Richard Van Holst

Thanks Richard for accepting the friend request and being the first person to comment on my profile.

Yes, going well! I've been busy with my teaching profession, blogging, and writing my novel. I also decided (out of insanity no doubt) to help start a writing group, and do my master's in creative writing. So I really have tackled far more than I can chew in so many ways, but it's excellent and exciting!

Hey Richard,

How have you been? Long time since we've talked so I hope you are well!

Hi Richard,

Hope the summer is going well. Quick question, I want to start reading Hans Urs von Balthasar. Any thoughts on what book I should start with?

All the best,

Steve

Hello Richard,
Again, thank you so very much, not just for your kind review but your overall enterprise of reviewing so many books that would otherwise languish between the opinions of kindly Amazon/Goodreads friends and the void. It seems that this opportunity to shape the culture we live in is hard for people to grasp, much less use. Thank you for being so tenacious and thoughtful.
In this context, I feel like an importunate jerk to ask if you might like to take a look at my new collection of 4 short stories and a novella. It's called FROM THE EMPIRE OF FRAGMENTS, and it focuses on people who have lost the culture in which they were raised and explores how they have found their way in the resultant free-fall. The stories are about a dancer from the Royal Cambodian company; a West Indian man in NY who gets caught up with the deities from the African past, an Albanian dictator's nephew living out his days in cruel academia, an Indian classical musician enduring changes of place and taste, and an Amazonian Indian who finds himself having an unsuspected influence on his tribe's fate.
If this sounds of interest, please do send me your email, and I'll send you a copy.
Please also tell me where your stories are appearing. I'd very much like to read them.
Many thanks and all best wishes,
Douglas

Saw this on Twitter and immediately thought of you:

Thanks, Richard! Hulk can sure bust some moves. :)

Thanks for the recommendation, I think we may have found a book more at Harold's reading level...

aww, no problem! I hope you are well, Richard. and happy upcoming holidays to you!

Richard, thanks for the suggestion of Stormdancer. I've been in love with the cover of that book for a year. But never cracked it open.

I hope all is going well for you, and a Merry Christmas to you!

A friend emailed this to me, and, I don't know...for some reason, I thought of you...

- When fish are in schools, they sometimes take debate.

- A thief who stole a calendar got twelve months.

- When the smog lifts in Los Angeles U.C.L.A.

- The batteries were given out free of charge.

- A dentist and a manicurist married. They fought tooth and nail.

- A will is a dead giveaway.

- With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.

- A boiled egg is hard to beat.

- When you've seen one shopping Center you've seen a mall.

- Police were called to a day care Center where a
three-year-old was resisting a rest.

- Did you hear about the fellow whose whole left side was cut off? He's all right now.

- A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two tired.

- When a clock is hungry it goes back four seconds.

- The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine is now fully recovered.

- He had a photographic memory which was never developed.

- When she saw her first strands of gray hair she thought she'd dye.

- Acupuncture is a jab well done. That's the point of it.

- Those who get too big for their pants will be exposed in the end.

Hello Richard--

Thank you for joining my Q&A Group.

Glad I got this chance to stop by your profile page for a few minutes. Your diverse tastes in reading, which I consider a very good thing, always astounds and inspires me.

Aberjhani

Thank you for taking me back :)

Glad you found it amusing, anyway :-)

I thought you might find this amusing.

Thank you, sir! The monster waits patiently.

Thank you, Richard, for the recommendation. Arghya

Are you having good reading weather up there, Richard? Just thought I'd check in, since I hadn't heard from you in a while.

Thanks so much, Richard!

Beautifully pasted, Richard!

thank you Richard!happy new near to you too,best wishes

Dear Richard, happy New Year and all the best for 2014!

Merry Christmas my dear friend! May there be holidays, fun, puns and cake!

I finally finished The Old Curiosity Shop. I'm curious for your thoughts, since you have read more Dickens than I have. I'm going to be honest. I struggled to really care about poor little Nell. She struck me as a stock character of pure goodness. I can't say that I know much about Nell, except that she was utterly selfless, liked solemn and lonely places, and was worried about her grandfather to the point of nausea...or in her cause illness.
Dickens seemed at pains to inform the reader that Nell was an angel and that everyone loved her, but I felt that all of this was second hand knowledge. I didn't have a chance to develop my own feelings for her. Kit, Dick, Sampson, and especially old Quilp had more substance to them. It makes me think of what critics have long said of Milton--it appears that he was more interested in the villain.

Richard wrote: "Hi Dustin, All is indeed well. I find it hard to pin down exactly why I like Munro. She's good at portraying life in small towns, but can also give you exotic places and different time periods. She..."

Awesome, I'm so glad I decided to check your page, as I'm interested in the discussion. Thank you for your input, Richard.:)

I'm happy to know that all's well with you.

Wow, Monru sounds wonderful and very versatile, indeed! I look forward to reading her someday!

Hi Dustin, All is indeed well. I find it hard to pin down exactly why I like Munro. She's good at portraying life in small towns, but can also give you exotic places and different time periods. She writes about ordinary people with ordinary concerns, but also brings in the unusual or even the macabre. She has a lot of depth and detail. The bottom line is: she is really talented and versatile.

Dustin, so many likes! I should tell you, though, that I've been an Alice Munro fan for quite a while--not just since she won the Nobel Prize. I like short stories, which is what she excels at. Also she just happens to be Canadian...


Good day, Richard!

How have you been? I hope all's well.:)


Yeah, I hadn't even heard of her until her recent Nobel Prize win, which piqued my interest. Her work sounds quite good. I'd love to hear your thoughts on Munro. Happy reading!!

That gave me a laugh. I should learn to use those pesky commas, but they go running off. Yes, been good but busy.

How have you been recently my friend?

Thank you, Richard :)

Hermano Richard it has been too long, how have you been?

Ah yes, the good old challenges. I may have read a whole bunch of graphic novels to stay on target. Or maybe it was because I was addicted to them...who knows.

How have you been Mr Richard, I apologise for not interacting so much with you recently due to a load of work. I hope you are continuing to go well and to read - oh and puns, don't forget the puns.

C.J. Heck

Hello Richard,

It's such a pleasure having you for a friend here at Goodreads. I look forward to reading your work. Best wishes to you!

My warmest regards and respect,
CJ


Anatomy of a Poet (poetry)
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17...
Read a Preview:
http://www.goodreads.com/story/show/3...


Bits and Pieces (collection of short stories and flash fiction)
Bits and Pieces: Short Stories from a Writer's Soul
Read a Preview:
http://www.goodreads.com/story/show/3...

Aw, thank you so very much, Richard!!!:)

Dear Richard:

Would you like me to forward you an E-book copy of Colorado Mandala for review? Or would you prefer a hard copy?

Interestingly enough, because of the book's underlying theme of the effects of PTSD, Colorado Mandala is currently being reviewed for endorsement by:

1) New York Presbyterian Hospital's PTSD Treatment Unit
2) The Viet Nam Veterans of America
3) The Viet Nam Veterans for Peace
4) The Purple Heart Association
5) The Veteran's Administration

...AND also for possible inclusion in several of these group's PTSD therapy practice! Currently, the Purple Heart Association distributes "Tears of a Warrior: A Family's Story of Combat" to all those returning Vets suffering from the effects of PTSD. Now they are considering including Colorado Mandala for participation in this same program. Nothing would make me happier than for Colorado Mandala to actually benefit those amongst us who suffer from this invisible malady, particularly those defending us in our Armed Forces, both currently and in the past.

I look forward to your thoughts.

With respect,

Brian Heffron

Hey, Richard. I don't usually play friendmaker on Goodreads, but I just met this fellow and noticed he does a lot of religious reading, like you. Figured you would get along.

Thanks for adding me as a friend, Richard, and for entering the giveaway on my blog. I'm afraid you didn't win, but it's good to meet you and to check out your library on here!

If you do read my stories (I don't oblige you to do so!), I suggest you read them rather than hear me warble! They're listed on my blog, on the right: http://simonking1.blogspot.co.uk/p/sh... What kind of fiction do you write?

I'm good Richard. How are you and what's the last great book that you read?

Thanks Richard. Enough time to read books, not enough to review them. Madame Bovary is still on my list.

Kyle wrote: "I don't think you're currently reading enough books at one time Richard. You should start a couple more, to prevent your reading life from becoming dull."

Yes, sir. At once. Can you recommend anything, sir?

I don't think you're currently reading enough books at one time Richard. You should start a couple more, to prevent your reading life from becoming dull.

Thanks for the friendvitation, good sir! I've found that having mutual GR pals has nearly trumped similar bookish tastes as a determining factor in successfully forging new friendships on this site.

I did rather enjoy being the nostalgic trigger in "Swann's Way." Proust's ability to predict how delicious I am is one of his lesser-known accomplishments.

Well, she is French after all.

Richard. I'm looking for a surprise reading recommendation to get outside of my box. Can you answer the call, good sir?

Adam wrote: "Happy Easter!"

Thank you, Adam! Of course it's not until Sunday, but there are plenty of dramatic events preceding it!

Happy Easter!

So Richard... you ever try just reading one book at a time? :)

Hey, Richard!

Your voting on my Booker Winners list reminded me of your message on my profile...congrats on it being the 100th, incidentally!

I'm rather busy these days with school stuff (just got accepted into a university here, and I'll be studying English), and the stress that comes with it, and I haven't been good at keeping up with friends here.

Thank you for your message though - how are you doing?

We'll talk before long -

David

Have you started The Old Curiosity Shop yet? I'm on chapter 4. Intriguing so far.