What are you always looking for in a new writer?

Silver: I tend to like character-driven fiction by writers who are sort of pushing their own ambition and their own vision. Someone like Peter Ho Davies, who has this marvelous background. He can write about his Welsh heritage or his Malaysian heritage -- and sometimes the two meet -- but there's always a strong sense of history. In his story collection The Ugliest House in the World, there's a central story called "A Union," which is about the Welsh mining strikes. But it was also about a marriage. And I just loved the way these characters were set in time -- which is not to say that I like historical fiction, because I don't especially -- but I really do like to know that the author has a sense of history, so there's a context and a richness, a textural kind of context. Peter's stories take you all over the world, but they also are very grounded in his sensibility.

I know what you are thinking.

"Check out that book cover!"

Maybe you like it; maybe you don't. Maybe you think it's lacking. Maybe it is. I think it's perfect.

Out of Reality, by Charlene Wilkins, is one of those books that shouldn't need a good cover to sell it. Sure, if a traditional publisher ever picked it up they'd hire an artist to do it justice, to give it the potential it would surely deserve if accepted by the traditional market.

After reading Ms. Wilkins work, my imagination went wild with ideas for fascinating artwork which would send her book flying off the shelves of bookstores everywhere. But this is self-publishing. Let's forget the simplistic "diary-like" cover for now. Read this book, and you will soon forget all about it without me even telling you to.

Meet Kara. She's a bit of a tom girl who doesn't want to listen to her parents. She's aching to skip karate class but her parents make her go anyway. She blacks out after a rough hit to the head.  She's carried to the hospital and the readers is given a sense that things are just not right, although nothing too out of the ordinary happens this early in the story.  We then meet Justin and Leeann, who are not so ordinary.  Justin is a psychic and Leeann is a fire starter.

I like the fact that Ms. Wilkins' has not thrown her readers into a story that seems imaginary and fantastical.  Yes, the story does lead the reader into that direction, and I must say it is a fun journey.  But right here in the beginning, these kids are just ordinary teens that could live across the street from us partaking in their hobbies and squabbling with their siblings.  It made it very easy to get to know these characters because we discover their special powers right along with them.

Also, these kids are not ready to step up to the plate and save the world just yet.  Justin questions strange dreams he's been having about a red headed girl, learns about his special powers after a discussion with his mother, and then is more concerned with getting some homework done.  Again, the author has plotted out the story gradually and does not hit the reader right up front with a tale we wouldn't necessarily believe in.  The slow, but suspenseful, build to this story makes it a great read!

Next we meet Elex in a world of castles and queens, worrying about Na, her friend who is strangely sick.  The two of them go off to watch a bow and arrow class, and Elex proves she has skill and is no ordinary girl.  She ends up fending off a wolf and saving Na from attack with a shield of light.

We return to Kara who is at home, but her parents reveal she is the "chosen one."  Someone will be coming for her on this very night, but they choose not to tell Kara.  The stranger that comes is actually a guardian for Kara.  It is revealed that Kara is a wizard, like the other teens we've met, and they are destined to save the world.

I use the word "wizards" only because that is exactly how Wilkins has described them.  Yeah, that word alone is covered with the hype of the Harry Potter series and I seriously doubt any other good books about wizardry could ever be written without being compared to JK Rowling.  So, that is all I will mention of Potter here.  What is more important in Out of Reality is that Wilkins begins her story in a physical reality that we all know and can relate to. She uses this to her advantage in conveying a "real" comfortable world in the set-up of her book.

The story builds and takes us to an imaginary place of magic and monsters, a place of pretend many of us probably have not visited since childhood, but the author has done a brilliant job of taking us back there.  Her tale is both original and different, and one that Potter fans, eager for more wickedness and fun, would enjoy.  So step through the portal, open this book and look beyond that mysterious cover, because the "sur-real" place inside is one worth spending some time in!

So there we have it, a little girl and Superman in competition. It is Shanna from the  TRS-80 Whiz Kid promoting the computer for Radio Shack. Interestingly the featured computer, the TRS-80 very likely was the first computer I have used, in about 1982, in a brief episode of working as a translator in New York. I loved the text processing capabilities instantly. I wished I had known about the Superman connection and THE COMPUTERS THAT SAVED METROPOLIS!  back then. via the Speculist.

As you will see by my projects, I crochet, not knit, but there aren't many fiction books out there about crocheting.  If you come across one, please let me know!

I don't think I'm going to take up knitting after reading this book, but it certainly was enjoyable.  Give it a look!

Why?

1. STRESS! See news segment in my About Me section and documentary on algae below. Believe me, the stress and exhaustion does not remain in the lab. It comes home.
2. STRESS! I've been sick for months and am finally coming out of it and sleeping at night. BUT, nothing waited! Laundry, dusting, organizing, etc. has all been piling up. Yikes.
3. STRESS! My jewelry store is doing OKAY but not swimmingly. I noticed a big change when gas prices went up so high. I don't even want to talk about tax preparation. The whole idea had to have been conceived in hell.
4. STRESS! Two boys fighting constantly. Nuff said?
5. MONEY/STRESS We gave up my income to homeschool. We don't regret it for one second, BUT it certainly required a sacrifice. We're feeling it now along with everyone else. Darn gas.
6. We'd already gotten my son a Wii, anyway!

Still, you have to do SOMEthing to make your child's tenth birthday special, right? Ten whole years since this................

So, we had a family birthday party after we went out to eat at our favorite diner here in Austin.

And, let me tell you, they have a tomato pie on their seasonal menu that will make you happy to be alive. FABULOUS!! Basil crust and olives and......oh my!

DS had ME bake a cake (I think he got a little too self-sacrificing in the hope that he MIGHT be getting a Wii) which turned out AWFUL!!! He picked something that was just a bit weird, and it wasn't until a day or so later that I think I nailed the taste. Old lipstick. Uh-huh.

Looking at baby pictures (and weeping) reminded me of how idealistic (totally stupid) I was when I first became a mom. Everything was going to be perfect. There'd be no tv, no video games (ha HA), and I would make everything from scratch. Our birthday parties would be the envy of our hometown and eventually the world. Unrealistic expectations =pretty much my M.O. My penchant for old craft books and cookbooks doesn't help. Regarde.

Mother's Little Helper (alcoholism?) was probably invented just because of such notions as these.

Yeah, ha ha ha. After ten years, this was no longer my vision of how things were going to go at Kerbey Lane Diner. Reality was more like a) 4yo stealing 10yo's crayons and putting them in his straw, b) 10yo's growing panic/insanity with the idea that his birthday would be ruined by 4yo, c) both boys discovering the booth table would move and declaring boundary rights over the other, d) numerous threats from DH, e) 4yo declaring to the entire restaurant upon entering the restroom after waiting for a lady who took a very long time and exited with a newspaper under her arm that he "did NOT want to smell THAT!"

What's equally funny to me is that one of these books is mostly full of party games. Do any of you bother with games at your parties? Oh my word, I've seen it attempted once, and you're more likely to get a preacher to call his entire congregation back into the sanctuary upon dismissal for a second sermon. Ain't goin' to happen!

Funnier still, one of the games suggested for 6 year olds was....MURDER!!! I could say a lot about this, but I'll just let you ponder for a while.

I have the feeling that this was supposed to represent chaos. It is for to laugh. Note the smiling faces on everyone? Maybe, it's time for some Reality Publishing.

For all that could have been, then, a toast.

If there's a conference next year - and sadly, it really is a case of if and not when - I think I might make the trip.  I'd get press credentials, but I'd need a laptop, airfare, commitment.  In the twilight years of E3, I'm certainly not alone in wondering: is it still worth it?

E3 was once the axis around which the games industry spun, the great stationary star at the centre of an elaborate mobile.  The publicity machines all began there, with an announcement at one press conference or another or a demo on the show-floor.  Games began their time in the media at E3 by necessity, though, not choice.  There was no better network to begin diffusing whatever information publishers opted to share.  There was no Kotaku; news was slow.  Broadband was just a binary glimmer in some techhead's beady eyes; there were no streaming conferences, no game-video aggregators for fans to frequent.  Largely, it was E3 or nothing, and amid the craven crowd, so many brilliant little games simply didn't show right.  There was no time for depth or complexity, subtlety or artistry of any sort.  At the end of the day, if a game didn't sell itself in a two-minute trailer or a quarter-hour demo, it was dead on arrival.

It didn't work, then.  But however negative an experience it may have been for publishers and developers, for those of us on the outside, E3 was a joyous spectacle.  And I don't care how many massive LCDs Sony daisy-chained for their press conference - it's lost that grandiosity.  Development budgets have blossomed into behemoths in every other sense but for the LA presentations that used to be so pivotal.  Enthusiasts are better equipped now to learn about a new game, no matter the season or the mainstream press coverage.  And there are other events: Leipzig, E for All, PAX, the Tokyo Game Show, to name just a few.

Industry yuppies Gamecock threw an attention-seeking funeral march for E3 last year, and I despised them for it.  In 2008, I wonder if, all their hateful, juvenile shenanigans aside, they mightn't have been mistaken.  All that the conference serves to do these days is showcase the next few months of the gaming calendar, and there are easier, cheaper, more appropriate ways to do that; ways that don't see tens of developers wasting precious time on imagined milestones; hundreds of perfectly worthwhile games slip through the cracks; thousands of journalists swept off their feet in all the madness; and millions of fans disappointed, time and again.

But don't misunderstand me.  There were some absolutely brilliant games at the convention this year; more, I think, than in 2007.  The horror genre in particular looks to be seeing something of a renaissance, with Dead Space leading the charge:

For all the wonderful perversity of scoring your teaser with a terrifying rendition of Twinkle Twinkle Little Starl, however, there's another, more traditional horror game on the way that has my (proverbial) panties well and truly twisted.  The newly christened Silent Hill: Homecoming is the fifth instalment proper in the franchise, and after the disappointment of the next-gen debut of Alone in the Dark, I couldn't be more excited to see the genre's best and darkest return to the fore:

I won't get bogged down in the particulars of whether or not Pyramid Head has any place outside of Silent Hill 2.  I won't mention that Pyramid Head, as the embodiment of James' guilt over slaughtering Mary, shouldn't exist now that the town has held him accountable for his hateful sins, because if I'm honest, my reaction to his promised appearance in Silent Hill: Homecoming was basically profuse pant-wetting.

There were, too, a few noticeable absences.  There was nothing to be seen of the 360 motion controller that's had the interwebs all abuzz lately, and for that, I'm grateful to all that's holy.  There was no New Super Mario Brothers 2 or Wii Zelda.  Neither were Level 5, the fan-favourite developers of Dark Cloud and Dragon Quest VIII, anywhere to be seen, and with Metal Gear Solid 4 come and gone and the next Final Fantasy no longer platform exclusive, their latest effort, White Knight Story, stands as Sony's strongest trump card.  Excepting, perhaps, the absence I felt most profoundly: anything new from the Ico team.  Shadow of the Colossus is still the greatest game of all time - never have I been touched or played by a game in quite the same way - and it's been too long since I wandered that masterful world.  Much too long.

I still miss Argo.

TGS and the inevitable reveal can't come soon enough, then, but until then, the new Prince of Persia is an obvious homage, and so breathtaking I can hardly conjure the words to do it justice.  I've already tried once and lost a post amid my procrastinations, so.  Without further ado:

If you're still hungry, there's a few new articles over at Ace Gamez for your enjoyment.  In my Space Invaders Extreme review I suggest that even girl turrets stand a chance, while in the Ticket to Ride piece I talk a little about cock-blocking, which is always fun.

And there's a bunch in the pipeline for All Things Uncertain over the next few weeks, including a review of the Blu-ray of There Will Be Blood, a look at Tana French's forthcoming In the Woods follow-up, and something about Yoko Ogawa's The Diving Pool, which the lovely folks at Harvil Secker sent along this morning to tide me over until galleys arrive for the next Murakami.  I'll say this much already: it looks startlingly original.

For now, though - that's all, folks.

***

Soundtrack to this entry: Filter - Title of Record

LibraryThing 的領頭人 Tim Spalding 發起共同建立新的分類系統 Open Shelves Classification (OSC) 取代 Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC；杜威十進分類法) 在學校/公共圖書館的應用。此舉乃順著讀者的找書習慣 (喜歡到書架 browse 書) 和 DDC 的易用性問題而來的。

先來看看 Tim Spalding 找到的一段片，收錄各方對 DDC 的意見

Dewey or Do We Not? - final G version

再來看當時 (1870s) 還是學生和圖書館實習生的 Melvil Dewey 發展 DDC 的構想 (數年前從導師處聽到，她說這是她在澳洲深造圖書館學時聽到的，不知屬真屬假，可能只是為故事好記由後人編出來的。)

Dewey Decimal System Animated (註)

[slideshare id=508491&doc=deweydecimalsystemnimated-1215735405726441-9&w=425]

簡言之，DDC 在管理書籍和協助讀者找出所而資源位置的功能其實一直行之有效 (電子資源例外)，所以 "OSC is for shelf order" 的目標看似是方便 glendac 列出的第 3 和 5 的情況

LibraryThing - Group: Build the Open Shelves Classification - Shelf-order: How important is that to you? - Message 5
http://www.librarything.com/talktopic.php?topic=41342

1. Patron searches the catalog, identifies and selects item wanted, notes the call number, goes to shelves, locates the item, checks out the item.
2. Patron searches the catalog, identifies and selects item wanted, places hold on item, library staff go to shelves and retrieve item, patron picks up and checks out item.
3. Patron gets a map of the library, goes to section of subject area interested in, browses area, identifies and selects item wanted, checks out item.
4. Patron asks help from a reference librarian, reference librarian helps patron identify and select resources, reference librarian goes to shelves and retrieves item for patron.
5. Patron randomly wanders around the library, guided by signs and labels, sees something interesting, pulls it out from the shelves and checks it out.

就著這兩點，即是中了

Alan Poon's Blog - 回歸遠流 / 杜威 (DDC) 再見？ / 模範老闆/上司
http://alanpoon.wordpress.com/2007/07/24/回歸遠流- 杜威-ddc-再見？-模範老闆/上司/

想讀者不用 OPAC 就去找書？那麼其實不需用 BISAC 取代 DDC，只要在排書時花點心思，新書、受歡迎的、重點推介的都書面向外，而非一律書脊向出。那樣豈不兼顧到以瀏覽的方式找書和嚴謹的讀者？

所以既知讀者和圖書館館員對 DDC 的觀感各走極端，與其建立新分類法，我傾向沿用 DDC 分類書籍，但在其他方面滿足第 3 和 5 類讀者，如用另一套方法排架 (BISAC？)

Book Industry Study Group - BISAC Committees - BISAC Subject Codes
http://www.bisg.org/bisac/subjectcodes/index.html

有效運用 RFID 科技將讀者引導向合適/所需書籍的書架等。

Alan Poon's Blog - RFID 在圖書館的應用
http://alanpoon.wordpress.com/2007/08/15/rfid-在圖書館的應用/

這樣做的話，各書籍便需額外貼上簡化了的主題貼

Wall Street Journal - Discord Over Dewey
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118340075827155554.html

以方便上架。讀者如需找出特定/相關的圖書，可依靠手提裝置 (手提電話、PDA、RFID 感應器等) 找出圖書的確實位置，不用擔心圖書因放得太散/不嚴謹而失落於書堆中。

我想這是比較省工夫又能兩全其美的方法︰讀者想隨心逛書架或是做資料搜尋都可以，又不影響圖書館管理員分類和找書。

p.s. 很多専業和非専業的 LibraryThing 用者都在熱烈討論 OSC 的架構

LibraryThing - Group: Build the Open Shelves Classification
http://www.librarything.com/groups/buildtheopenshelvesc#forums

沒想到他們想到用近似印度沿用那種 faceted structure 的 Ranganathan's Colon Classification

ISKO Italia - Colon classification
http://www.iskoi.org/doc/colon.htm

Colon classification. (n.d.). Wikipedia. Retrieved July 18, 2008, from Answers.com Web site: http://www.answers.com/topic/colon-classification

借 Wikipedia 的例子，若圖書的主題是 "research in the cure of tuberculosis of lungs by x-ray conducted in India in 1950"，分類號就是 "L,45;421:6;253:f.44'N5" (= Medicine,Lungs;Tuberculosis:Treatment;X-ray:Research.India'1950)。

實在是太新鮮了 [上個學期導師提的時候還覺得分類號太長不好用的說 (現在都是這樣認為)]。

已訂閱討論的 feed 以觀察 OSC 的進展，順便偷師 (資源少的學校圖書館可能真的需要到 OSC)。

註︰Slide 取材的網頁失效了 (希望只是暫時性，我在數月前收入 social bookmarking 時還在的)

Mt. Erie Elementary School Website - Library - The Story of the Dewey Decimal System of Classification
http://mte.anacortes.k12.wa.us/library/dewey/deweystory.htm

之前為求職面試做準備發現本地的一間學校圖書館為中國圖書分類法編出類似的故事

佛教志蓮中學 - 圖書館 - 圖書分類法
http://www.clbss.edu.hk/cbs-lib/catlog.htm

via

Libraries Interact - Open source classification scheme project
http://librariesinteract.info/2008/07/17/open-source-classification-scheme-project/

相關閱讀

Library Views 圖書館觀點 - 熱門議題：摒棄杜威
http://libraryviews.blogsome.com/2007/07/22/560/

Alan Poon's Blog - 圖書館公德 / 不當使用圖書館 / 圖書館系統 / 圖書館和繁雜資訊的功用
http://alanpoon.wordpress.com/2008/06/08/圖書館公德-不當使用圖書館-圖書館系統-圖書館和/#comment

Alan Poon's Blog - 隨目錄預覽圖書 / 好好運用書面的吸引力 / 個人的資源中心
http://alanpoon.wordpress.com/2008/03/14/隨目錄預覽圖書-好好運用書面的吸引力-個人的資/

###

Valérie Madill - looking at libraries: defining space through content
http://valeriemadill.com/index.php?/project/looking-at-libraries/

有意思，出版社可考慮在書腰帶宣傳的另一面在印上圖書資料 (連 citation 都有﹗)，活用資源。

同時令我想起顏色也可用來做簡易分類法，很多兒童圖書館都是用此法 (雖然跟圖書的內容沒有實質的連繫意義)。

相關閱讀

石墨工房5.1β - 書的腰帶
http://fred.ipod.to/blog/?post;1407

via

Yanko Design - Don’t Judge a Book by its’ Color
http://www.yankodesign.com/index.php/2008/07/17/don’t-judge-a-book-by-its’-color/

Yesterday I had to head in to the office for the day. One of our Execs from the US office was out and he wanted to meet with the all the people in our department. Then we got to go out to a fabulous Vietnamese restaurant for lunch. The restaurant had AMAZING views of Table Mountain. Unfortunately, my camera batteries were busy charging, so no pics.

Thanks for all the feedback on the sweater. I'm going to continue (since the mother-to-be tells me that she doesn't think it's too girly), but I'll leave the sleeves until I know the sex, and leave the decorative edging off if the baby is a boy.

No new sewing or knitting to show. I'm trying to get caught up with my blog reading and Gorgeous Girl is not having a good day as far as napping goes. She's perfectly happy at the moment, but napping isn't on the agenda.

I keep forgetting to update my reading list:

2008 Book List

25. Golden Deeds by Catherine Chidgey

Oh, yes, I've finally given in and joined f@ceb@ok. Love the scrabulous application :)

1. an ARC due out in Aug./Sept.
2. Children's Literature by Seth Lerer
3. The Story of Mankind by Hendrik Willem van Loon
4. "Mama Loved Patsy Cline" by Laura Bork
5. !?
6. a political theory book from my partner
7. a book about Spanish speakers learning English
8. Ask a Mexican by Gustavo Arellano
9. My Sister, My Love by Joyce Carol Oates
10. Assassin's Accomplice by Kate Clifford Larson

I've been alternating between Barnes and Noble and the public library. This has given me a chance to borrow someone else's air conditioning, get a little work done and also sip on an iced cappuccino while checking out some new book titles under anything and everything from fiction to current events to philosophy. The buzz is about Jane Mayer's new book, "The Dark Side - The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into the War on American Ideals"  but I want to read another book on the table by Richard Shankman called "Just How Stupid Are We?: Facing the Truth About the American Voter" - although I think I already know how it's going to turn out.

Speaking of dark, saw "The Dark Knight" last night. A little confusing, a whole lot dark and featuring some terrific performances not only by Heath Ledger and Christian Bale but also, in my view, Aaron Eckhart. I've been a fan of his for a few years and could never understand why a guy who played his impossibly good into some nice ironic performances had never made it. Then I remember George Clooney was nearly out of his thirties. Anyway, I figure this performance should kick him up a level. Worth a look-see but note: it's two and a half hours. 

Al Gore gave a speech that was either inspiring or unrealistic, depending on what you read about it.  Maybe it was both. He does seem to be uniquely positioned these days to point out our problems, issue challenges and speak optimistically about a future in which we have become free of our dependency from carbon-based fossel fuels - a future in which we don't have to be "borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it in ways that destroy the planet." Strangely enough, Gore seems to think we can do it, er, not borrow money to burn oil to destroy the planet but actually reduce or eliminate our oil dependency.

His optimism stands in stark contrast to the way the rest of us seem to be feeling. One recent poll says 81% of Americans feel America is headed in the wrong direction and a Rockefeller Foundation/Time Magazine poll that measured Americans' concerns about the economy also revealed that nearly half the 18-29-year-olds "feel that America's best days are in the past."

Depressing thoughts and we haven't even reached the dog days of summer.

Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
http://brainrules.net/

Brain Rules for Presenters

[slideshare id=415548&doc=brainrulespzreview-1211213300619507-9&w=425]

書如其名，講腦的運作和如何提升它的效能，如︰睡眠的重要性、有趣的事物有助恢復隨時間而降低的集中力、圖像能被實際記憶多於文字等。每個人都應該會對這本書有興趣吧...

via

Presentation Zen - The need for sleep
http://www.presentationzen.com/presentationzen/2008/07/the-need-for-sleep.html

12. 《傾聽動物心語 (Animals in translation : using the mysteries of autism to decode animal behavior)》 (HK$113)

SINO 讀書共和國 - 傾聽動物心語
http://www.sinobooks.com.tw/bookdata/bookdata.asp?BookNo=EIS0030

出版社︰木馬文化 [書攤︰應可在代理遠足文化 (Ecus Publishing) 找到]

作者細心觀察從動物的角度分析牠們的情感和行為，透露出牠們的心境。是本讓人明白到動物不用擬人化其實也是有血有肉有情感的生物的好書。

via

The dog and a blog - 愛寵篇(十二): 一本好書 - Animals in Translation
http://medogdog.blogspot.com/2006/06/animals-in-translation.html

13. 《動物飼育週記》 (售價︰不詳)

尖端出版SPP - 動物飼育週記(01)
http://www.spp.com.tw/spp2006/all/asp/search/bookfile.asp?bc=21030276&vch=comic

出版社︰尖端 [書攤︰相同]

接著這四套漫畫都是阿簡老師的推薦作品，簡明易讀之餘同樣能加深對生物的認識，更能培養對生物的興趣，應該是相當好的入門書。

via

阿簡生物筆記 - 【阿簡看漫畫】動物飼育週記
http://a-chien.blogspot.com/2008/07/blog-post_12.html

14. 《農大菌物語》 (售價︰不詳)

出版社︰尖端 [書攤︰相同，但是否已經出版像謎一樣。]

via

阿簡生物筆記 - 高中生物必備品-もやしもん漫畫
http://a-chien.blogspot.com/2008/06/blog-post_5581.html

15. 《動物診療札記》 (售價︰不詳)

出版社︰尖端 [書攤︰相同，但太舊未必會有。]

via

回憶工房3 - IWAMAL動物診療札記／玉井雪雄／尖端
http://memory3.my-life02.com/a-c/boys/iwamal.htm

The dog and a blog - 看了漫畫「動物診療札記」有感以發
http://medogdog.blogspot.com/2006/05/blog-post_13.html

阿簡生物筆記 - 【阿簡看漫畫】動物診療札記
http://a-chien.blogspot.com/2008/07/blog-post_18.html

16. 《漫畫生物學》 (HK$32)

時報悅讀網 - 漫畫生物學
http://www.readingtimes.com.tw/ReadingTimes/ProductPage.aspx?gp=productdetail&cid=rtfl(SellItems)&id=FL0101

出版社︰時報文化 [書攤︰相同，但太舊未必會有。]

via

【阿簡看漫畫】漫畫生物學
http://a-chien.blogspot.com/2008/07/blog-post_6061.html

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考慮過後決定還是要到書展走一趟，誘因就是折扣優惠 (七折)，希望能花少於 HK$1.2k 離場。

Paul Auster îşi bazează Cartea Iluziilor pe o întrebare filozofică: dacă un om trăieşte o viaţă plină de însemnătate, însă pe care nimeni nu o cunoaşte, atunci am putea atesta asupra faptului ca acesta a trăit cu adevărat? Este o poveste mai apropiată de adevăr atunci când este văzută şi povestită ori se transformă într-o iluzie a percepţiei ascultătorului?

Punctul de vedere al personajului narator al Cărţii Iluziilor este însă unul pragmatic: “If I never saw the moon, then the moon was never there.” Poate acest lucru face din această carte una dintre cele mai realiste lucrări ale lui Auster. Personajele sunt palpabile datorită faptului ca sunt influenţate de propriul punct de vedere asupra lucrurilor şi, în mod paradoxal, pentru că sunt văzute undeva la limita dintre realitate şi iluzie.

Romanul se deschide cu o propoziţie cu dublu înţeles: “Everyone thought he was dead.” Aceasta se referă în primă instanţă la Hector Mann, actor şi regizor de filme mute, care a dispărut fără sens şi fără urma cândva în 1929 şi considerat a fi mort, însă pe măsură ce naraţiunea progresează, aceeaşi propoziţie devine valabilă şi pentru protagonistul principal al Cărţii Iluziilor – David Zimmer. Viaţa lui Zimmer ca profesor universitar şi ca om ia sfârşit în clipa morţii tragice a familiei sale, soţia şi cei doi copii, într-un accident de avion. Rămas doar cu depresia şi cu gândul nehotărât de a-şi lua viaţa (dar fără a reuşi să îl pună vreodata în aplicare), David găseşte o urmă de viaţă într-un film mut, şi constată că un actor dintr-un film foarte vechi l-a făcut să râdă fără să-şi dea seama.

Astfel David găseşte un scop, o modalitate de a-şi ocupa gândurile cu filmele lui Hector Mann prin a scrie o carte despre cele 12 filme pe care le făcuse înaintea dispariţii sale din lume. În acest fel, Zimmer ajunge un expert în filmografia lui Mann, reuşind să lege în cartea sa simbolurile din filme cu experienţele personale din viaţa tânărului actor, însă fără a încerca să afle misterul dispariţiei sale.
Scrierea acestei cărţi îl ajută pe David să uite pentru moment tragedia suferită, iar odată cu publicarea ei, să revină treptat în lume, dedicându-se traducerii memoriilor lui Chateaubriand. Scriitorul francez dorise ca memoriile sale să fie publicate abia după moartea sa, însă situaţia financiară precară îl obligase să îşi vândă cartea pentru publicare. Simbolismul acestei alegeri pentru Zimmer începe să se contureze în momentul în care David primeşte o scrisoare din partea unei anume Frieda Spelling, care spune că este soţia lui Mann şi că Hector îşi doreşte foarte mult să îl cunoască.

Abia aici putem spune că începe povestea lui Hector, cea spusă prin ochii lui David, în timp ce acesta îşi dezvoltă propria poveste. Cartea trece printr-o serie întreagă de simboluri – de la tema iluziei sau cum percepem ceva ca realitate până la temele izolării şi a salvării de sine prin scris – o temă esenţială aici pentru că se implică direct şi indirect în vieţile a trei dintre personaje. Este un roman care trece prin diferite vieţi, morţi şi renaşteri, toate dominate de conceptul iniţial: acestea au avut loc cu adevărat dacă nu le-a văzut nimeni?

Apoi vine iluzia marelui ecran: toate imaginile unui film sunt iluzii care prezintă un adevăr, precum o fac şi cuvintele lui Auster. Vedem cum Hector prinde viaţă prin filmele sale în timp ce sunt văzute prin ochii lui David – ideile filmelor şi cum se raportează la viaţă acestuia din acel moment precum şi simbolurile puternice cu care sunt încărcate. Descrierile lui Auster trimit cititorul dincolo de o simplă analiză de film – te fac să îl vezi pe Hector Mann acolo sus pe marele ecran astfel încât ajungi să te întrebi dacă a fost la fel de real ca şi Charlie Chaplin, Cary Grant, Bogart sau Jimmy Stewart.

Cartea Iluziilor urmăreşte tiparul stilului austerian în care povestea în sine domină asupra mesajului, însă aici cititorul rămâne cu gândul la întrebările cu care autorul îşi creează romanul. Eu unul am rămas cu o dorinţă şi mai mare de a vedea un film cu unul dintre actorii menţionaţi anterior, însă imediat după ce am trimis cuiva The Book of Illusions pentru a se bucura de ceea ce este în opinia mea cea mai buna lucrare a lui Paul Auster.

Nota finala: 9/10

Alin Gogan

The Irish Independent has a nice piece on the Murphy's Ice Cream Book of Sweet Things of BOST as we have taken to calling it for short hand in the office. My favourite line:

It's a great success story and the book, written in Kieran's languid, laid-back style, makes an enjoyable read.

Good Stuff! You can buy the book here (Although, bizarrely they have a cover we decided against in the end!
Eoin

Out of necessity, our nation's economic leaders, including our top economists, put all of their focus on macroeconomic measurements. They can't be that concerned with "microeconomics" - the economies of individual citizens - because there are over 300 million of us. You and I would be dead long before they got around to paying us any attention! So they put all of their faith into the precept that if the overall economy is growing then, on average, our citizens will prosper too. On the surface, it seems to make sense. It's held true throughout most of human history. Notice that I said "most." Is it possible that there could come a time when macroeconomic growth - growth of the total economy - could actually become harmful to individual citizens' standard of living? That seems counter-intuitive, doesn't it? Economists would sneer at such a suggestion.

But I'm already getting ahead of myself. Let's get back to measurements of economic growth and begin with a look at economists' favorite measurement, Gross Domestic Product, or GDP. It's the measure of all of a nation's economic activity. It doesn't matter if it's beneficial or harmful activity. The cost of educating a student gets added to GDP. So does the cost of incarcerating a criminal. The cost of building a new car is added to GDP. So too is the cost of junking it.

So how has America been doing as measured by GDP? Great! Since 1962, our economy has grown at an annual rate of 7.3%, expanding from less than $600 billion per year in 1962 to $13.25 trillion in 2006. Wow! That means that Americans are twenty-two times as wealthy as they were in 1962, right? Uh, no.

A big part of this "economic growth" is nothing more than inflation, which helps no one. Since 1962, the Consumer Price Index, or "CPI," has risen by a factor of 6.7. Take inflation out of the equation, and we find that "chained GDP," GDP adjusted for inflation, is about four times what it was in 1962. By the way, I should point out that CPI is a price index, not a measure of the cost of living, which it actually understates. "But still," you're probably thinking at this point, "that's pretty phenomenal economic growth." "We're still four times richer than people were in 1962! Right?" No.

We haven't yet taken population growth into consideration. Population growth isn't true economic growth. It's contributes to the size of the overall "economy" but, beyond a certain optimum level (a concept we'll explore in more detail later), does nothing to raise individuals' standard of living. That is, if I apply the same economy to a population that is double the size, I still have the same economy from an individual point of view. The economy will be twice as big, and it will double the sales volume and profits for corporations, but for individuals it will have no effect on their incomes. From 1962 to 2006, our population grew from 186 million people to 299 million, a 60% increase. Factor this out of "chained GDP" and we arrive at a figure known as "per capita chained GDP" which, since 1962, has actually increased by 161%, an annual growth rate that is now down to 2.2% from the original "GDP" figure of 7.3%.

Well, OK, but we're still 161% wealthier than folks in 1962. That's not as exciting as being 2200% wealthier, like the raw "GDP" data would have suggested, but it's still a decent increase, right? I mean, we've adjusted GDP for inflation and population growth. What else could there be?

Productivity. Every bit of this 161% increase in per capita chained GDP is due to productivity improvement - the amount of economic output per person. Finally, some good news here! We all know that increases in productivity lead to higher wages. At least that's what everyone says - our politicians, our business leaders and especially economists.

Really? Are you that much wealthier than someone who did the same job as you back in 1962? Well, if you're a top corporate executive, almost certainly. The rest of us? Probably not. Are you any wealthier at all? Maybe. Maybe not.

That is what everyone says - that productivity leads to higher wages. But it's not true. There is absolutely no correlation between productivity improvement and higher wages. Productivity improvement does nothing to drive wages higher. If anything, it tends to drive wages down. Something else drives wages higher. Something that we'll explore in Part 2. Stay tuned!

Nick Hornby made three points about e-readers. Firstly, only a minority of people are readers. When there's TV, internet, cinema and all sorts of other forms of entertainment available, the venerable old novel, which requires time, quiet and patience is pretty much the loser. Not to mention that a great many books make it to film, so those people who hover on the margin of readership will happily wait for somebody to make a film out of it so they don't have to bother with all those tiresome wordy descriptions that us authors are obliged to produce. Secondly, they're pricey and the traditional book is cheap, if bulky.

Thirdly, and perhaps more importantly, hardcore readers are a bunch of people who don't just like to read. They like the format of books. I am no exception to this, and it's not just because I'm an author. I grew up surrounded by literally thousands of books. If somebody you're related to once worked for Penguin, the archetypal producer of classic paperbacks, the chances are you've probably encountered more books than you've had hot dinners. Whereas the music industry doesn't have people who love the format on which their music comes (apart from aficionados of vinyl, of course), the book industry has one thing to its advantage: people who love reading usually love books too. Books have personality, style. You pride yourself on your library, on having first editions. Books are treasured possessions, in many cases.

I have a book that's two hundred years old. It was published by the Temperance Society at the turn of the 19th century when the era was cranking up towards the moral snobbery - not to mention hypocrisy - of the Victorian period. Alcohol was a demon of society, and the Temperance Society was out to confront it (and we think we have a problem with excessive drinking now - it's nothing new). The descriptions of the impact of alcohol and excessive drinking are delightful. Talking with other readers it's obvious that books are things that we treasure. A story, a real classic we love, is worth pursuing in hardback, finding a good edition is a hunt we delight in pursuing.

I love music too but I don't love CDs or MP3s. I do love my iPod but that's largely because it enabled me to carry more music than I could ever need with me in my pocket. Loving an iPod isn't the same as loving a book. Nothing really compares to cracking open a brand new hardback, especially if you wrote it yourself, and delighting in the feel of holding it. I can't imagine, to be honest, spending £400 - or indeed any amount of money - to download books from the internet for free and read them in bed, screen before me. I rather like being able to lie back and read a good paperback (they only take a day to read), or the delight of browsing the library shelves for the latest in whatever my current fixation happens to be (at the moment it's Andy McNab and Dean R Koontz, but give me time and I'll have moved on to something else).

It would be a shame if books die out for one other reason. Like the book from the Temperance society, they survive in a way digital media, for all its trumpeted longevity, doesn't. Books are an icon of civilisation, the passing on of knowledge, experience, opinion and understanding. Books carry, in their current format, a powerful impact on our lives: we place them on altars and lecterns when we worship them (the Bible), or burn them when we despise them. E-readers, and e-books, have nothing like that kind of impact or power. They won't survive the crashing of civilisation, the falling of order. But you can bet in ragged corners of broken buildings, tattered copies of books will remain. They don't require battery power, a source of energy, massive expenditure or a certain level of know-how to operate. They might well be the last bastion of low-tech surviving in the modern world, and I would like to see them continue for many years to come.

Forgive me for not writing yesterday, and the day before, I guess, for I am acting Mess Sergeant now and being a new man at this kind of business, it takes about all my time to catch on. You see the First Sergeant was reduced to the rank of duty sergeant, and our Mess sergeant was put in his place, and I was told by the Captain to act as Mess Sergeant until further notice. I hope he appointes some one else for I want to drill and keep up in the military end of it as long as I am in the game. The Mess serg. stays in the kitchen all the time and sees that the men get enough to eat and what they get is good.

Sam

 © Copyright 2008 by Richard Landers, All Rights Reserved. No reproduction without permission.

During the war the British government had a range of books published to inform the general public about the actions of specific elements of the forces or about campaigns that had been concluded.  These books started appearing from 1941.  Obviously, since they came out during the war, they were not able to draw on German or Italian sources, and they therefore contain mistakes and misappreciations.  They also do not discuss technical issues in detail, because of the need to preserve secrecy. Finally, they are of course full of rousing individual exploits, gunners heroically fighting their guns until they are overrun by tanks, or intrepid Sikhs walking 200km through the desert and the Axis lines with a wireless set on their back.

Having said all that, these books are very interesting reads, and they do contain a wealth of information about the progress of the war as it was seen at the time.  They also benefit from being quite available on the 2nd hand market, or as reprints, because they were printed in huge numbers during the war.  The later ones, this one included, contain very interesting pictures, maps, and detailed accounts of actions.

I recommend them highly.

This is inpection day. Every single thing we own is spread out and it has to be just so. You speak of receiving a souviner. Now I sent two, that is, two pins. I wish you would let me know what you mean by say only one souviner for I hope that both of the pins that I sent was received by you. I am feeling the same as usual, and hope all you dear folks at home are well and standing up under the Terrific weather. I see that the Red Sox are in first place. I am going to be there for the Big Series.

Sam

Dear Lena

To continue the postal that I sent Em, I wish to inform you that as far as I can make out we are to stay here for one week more and then hit for Galveston after that? This outpost work is getting to be very important, for we have to be on the alert at all times. We can never tell when the Spicks will pick one of us off, or rush one of our out gaurds, and as we non comps are in charge of these men and posts, it makes our work more important than you can imagine. (Adious)

Sam

Dear Pa,

You will see this (the three postals) is nothing but a letter addressed to the family. I suppose you got enough traveling in your vacation, and I bet you can imagine the monoteny we went through in getting away down here. Of coarse it will not be so bad going back. We were talking to an old fellow yesterday who is 101 years old. He said he came from N.E. 80 years ago and adds that this is the best country God ever made and that he wouldn’t go back to N.E. for a million. He was never sick in his life and works his ranch every day. He is going to live 50 years longer.

Sam

 © Copyright 2008 by Richard Landers, All Rights Reserved. No reproduction without permission.

Originally published in 1986 and re-issued by Night Shade Books in 2006 this is a great piece of cyberpunk SF. Chock full of invented terminology chucked at the reader with no explanation but which we instinctively grasp the meaning of, the frenetic pacing pulls us through the mayhem that unfolds. It may be over 20 years old but the book doesn't feel dated, despite cyberpunk as a sub-genre being apparently a spent force.

Deadbeat: Makes You Stronger - Guy Adams - 2005 - Humdrumming

Another great horror novella from Humdrumming, this time laced with a healthy dose of dark humour. This is one of the funniest books I've read, with the two central characters, the unlikeliest of investigators, getting into some hilarious scrapes and with some very witty dialogue. This needs to be made into a TV show; perhaps with Mr Adams himself playing Max Jackson?

The Electric Church - Jeff Somers - 2007  - Orbit

Going by the numerous online reviews there are those who love this book and those who hate it. Well, put me in the former category. Right from page 1 the pace doesn't let up, well apart from about five pages in the middle, as the plot unfolds at breakneck speed. It's a very violent future society, were living past 30 is highly unusual. With loads of gunfire, explosions, bloodshed and swearing, this is 365 pages of pure fun.

The reviewer, Jonathan Yardley, mentions this in passing, but several prominent activists on behalf of animal protection were Evangelical Christians, including those like William Wilberforce and the Earl of Shaftsbury who were major reformers in other areas. They saw the extension of mercy to all God's creatures as a logical part of the Christian mission and not something competing with better treatment of human beings.

UPDATE: Here's another review - from the San Francisco Chronicle - making the point that, with factory farming, "[a]nimal cruelty today may not be as overtly barbaric as in the 18th century, but because of factory farming it is much more widespread."

I finished reading Finding Flow* last night. It was very different from what I expected, but interesting! The subtitle is "The Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life," and the book reads more like a science-meets-religion treatise than a self-help book. In the end, I found myself thinking optimistically of the "new earth" that Eckhart Tolle talks about.

In Finding Flow, the author encourages us to engage mindfully, to take ownership of our actions, rather than spending our leisure in passive entertainment. This, he says, will create flow as well as increase happiness. I have certainly found this to be true in my experience. It's easier to work a crossword puzzle than to stare down a blank page and write a poem, less effort to watch TV than to call a friend, but I know which of these feeds me and leads to greater happiness.

And again the idea of loving what is pops up--what Nietzsche called amor fati--"the love of fate."  Csikszentmihalyi warns us that people can also learn to love what is destructive, so we must choose our goals wisely. Science has helped us to understand what promotes and sustains growth, life, and order, and to understand the uniqueness of each of us. He says "each one of us is responsible for our particular point in space and time in which our body and mind forms a link within the total network of existence." Being virtuous (that is, acting to preserve order, taking into account the common good, the emotional well-being of others) is not the easy path, but the satisfying one, and connects one to the flow of all that was, is, and ever shall be.

*Finding Flow was previously mentioned here.

Made in the U.S.A. is Billie Letts newest novel. It is the story of two kids, Lutie and Fate McFee, who are living with one of their father's old girlfriends. When the girlfriend dies, they take her car and head to Las Vegas to find their father. They get there only to discover that he died in prison (their mother died years ago). They try to survive on the streets, and Lutie does whatever it takes to survive. Someone tries to help them all along and comes to their rescue when Lutie is beaten and robbed of money she made acting in a porn film. Their savior takes them back to his family where they all discover the value of family and love.

It's been a while since I've read any of Billie Letts' books, but I remember really enjoying them, so I was very disappointed in this one. There isn't much character development, lots of plot twists are never really developed and the story is just a bit too unbelievable.