Of course you were in this round table! Maybe I ought to do a search before making another historical fiction recommendation, but I’m just gonna go for it, because I’m utterly obsessed with it, and have found that hardly anybody knows about it. Have you watched Black Sails? On Starz? It’s queer pirates and escaped slaves against the British Empire, and, really, all of “civilization”, in Nassau, approx 1705-1715. About a third of the characters are based on real historical figures — the pirates Anne Bonny, Jack Rackham, Charles Vane, Teach and Hornigold (who was also a Jacobite), the maroon queen Nanny, and colonists including the Guthries and Woodes Rogers; a third are well-known fictional characters as it’s a prequel to Treasure Island — Flint, Silver, Bones; and about a third were created for the show, including some great women characters. Obviously, the American Revolution didn’t happen for another 60 years and the Civil War not for another 160 years, so they don’t destroy England, but it’s a thrill to watch them try! The acting, writing and production is sublime. The relationships are natural, compelling and complicated. The history? At first I thought it was as wishful as in Paradise Square, and (in season 3 and 4) similar in its hopes of interracial and sexual freedom and utopia, but as I delved a bit into labor conditions in the royal navy and merchant vessels, matelotage, and maroon uprisings, not to mention graphic design history made by the creation of the Jolly Roger, I realized it’s full-on fiction, but not fantasy. There’s really nothing like it, I don’t think (please tell me if I’m wrong!) — historical fiction that’s not about royalty or the aristocracy, but rather about resistance to it. Plus sex. (Btw, Black Sails makes some stupid GoT-style moves on that front in season 1 but got schooled or pushed Starz away successfully by season 2.) I haven’t succeeded in getting many to watch this damned incredible show — despite how serious it is l, I guess people assume it’s dumb swashbuckling — but if I’ve convinced you, or you’ve already seen it, I’d love to know what you think!
Claire I read the substack twice and the comparison of the Republican Party and the United States Supreme Court weaponized to divide the country is a very interesting theory. However, I could never support leftists which is the way I view the Democratic Party. The party caters to, gays, transgender, drug dealers all sorts of criminals looking at the no cash bail and no prosecution of in your face organized theft of stores in CA. San Francisco, Chicago, New York have turned into places I no longer recognize. BLM and Antifa are terrorist organizations, and should be treated as such. The Supreme courts ruling on the 2nd amendment, NY unconstitutional anti guns law, Abortion are all the correct ruling. The democrats look for rights not written in the constitution but the ones that are the 1st and 2nd amendments they want to ignore. The constitution has no penumbras it’s either their or it’s not period. No I will be voting for only republicans in 4 months that 16 weeks from now. One more thing Abortion is not federally banned it’s up to the individual states but the leftist media supports the notion of liars To the American people by letting less educated think this is a national ban. On the 2020 election, the Steele dossier, Hunter Biden’s lap top, Hillary Clinton and Obama , and Nancy Pelosi are the ones who should be investigated and when the GOP takes over in January 2023 let’s pray that investigating is as ruthless as they way the left pilloried President Trump.
Gosh Howard, I could use a good transgender drug dealer. Sounds like you know a bunch of them. Help a brother out.
Of course you were in this round table! Maybe I ought to do a search before making another historical fiction recommendation, but I’m just gonna go for it, because I’m utterly obsessed with it, and have found that hardly anybody knows about it. Have you watched Black Sails? On Starz? It’s queer pirates and escaped slaves against the British Empire, and, really, all of “civilization”, in Nassau, approx 1705-1715. About a third of the characters are based on real historical figures — the pirates Anne Bonny, Jack Rackham, Charles Vane, Teach and Hornigold (who was also a Jacobite), the maroon queen Nanny, and colonists including the Guthries and Woodes Rogers; a third are well-known fictional characters as it’s a prequel to Treasure Island — Flint, Silver, Bones; and about a third were created for the show, including some great women characters. Obviously, the American Revolution didn’t happen for another 60 years and the Civil War not for another 160 years, so they don’t destroy England, but it’s a thrill to watch them try! The acting, writing and production is sublime. The relationships are natural, compelling and complicated. The history? At first I thought it was as wishful as in Paradise Square, and (in season 3 and 4) similar in its hopes of interracial and sexual freedom and utopia, but as I delved a bit into labor conditions in the royal navy and merchant vessels, matelotage, and maroon uprisings, not to mention graphic design history made by the creation of the Jolly Roger, I realized it’s full-on fiction, but not fantasy. There’s really nothing like it, I don’t think (please tell me if I’m wrong!) — historical fiction that’s not about royalty or the aristocracy, but rather about resistance to it. Plus sex. (Btw, Black Sails makes some stupid GoT-style moves on that front in season 1 but got schooled or pushed Starz away successfully by season 2.) I haven’t succeeded in getting many to watch this damned incredible show — despite how serious it is l, I guess people assume it’s dumb swashbuckling — but if I’ve convinced you, or you’ve already seen it, I’d love to know what you think!
You might like a Broadway show I saw recently — Paradise Square, which is about the interracial families in the five points and the draft riots.
Claire I read the substack twice and the comparison of the Republican Party and the United States Supreme Court weaponized to divide the country is a very interesting theory. However, I could never support leftists which is the way I view the Democratic Party. The party caters to, gays, transgender, drug dealers all sorts of criminals looking at the no cash bail and no prosecution of in your face organized theft of stores in CA. San Francisco, Chicago, New York have turned into places I no longer recognize. BLM and Antifa are terrorist organizations, and should be treated as such. The Supreme courts ruling on the 2nd amendment, NY unconstitutional anti guns law, Abortion are all the correct ruling. The democrats look for rights not written in the constitution but the ones that are the 1st and 2nd amendments they want to ignore. The constitution has no penumbras it’s either their or it’s not period. No I will be voting for only republicans in 4 months that 16 weeks from now. One more thing Abortion is not federally banned it’s up to the individual states but the leftist media supports the notion of liars To the American people by letting less educated think this is a national ban. On the 2020 election, the Steele dossier, Hunter Biden’s lap top, Hillary Clinton and Obama , and Nancy Pelosi are the ones who should be investigated and when the GOP takes over in January 2023 let’s pray that investigating is as ruthless as they way the left pilloried President Trump.