamonica / The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis / Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll / Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire / The Magicians by Lev Grossman

Warrior Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin / Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien / Night Angel by Brent Weeks / Half a King by Joe Abercrombie /

Sci-Fi

On a Different Planet A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers / Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray / The Dispossessed by Ursula K. LeGuin / The Martian by Andy Weir / Dune by Frank Herbert / Red Rising by Pierce Brown

Space Ship The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers / The Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers / An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon / Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Addams

Artificial Intelligence Point of View A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers / I, Robot by Isaac Asimov / 2001: A Space Odessey by Arthur C. Clarke / Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Kick

Proto Sci-Fi As Frankenstein is seen as the first sci-fi novel all books prior to that that seem to be sci-fi are called proto sci-fi but anything before H.G. Wells will count here as it seems to cause some discussions. New Atlantis by Francis Bacon / Frankenstein by Mary Shelley / The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson / From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne /

Alien The Fifth Wave by Rick Riordan / The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Addams / The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells / Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Time Travel The Time Machine by H.G. Wells / Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier / Passenger by Alexandra Bracken / The Girl From Everywhere by Heidi Heilig / The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma / Invictus by Ryan Graudin

Utopia The Dispossed by Ursula K. le Guin / Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel / Andromeda by Ivan Efremov / The Giver by Lois Lowry

Games/Gaming/Virtual Reality Warcross by Marie Lu / Armada by Ernest Cline / Otherland by Tad Williams / In Real Life by Cory Doctorow / Unplugged by Donna Freitas

Hive (Mind) The Shadow over Innsmouth by H.P. Lovecraft / Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie / City of Broken Magic by Mirah Bolender

Steampunk Soulless by Gail Carrigher / Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve / Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld / Boneshaker by Cherie Priest / Lady of Devices by Shelley Adina

Super Powers The Reckoners by Brandon Sanderson / Lorien Legacies by Pittacus Lore / Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee / Nimona by Noelle Stevenson / The Runaways by Brian K. Vaughan

Science Better known as heavy sci-fi if you go searching for books Foundation by Isaac Asimov / World War Z by Max Brooks / The Color of Distance by Amy Thomson / Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds

Replicate/Replica Accelerando by Charles Stross / Replica by Lauren Oliver / Evolution by Stephen Baxter / The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson

Space Colonization The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Briggs / Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie / The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradburry

Mecha Themis Files by Sylvain Neuvel / Gundam Wing by Haijme Hatate / Dreadnought by Cherie Priest

Space Creatures/Beasts Mistworld by Simon Green / Dune by Frank Herbert / Alien by Alan Dean Foster /

Teleportation Jumper by Stephen Gould / Timeline by Michael Crighton / The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter / The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Space Western The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury / Six-Gun Planet by John Yakes / Trigun by Yasuhiro Nightow / Those Left Behind by Joss Whedon / Cowboy Bebop by Yutaka Nanten

The Moon The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer / Moonseed by Stephen Baxter / Artemis by Andy Weir / Red Rising by Pierce Brown / The First Men in the Moon by H.G. Wells

Invasion Alien or Human The Andromedia Strain by Michael Crighton / Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout / The Lorien Legacies by Pittacus Lore / The Alien Years by Robert Silverberg / Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card / First Men in the Moon by H.G. Wells / Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein

General

For this you can use sci-fi and fantasy where you can make them fit.

Satire Discworld by Terry Pratchett / Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams / The Portable Door by Tom Holt / Red Shirts by John Scalzi /

Novella Binty by Nnedi Okorafor / Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire / The Ghost Line by Andrew Neil Gray / The Girl Who Rules Fairyland – For a Little While by Catheryne M. Valente

Finish a Series For this you can read the other books for other prompts throughout this challenge and read the last one here or finish a series you previously started. Or you could just read a whole series for this prompt alone. Whatever you want haha.

Mental Health Stormlight Archives by Branden Sanderson (depression) / The Magicians by Lev Grossman (depression) / Witchmark by C.L Polk (PTSD) / Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (PTSD)

Disability * On the Edge of Gone by Corinne Duyvis (autism) / October Daye by Seanan McGuire (weelchair) *Kristen from Metaphors and Moonlight created a masterlist.

Set in Africa Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor / Zoo City by Lauren Beukes / The Famished Road by Ben Okri / Changa’s Safari by Milton J. Davis

Library Library is semi-important in the book Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor / Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine / The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman / The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins /

By a Woman of Color Nnedi Okorafor / N.K. Jemisin / Tomi Adeyemi / Julie Kagawa / Malinda Lo / Heidi Helig / to name only a few…

One Word Title / Under 500 Pages / Over 800 Pages / Published Before 1990 I don’t think I need to make a list for these, right?

If you have any recs for any of these categories (especially Disability, Mental Health, Set in Africa and PTSD) than please leave them down below.

Printables

Let me know if these don’t work to save.

Dancing with Fantasy and Sci-Fi – A (2019) Reading Challenge + Bingo Cards Intro You know sometimes I like to challenge myself. How to Play This reading challenge consists of 3 sections.

#2019 reading challenge #Dancing with Fantasy and Sci-Fi #fantasy reading challenge #reading challenge #Sci-Fi reading challenge

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rebeccaheyman · 4 years

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reading + listening 8.3.20

This was a super-chaotic reading week for me. I had three (3!) DNFs, a soul-heavy non-fiction aBook, some truly mediocre historical romance, and an ARC that didn’t satisfy. It feels like I’m coming out the other side with this week’s programming, but we’ll see...

Mexican Gothic (Sylvia Moreno-Garcia), aBook. DNF. I wasn’t wild about the narration on this, which felt too pointedly read. I was willing to stick with it for the REBECCA vibes, but I finally called it quits at 72%, when the baby-eating began. There’s a clear distinction between gothic and horror, and this novel very much crossed the line. If you like creepy surrealist dreams, eugenics-gone-wrong, and indictments of the patriarchy, this book is for you. But you’ve been warned: human baby-eating ahead.

The Bride (Julia Garwood), aBook. DNF. This late-80s Scottish historical romance has rave reviews, but I found the characters universally insufferable. Not even Rosalyn Landor’s narration could make this palatable beyond Chapter 2, and that’s saying something.

A Duke, The Lady and a Baby (Vanessa Riley), eBook. DNF. I really, really wanted to like this one. A Guyana heroine, a war-ravaged duke coming to terms with the loss of his leg, and a grand estate with secrets to discover -- all the ingredients were there! Unfortunately, the writing fell flat for me, with frequently awkward narration and an incessant, whinging quality to the core conflict. When characters have to convince one another that lying is the only way forward, you can almost be guaranteed that the truth would have set them all free (and ended the book before it could begin). After what felt like the tenth awkward conversation between our MCs, I had to call it quits. Zero banter, no spark, and a transparent conflict... it’s a no for me.

Just Mercy (Bryan Stevenson), aBook read by the author. Surely the strength and power of this memoir will mark it as one of my best reads of 2020. Stevenson’s work with the Equal Justice Initiative -- and this chronicle of the organization’s founding, along with the landmark McMillan case -- sheds light on the cruelty, corruption, racism and prejudice of the American justice system. I was, and continue to feel, moved by Stevenson’s story -- so much so that before I even finished reading, I set up a monthly donation to EJI. I dare anyone to resist the call to action this book projects into the world (actually, don’t resist -- just answer the call). Here is one of my favorite quotes from the introduction:

Each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve ever done. My work with the poor and the incarcerated has persuaded me that the opposite of poverty is not wealth; the opposite of poverty is justice. [...] We are all implicated when we allow other people to mistreated. An absence of compassion can corrupt the decency of a community, a state, a nation. Fear and anger can make us vindictive and abusive, unjust and unfair, until we all suffer from the absence of mercy, and we condemn ourselves as much as victimize others.

One more time for those in the back: Read. This. Book.

Brazen and the Beast and Daring and the Duke (Sarah MacLean), aBooks. i listened to the first in this series a while back, but didn’t feel compelled to move forward with the series. Part of it is Justine Eyre’s narration, which makes most men sounds like half-rabid animals with a Menthol habit, but most of it is the storytelling. Every scene in MacLean’s novels takes AN AGE. Let’s take a classic historical romance Intimate Moment(TM)...First, MacLean’s characters are going to wend their way through paragraph after paragraph of scene work. Where are they? What’s the texture of the wall when it presses into our heroine’s back? Is there a plant somewhere nearby? If so, its smell most assuredly triggers a childhood memory that we will need to get, in detail, long before the first stay is loosed. Maybe things finally progress past that initial, passionate embrace... but wait! Let’s talk about it! Let’s have a secondary, lengthy, nonverbal conversation in the time it takes our lusty hero to kneel at our lady’s feet. More than once, I have had the urge to bring MacLean’s characters some cold lemonade and cookies mid-scene, just to keep up their stamina. It’s e x h a u s t i n g to read. Even listening at 1.5x speed doesn’t help. Honestly, I listened because I had a lot of cleaning to do this weekend and was so unmoored after three DNFs that I just... kept going.

The Cul-de-Sac War (Melissa Ferguson), eBook, ARC. See my full review on NetGalley.

My concerns about the premise of this book -- that the MCs' immaturity would make a believable romance impossible -- were not entirely unfounded, but I'm happy to report that the neighborly antics between Bree and Chip never devolve into the mud-slinging childishness I feared. Their animosity is tempered by humor and some heartfelt interactions, all of which makes the development of the romance believable. What I found disappointing here was a lack of character depth and development on Bree, whose carefree attitude seems to act like fire retardant for her clearly unresolved grief and fear of death. Terrified of the yawning void of the unknown? Tap dance through it! Focus on your quirks! If this book is, in part, a story about Bree growing up (finally), she doesn't do an especially good job of it. The saccharine attempt to tug at heartstrings with the inclusion of an eight-year-old suffering from cancer felt cheap; there was plenty of meat on the bone from Bree's grandmother's death to delve deeper into her characterization, so a sick-kid play was unnecessary. Chip's relationship to his father was an unexpected delight -- one that, for me, saved Act III.

THE CUL-DE-SAC WAR is wholesome, light-hearted, and at times funny. Overall, though, it's underdeveloped and thin on emotional propulsion.

On tap this week:

The Midnight Bargain (C.L. Polk), eBook ARC

Love is a Rogue (Lenora Bell), eBook ARC

These Ghosts are Family (Maisy Card), aBook

The Ten Thousand Doors of January (Alix Harrow), aBook

Midnight Sun (Stephanie Meyer), eBook. I’ll be live-tweeting my read of what is sure to be a national treasure.

#mexican gothic #a duke the lady and a baby #the bride #just mercy #brazen and the beast #daring and the duke #the cul-de-sac war #amreading

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goldeagleprice · 4 years

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First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America

The term first Spouse refers to the spouse of Chief executive i.e. the spouse of President of the United States of America. Sometimes the term First Spouse is also referred to as the First lady of the United States of America. Although First Lady is an unofficial term used for the wife of a non-monarchical head of state or chief executive. The term First Lady is also described as a woman seen to be at the top of her profession or art. Today we will discuss the First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America.

The term the first spouse was first used in the year 1985 when the National Governors Association encouraged states first ladies to pursue their own distinct causes and public agendas. The United States of America had issued the first spouse $10 gold commemorative coin to honor the first spouse of the United States of America. The First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America feature the images of the first spouses in the order they served as the first spouse.

Abigail Adams 10 Dollar Gold Coin

The earliest in the list of First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins is Abigail Adams. The wife and a close advisor of John Adams who was the second president of the United States of America from 1797 to 1801. She was also a mother of John Quincy Adams-the sixth president of the United States of America. Abigail Adams was also one of the founders of the United States of America. Abigail Adams is designated as the second First Lady of the United States of America.

Abigail Adams was born as Abigail Smith on November 11, 1744, in Weymouth, Massachusetts. She spent her childhood as a devoted reader studying the working of William Shakespeare and John Milton. Both Abigail and John Adams were the third cousins and were known to each other since their childhood. Later, they both got married to each other.

After marriage, Abigail Adams joined John Adams in Europe from 1784 to 1788. During that time, John Adams served as an American diplomat in France and as the first United States Minister in Great Britain. When John Adams became President in the year 1979 the couple moved to the White House. They were the first couple to live in the White House after they arrived in Washington in November 1800.

The United States of America had issued this commemorative 10 dollar gold coin with the theme of Abigail Adams as First Spouse in the year 2007. The obverse of this coin depicts the bust of Abigail Adams facing towards the left in the center. The reverse of the coin depicts Abigail Adams writing a memorable letter to her husband while he was in Philadelphia.

Dolley Madison 10 Dollars Gold Coin

The United States of America had issued this 10 dollars gold commemorative coin with the theme of Dolley Madison. She was the first lady of the United States of America from 1809 to 1817. Dolley Madison was the wife of James Madison, the fourth president of the United States of America from 1809 to 1817.

Dolley Madison was born in the year 1768 in North Carolina. After her birth, her family moved her to their home colony of Virginia. Dolley Madison is always remembered as one of the most charming and entertaining First Ladies of her era. She is well-known for holding Washington’s social functions in which she invited the members of both political parties; essentially she was spearheading the concept of bipartisan cooperation.

Dolley Madison had remained as one of the most important women in the United States of America for more than half a century. She is also remembered as one of the most beloved ladies of the White House. Dolley Madison also played an important role in furnishing the new construction of the White House. During the war in the year 1812, when Dolley Madison was forced to flee from the White House by the British Army; her quick thinking saved a portrait of George Washington from being destroyed by fire.

The obverse of this coin depicts the bust of Dolley Madison with the inscription ‘DOLLEY MADISON’ written at the top; the inscription ‘IN GOD WE TRUST’ and ‘LIBERTY’ year ‘2007’ and mintmark ‘w’ written on the left and right sides of the coin. The inscription 4 and year 1809-1817’ written at the bottom of the coin. The reverse side of the coin depicts First Lady during one of her most recounted moments; when she saved the cabinet papers and a Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington just before approaching British troops set the White House on fire.

Elizabeth Monroe 10 Dollars Coin

Elizabeth Monroe holds a special place among the series First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins. She was the wife of James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States of America from 1817 to 1825. Elizabeth was born in the year 1768 in New York City and got married to James Monroe at the age of 17. She was the first lady of the United States of America from 1817-1825. Though Elizabeth Monroe is well known for beauty and elegance, her loneliness made her unpopular.

Elizabeth Monroe was born as Elizabeth Kortright in the year 1768 in New York City. On January 1, 1818, both Elizabeth and James held her grand New Year’s Day reception marking the reopening of the White House. The White House got burned by the British during the war in the year 1814. The coupled also supplied some of their furniture to the government because the White was almost empty when they moved in.

The United States of America had issued this commemorative gold 10 dollars with the theme of Elizabeth Monroe. The obverse of this coin depicts the bust of Elizabeth Monroe. The reverse of the coin depicts Elizabeth Monroe at the reception after the reopening of the White House in 1818.

Letitia Tyler 10 Dollars Coin

Letitia Tyler was born on 12th November 1790. She was the first wife of John Tyler- the tenth president of the United States of America who was in office between1841and 1845. She was the first lady of the United States of America for a very short period from 1841 until her death in 1842.

Letitia was born at Cedar Grove to Mary and Colonel Robert Christian. As a child, Letitia was shy, quiet, pious and selfless. She devoted all her life to her family. Although due to her poor health Letitia was not able to fulfill her normal social duties of First Lady; but she devoted her life to the entertaining and household management of the White House.

The United States of America had issued this commemorative coin with the theme of Letitia Tyler in the year 2009. The obverse of this coin depicts the bust of Letitia Tyler and the reverse of this coin depicts Letitia Tyler and her two children. The background of this coin depicts Cedar Grove Plantation, the plantation building and fields visible in the distance.

Sarah Polk 10 Dollars Coin

The last entry of the First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins series is Sarah Polk who was born on 4th September 1803 to Elizabeth Whitsitt and Joel Childress-a prominent planter, merchant, and a land speculator. She was the third of their six children of Elizabeth and Joel. Sarah Childress Polk received an education traditionally available only to the most privileged young women of her time.

Sarah Polk devoted her married life to her husband James K. Polk’s political career. She used to organize his campaigns, writing speeches, handling his correspondence and developing a network of valuable political friendships. She also used to read newspapers and magazines and marked the important articles and leaves them on a chair outside the President’s office for him to read.

The United States of America had issued this commemorative gold 10 dollars with the theme of Sarah Polk in the year 2009.

The post First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America appeared first on Blog | Mintage World.

#Precious Metals

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ogdensburgpubliclibrary · 5 years

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2/12/19

SOCIAL HOUR Join us this Wednesday the 13th at 2 PM for coffee, holiday treats, and conversation.

ADULT CRAFT We’ll be making heart-shaped coasters out of metal nuts and felt this Thursday the 14th at 2 PM.

BEAD LIZARDS Children ages 7 and up can come make their own lizard friends out of pony beads this Friday the 15th at 4 PM.

LIBRARY CLOSED The library will be closed next Monday the 18th in honor of Presidents Day. Saturday and Tuesday hours will be as normal.

REGULAR PROGRAMS Music and Movement for toddlers is Tuesday at 10 AM. Stories and Songs, for ages 2 – 4, is on Saturdays at 10:30 AM. Drop-in computer help will be this Saturday the 16th from 11 AM – 12 PM. (You bring your questions about computer use, and we’ll help you find answers.) Call the library or check online for all of the details on all of our upcoming events.

ADIRONDACK RAPTORS We’ll be having some special feathered guests next Wednesday the 20th at 2 PM. Take a break from your school break and come see them.

JUST ARRIVED James Polk is not one of America’s better-known presidents; his wife, Sarah, even less so. However, she was a powerful influence in the government of the time. You can learn more about her in Amy S. Greenberg’s Lady First. Tom Clavin looks at a figure far removed from Washington’s ballrooms, Wild Bill Hickok, in Wild Bill. We have two new books about World War II: Drawing Fire is the autobiography of Brummett Echohawk, a Pawnee soldier and artist who served in Italy, while John Strausbaugh’s Victory City looks at life in the New York City homefront. In Antarctica’s Lost Aviator, Jeff Maynard tells the story of polar explorer (and coal baron’s son) Lincoln Ellsworth. Milk of Paradise, by Lucy Inglis, spans thousands of years to tell the story of opium and its effects, past and present, on the world. Jennifer Ratner-Rosenhagen takes a look at the thread that run through uniquely American philosophies in The Ideas That Made America. Have an interest in science fiction? Try Alec Nevala-Lee’s Astounding for a look at the “Golden Age” and four of the men who helped shape it, or Michael Benson’s Space Odyssey for an investigation of Stanley Kurick and Arthur C. Clarke’s 2001. Finally, if every conversation or newscast lately feels like a minefield, pick up I Think You’re Wrong (But I’m Listening) by Sarah Steward Holland and Bethe Silvers, two ladies with different political views who nevertheless maintain their friendship.

We welcome your QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS, PURCHASE REQUESTS, AND PROGRAMMING IDEAS. Contact us at 312 Washington Street, [email protected], 315-393-4325, or through any of our social media sites (you can do a search for Ogdensburg Public Library or find the links on our website, ogdlib.org.)

REGULAR HOURS are 9 AM to 8 PM on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 9 AM to 5 PM on Wednesday and Friday, and 9 AM to 3 PM on Saturday. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you at your library!

#Social Hour #beaded lizard #adult craft #Closed for the Holiday

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gossipnetwork-blog · 7 years

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American Horror Story Characters Ranked: From Cult Leaders to Coven Members & Everything in Between

New Post has been published on http://gossip.network/american-horror-story-characters-ranked-from-cult-leaders-to-coven-members-everything-in-between/

American Horror Story Characters Ranked: From Cult Leaders to Coven Members & Everything in Between

Over the course of seven installments, American Horror Story has introduced the world to all manner of crazy characters, from witches to vampires to insane cult leaders and everything else in between. And we do mean, everything.

Now that American Horror Story: Cult has come to its conclusion (with nary a supernatural being in sight, to boot!), the time is right to revisit our roundup of all the main actors in Ryan Murphy‘s troupe who’ve performed multiple characters over the years and update our ranking. Yes, that means Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Cheyenne Jackson, Frances Conroy and, of course, Jessica Lange—as well as newbies to the list, Adina Porter and Chaz Bono—and their characters from Murder House, Asylum, Coven, Freak Show, Hotel, Roanoke and Cult.

Which Paulson character reigns supreme? And which among Peters’ leads the pack? Read on to find out!

American Horror Story Characters—Ranked!

Each year, the American Horror Story characters are dealt a new hand to play. They’ll go from angel of death to campy witch and murderer to coked out model as AHS reboots for another chapter. But let’s face it: some characters pop more than others. In honor of the AHS: Cult finale, we ranked each actor’s characters from best to worst. Click through to find out each actor’s best character now!

Adina Porter’s No. 2. Lee Harris, AHS: Roanoke

Lee wasn’t the most likable person, but she was the last one standing when all was said and done.

Adina Porter’s No. 1. Beverly Hope, AHS: Cult

Was there a more powerful woman in Cult than Beverly? Sure, she may have fallen under Kai’s sway, but she woke up when it mattered most.

Chaz Bono’s No. 2. Lot Polk, AHS: Roanoke

Bono didn’t have a ton to do but look menacing as the reenactment’s version of the cannibalistic Polk.

Chaz Bono’s No. 1. Gary Longstreet, AHS: Cult

As Kai’s most loyal servant, Gary never had too much to do, but he sure was willing to promote the cause no matter the cost. (Hint: His life.)

Lily Rabe’s No. 5. Nora Montgomery, AHS: Murder House

A sad ghost with a penchant for baby taking, Nora is the weaker of Lily Rabe’s AHS characters.

Lily Rabe’s No. 4. Shelby Miller, AHS: Roanoke

She was an adulterer, a murderer, and a Yogi. But worst of all about Shelby? She was a whiner.

Lily Rabe’s No. 3. Aileen Wuornos, AHS: Hotel

Yes, Rabe played real-life serial killer (and inspiration for the movie Monster) Aileen Wuornos in an over-the-top performance in Hotel for one episode. Eat your heart out, Charlize Theron!

Lily Rabe’s No. 2. Sister Mary Eunice, AHS: Asylum & Freak Show

Sister Mary Eunice was Rabe’s most developed character. She was sweet and innocent…until she was possessed. Lots of opportunity for Rabe to do a variety of emotions here.

Lily Rabe’s No. 1. Misty Day, AHS: Coven

The shawls, the Stevie Nicks obsession…Misty was fun!

Lady Gaga’s No. 2. Scathach (Reenactment), AHS: Roanoke

Not as much a character than a plot device, the fact that the most exciting thing about Scathach (the fact that she was the original Supreme in Coven) was revealed in a Ryan Murphy interview rather than onscreen isn’t good.

Lady Gaga’s No. 1. The Countess, AHS: Hotel

Glam, sensuous, and with a pressing thirst for blood? That’s how we like our Gaga.

Michele K. Short/FX

Matt Bomer’s No. 2. Andy, AHS: Freak Show

Sure Matt Bomer showed some skin, but his gay rent boy character was offed straight away. No development there.

Frank Ockenfels/FX

Matt Bomer’s No. 1. Donovan, AHS: Hotel

He’s showing skin, his killer hair and an actual story arc? We’re sold.

Cheyenne Jackson’s No. 3. Dr. Rudy Vincent, AHS: Cult

Nice twist revealing that Rudy was Kai and Winter’s older brother, but the character never really felt all that developed.

Cheyenne Jackson’s No. 2. Will Drake, AHS: Hotel

Will was gay, but then he fell in love with the Countess? We love Gaga as much as everyone else, but that was wildly unbelievable—which is saying something, considering this franchise.

Cheynne Jackon’s No. 1. Sidney Aaron James, AHS: Roanoke

Was Sidney a total sociopath? Sure. But was his unwavering devotion to keeping his reality show alive, blood moon and murderous ghosts, absolutely hysterical? You betcha.

Emma Roberts No. 3. Serena Belinda, AHS: Cult

She was nasty to Beverly and she paid dearly for it.

Michele K. Short/FX

Emma Roberts’ No. 2. Maggie, AHS: Freak Show

A con artist who really didn’t do much to endear herself to viewers, compared to Emma Roberts’ Coven character, this is very easy to call.

Michele K. Short/FX

Emma Roberts’ No 1. Madison, AHS: Coven

The unapologetic attitude, the magic powers, the “Surprise, bitch” meme … need we go on as to why Madison Montgomery is Roberts’ tops AHS character?

Wes Bentley’s No. 4. Ambrose White, AHS: Roanoke

If he’d only supported his mother, Tomasin would’ve never turned into the Butcher and no one in Roanoke would’ve been in the miserable mess they were in. Way to go, Ambrose.

Prashant Gupta/FX

Wes Bentley’s No. 3. John Lowe, AHS: Hotel

Ugh, there was nothing redeeming for Wes Bentley to do with him.

Wes Bentley’s No. 2. Dylan, AHS: Roanoke

Dylan might’ve been the most sensible person on Roanoke. Naturally, he only lasted an episode. But his calm use of his Army skills to at least try and get the remaining survivors to safety was admirable. RIP Dylan.

Michele K. Short/FX

Wes Bentley’s No. 1. Edward Mordrake, AHS: Freak Show

Dude had a little head on the back of his own! He was creepy and helped usher Jessica Lange out of her last AHS.

Finn Wittrock’s No. 3. Jether Polk, AHS: Roanoke

1. You don’t hire Finn Wittrock and hide his pretty face under all that inbred aesthetic. 2. If you do, you make him stick around for more than an episode.

Finn Wittrock’s No. 2. Tristan, AHS: Hotel

Sure we got to see Finn Wittrock shirtless (a lot) and make out with, well, everybody. But Tristan was just pretty annoying.

Finn Wittrock’s No. 1. Dandy, AHS: Freak Show

His first American Horror Story role and best American Horror Story role. Dandy was a sociopath and you could tell Wittrock had a great time sinking his teeth into the gig.

Mare Winningham’s No. 4. Alicia, AHS: Coven

Mare Winningham has played a lot of pretty awful people on AHS, but her worst one yet has got to be Kyle’s sexually abusive mom.

Mare Winningham’s No. 3. Rita, AHS: Freak Show

Is Alicia worse than Pepper’s sister Rita? They’re both pretty awful.

Mare Winningham’s No. 2. Sally Keffler, AHS: Cult

We would’ve loved to have spent five more episodes with Winningham’s badass alt-right fighting, joint rolling Sally. Alas, Kai and his goons made sure that would never happen.

Mare Winningham’s No. 1. Ms. Evers, AHS: Hotel

Sure she had her problems, but with Ms. Evers, Winningham finally got more to do than be terrible.

Jamie Brewer’s No. 3. Marjorie, AHS: Freak Show

Can we pretend the all that Neil Patrick Harris stuff didn’t happen on Freak Show? Silver lining: We got Jamie Brewer back into the mix.

Jamie Brewer’s No. 2. Nan, AHS: Coven

Admit it, you were so pissed when Nan was killed on Coven.

Jamie Brewer’s No. 1. Adelaide, AHS: Murder House

Addie was one of the few characters you can actually really feel for on AHS, despite her warnings of death and what not.

Gabourey Sidibe’s No. 2. Regina, AHS: Freak Show

Gabourey Sidibe had so little to do besides get killed by Dandy.

Michele K. Short/FX

Gabourey Sidibe’s No. 1. Queenie, AHS: Coven & Hotel

Yas, Queenie! So brash and so sassy, Queenie was the best. Who could forget her friendship with Kathy Bates’ LaLaurie?

Zachary Quinto’s No. 2. Chad, AHS: Murder House

Zachary Quinto‘s controlling former owner of the Murder House wasn’t anything to write home about.

Zachary Quinto’s No. 1. Dr. Thredson, AHS: Asylum

Creepy with a capitol C!

Taissa Farmiga’s No. 3. Sophie Green, AHS: Roanoke

When we heard that Taissa Farmiga was returning to AHS in her third role, we were thrilled. When she showed up as a truly stupid moderator of a My Roanoke Nightmare fan site, just to be brutally impaled and burned alive—well, we were considerably less thrilled.

Taissa Farmiga’s No. 2. Zoe, AHS: Coven

A little on the annoying side, Zoe’s power of the killer vagina was the only thing that made her interesting.

Ray Mickshaw/FX

Taissa Farmiga’s No. 1. Violet, AHS: Murder House

Spunky and ghostly is just the way we like Taissa Farmiga.

Alexandra Breckinridge’s No. 2. Kaylee, AHS: Coven

A pyrotechnic witch, she was easily duped by and then killed by Hank. Meh.

Alexandra Breckinridge’s No. 1. Moira, AHS: Murder House

Alexandra Breckenridge played the younger Frances Conroy who used this form to tempt and taunt men.

Chloe Sevigny’s No. 2. Alex, AHS: Hotel

Chloe Sevigny‘s character willingly became vampire(y) to be with her beloved son. Other than that, she was pretty boring.

Chloe Sevigny’s No. 1. Shelley, AHS: Asylum

Sure this was a way smaller role, but you could tell she had one heck of a time playing the nymphomaniac who got experimented on by Dr. Arden

Dylan McDermott’s No. 2. Johnny, AHS: Asylum

Talk about mommy and daddy issues!

Ray Mickshaw/FX

Dylan McDermott’s No. 1. Ben, AHS: Murder House

We went from loving to hating and wanting to do everything in between to Dylan McDermott‘s first character.

Denis O’Hare’s No. 5. Stanley, AHS: Freak Show

The smarmiest character ever, his claim to fame was … his big penis.

Photos

See More From American Horror Story Characters Ranked (By Actor) From Worst to Best

Did the right Sarah Paulson character come out on top? How about our choice for top Evan Peters role? Sound off in the comments below!

American Horror Story will return for its eighth installment on FX in 2018.

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goldeagleprice · 4 years

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First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America

Abigail Adams 10 Dollar Gold Coin

Dolley Madison 10 Dollars Gold Coin

Elizabeth Monroe 10 Dollars Coin

Letitia Tyler 10 Dollars Coin

Sarah Polk 10 Dollars Coin

The United States of America had issued this commemorative gold 10 dollars with the theme of Sarah Polk in the year 2009.

The post First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America appeared first on Blog | Mintage World.

#Precious Metals

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goldeagleprice · 4 years

Text

First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America

Abigail Adams 10 Dollar Gold Coin

Dolley Madison 10 Dollars Gold Coin

Elizabeth Monroe 10 Dollars Coin

Letitia Tyler 10 Dollars Coin

Sarah Polk 10 Dollars Coin

The United States of America had issued this commemorative gold 10 dollars with the theme of Sarah Polk in the year 2009.

The post First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America appeared first on Blog | Mintage World.

#Precious Metals

0 notes

goldeagleprice · 4 years

Text

First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America

Abigail Adams 10 Dollar Gold Coin

Dolley Madison 10 Dollars Gold Coin

Elizabeth Monroe 10 Dollars Coin

Letitia Tyler 10 Dollars Coin

Sarah Polk 10 Dollars Coin

The United States of America had issued this commemorative gold 10 dollars with the theme of Sarah Polk in the year 2009.

The post First Spouse Gold Commemorative Coins of the United States of America appeared first on Blog | Mintage World.

#Precious Metals

0 notes