Welcome to the conclusion of our bonus holiday Tale for Our Time - my own short story Plum Duff, prompted partly by the grim headlines from Melbourne, Manchester, Lyons, of a season under siege - and partly by two young women I spoke to last year, from opposite ends of Germany, who told me they'd decided not to sing with their caroling groups at Christmas markets any more.
Members of The Mark Steyn Club can hear me read the end of Plum Duff simply by clicking here and logging-in. Part One can be found here.
Thank you for your kind words about this contemporary short story. First-week Founding Member Diana Blackwell writes:
What a brilliant story! The way you have deftly interwoven the pudding recipe with news reports, the characters' memories, declining Christianity, and the whole absurd tapestry of castrated PC modernity, is poignant and very real. In recent weeks I have felt a little like the main character, struggling to preserve beloved Christmas traditionswhile all the currents of the culture threaten to sweep them away. Can't wait for part two.
Well, here it is, Diana. As the New Year weekend proceeds, I'll be back with a song for the season - and a look at the year just passed. You can find my salute to those we lost in 2017 here.
It's fifty below freezing here in balmy northern New Hampshire, with the furnace struggling as the temperatures descend, and in January we will have a new Tale for Our Time appropriate to the meteorological conditions (plus a little bit of live music suited to it, too). Meanwhile, if you've yet to hear any of our audio adventures, you can do so by joining The Mark Steyn Club. For details on membership, see here - and, if you're seeking a birthday or New Year present for a fellow fan of serialized fiction, don't forget our Steyn Club Gift Membership.
On the other hand, if you'd like a book in old-fashioned book form, over at the Steyn store, there are bargains galore among our Steynamite Specials.
