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403rd out of 416 books
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74 voters
Selected Non-Fictions
It will come as a surprise to some readers that the greater part of Jorge Luis Borges's extraordinary writing was not in the genres of fiction or poetry, but in the various forms of non-fiction prose. His thousands of pages of essays, reviews, prologues, lectures, and notes on politics and culture�though revered in Latin America and Europe as among his finest work�have sca...more
Paperback, 576 pages
Published
November 2nd 2000
by Penguin Canada
(first published August 1st 1999)
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The knowledge Borges brings to his non-fiction writings draws upon sources vast and obscure. His scope makes parallels between the ancient past and dreams of the future. He charts such subjects as the histories of angels, dreams, archetypes, languages, and ideas, among many epistemological topics. He presents coincidence and irony as governed by forces beyond the human sphere, yet Borges rejects transcendent order. He chooses instead to be captivated with the human origin of immortality. He deci...more
I prefer his fiction, though his fiction is really a transcendental exposition for the higher aesthetic. Nonetheless, his non-fiction is closely related to his fiction. The line is as vague as the line between comedy and tragedy, yes they are polar opposites yet share so many common traits that the difference is really our reaction to the presentation. Borges is not a solipsist though he does dabble and inquire quite a bit into the mental realm. There is no self to him. Literature is not a conte...more
Borges is brilliant, though he does tend to repeat himself. So rather than try to review this collection, I'll use this box to give instructions for the game of "BORGES BINGO", usable not only on nonfiction but also his fiction and poetry.
The grid is 5X5. Of course, the center box is "LABYRINTH" (free space). Fill the 24 boxes around it with the following motifs/moves/topics, in random order. Whenever a topic gets mentioned in the book you're reading, check it off. First to 5 wins!
MINOTAUR
LIBRAR...more
The grid is 5X5. Of course, the center box is "LABYRINTH" (free space). Fill the 24 boxes around it with the following motifs/moves/topics, in random order. Whenever a topic gets mentioned in the book you're reading, check it off. First to 5 wins!
MINOTAUR
LIBRAR...more
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I learned many things about Borges from this long assortment of his non-fiction writings. For instance, in addition to his interest in the philosophy of time, the nature of human consciousness, and the use of labyrinths as a metaphor in literature, he loved to go the movies, and didn't care much for King Kong. Some more: he was a staunch anti-fascist during the Second World War, he was deeply interested in the nature of the Trinity, and that he didn't like detective fiction written after the 193...more
A cornucopia of numerous wonderfully odd but interesting pieces of often very short fiction. I've been unable to read this cover-to-cover, because it takes too much effort and concentration. I also find that, like Updike, Borges sometimes confuses and annoys me by interjecting a little too much of his wide and obscure learning into his stories, so that many allusions are lost to me. While I perhaps know too little to appreciate them as they should be appreciated, I keep going back for more. The...more
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I've been a Borges fan for as long as I can remember. We like to imagine Borges as this sort of hermetically sealed creature, but these nonfiction pieces totally demystified him for me. Turns out he loved crummy Westerns and detective movies, for instance. You also get to see his whole process, and you see in some of these pieces the ideas that would eventually coalesce into The Library of Babel, The Aleph, and all the other stories for which he would become known. While I'd previously imagined...more
Borges in his non-fictions is like Virgil in the Divine Comedy that he writes so much about, a guide, though of literature and philosophy instead of Heaven and Hell. In a way, he was for me with literature what Bertrand Russell was with philosophy, a lucid voice that has a knack for seeing the heart of any problem and explaining it in clear terms. His indifference to specialization and length might have made him the world’s first classic blogger if he were born a little later.
Reading this colle...more
Reading this colle...more
I enjoyed this, but not nearly as much as I wanted to. Like his fiction the scope and imagination of these essays are fascinating, but unlike his fiction they are often rambling and unfocused. I like pedantry as much as the next person (probably more), but the pedanticism here could get a little out of control. That said, I was sad when it ended, probably because it was arranged chronologically and the end of the book was the end of Borges' life. You could actually notice him getting older as ti...more
Well I used t have all the book from Borges in Spanish, that was, until one of my boxes was lost when moving apartments. To my dismay the box that contain his books were lost. Alas the Aleph and other Stories managed to sneak to another box, but Labyrinths was lost forever and I can only hope it’s somewhere where the book can be read and not in a dumpster. The later faith would be a tragedy, the first an act of a comedic destiny.
I’ve read all of his publications in Spanish, and I am sure there...more
I’ve read all of his publications in Spanish, and I am sure there...more
I almost enjoy this more than Borges's collection of fiction. Borges provides a powerful and unique view of history, current events, and possible future events. He is such a thoughtful writer and although some of this collection requires additional research on the part of the reader to fully grasp the context, it is fun to get to know Borges and his view of the world he lived in.
It's maybe inappropriate to give this the same rating as something like, oh I don't know, "The Nerdist Way" for example. But for the most part (A New Refutation of Time, obviously) these are minor, inessential pieces. Sure it's great to read his first impressions of King Kong or Finnegan's Wake but those aren't going to change one's view of literature, as his fictions do.
Kalau seseorang itu kata dia membaca, tetapi tak memiliki buku ini dalam bentuk kulit keras, saya akan tendang perut dia. Kemudian saya akan heret dia ke tempat pelupusan sampah dan akan tinggalkan dia di situ. Ptui, saya akan ludah dia. Mampos kau kat situ syaitan pendusta, saya sambung sambil meninggalkan dia di situ bersama urin anjing dan mayat siput babi.
Setting my eye on this book in a London book shelf, I instantly fell in love with it. Having read his more celebrated books - Fictions, The Aleph, Universal History, etc. - I have found here an even greater scope and dimension to Borges' writing.
The great thing about these essays that they're intelligent and erudite, but distance themselves from academic doctrine. The books that are his source of fascination - Greek mythology, fables, linguistic - are given original interpretations and re-evalua...more
The great thing about these essays that they're intelligent and erudite, but distance themselves from academic doctrine. The books that are his source of fascination - Greek mythology, fables, linguistic - are given original interpretations and re-evalua...more
same thing to be said as with the ficciones-my reading of Borges is a work in progress. A little here, a little there, and then you need some time for breathing and reflection. You want to snack on Borges, so as to not devour the entire meal and then be disappointed in dessert.
This was sitting on my bookshelf for about a year before I picked it up. Didn't know who the author was. But I decided to give it a go, and was very impressed by the essays and poems that I found in it. He's another author who has a nice cadence to his writing.
Literary theory by a non-academic librarian that is so enjoyable and instigating! This Argentian read everything and discusses all the yummy things about literature in his own scholarly yet non-competitive style that was really refreshing to read.
As this collection is chronological, it starts off with some typical problems of young writers--wanting to show off their linguistic expertise and statin opinion as fact. However, as he matures, he reaches the same kind of dizzying heights that he achieves with his fiction.
Is this a collectio of essays? As I read and enjoy it as series of beautiful wondering nattations! I can't find any special "shelve" for it, maybe "mirror" as I went through it forgetting not my shoe but my whole wearings ...
By testimony of this volume alone, it's obvious that Borges had an insatiable appetite for the curious. The function and malleability of language, the paradoxical inconsistencies of time and motion, the ambiguity of style, the vicissitudes of hell--nothing is out of his reach. A cosmic mind concerned with the universe, he is a proper answer to the lamentations of Sisyphus, and it's quite a boulder he heaves.
A wide-ranging and mosaic collection of Borges's nonfiction. Sometimes bewildering if one is not well-versed in Spanish literature and/or South-American political history, but a fine springboard for further inquiry for all that.
Erudite, mind expanding and incredibly literary...in the space of two to four pages he can change your view forever
Alright, so I am a bit biased as Borges is my very favorite author. I definitely prefer his fiction, but am happy to say that his non-fiction kept me just as much on my toes, and searching for a way through the maze to the end. As is typical of Borges, if you can follow it, it's poignant... but you can't always follow it. I recommend this book to buy and enjoy in small morsels.
It is venturesome to think that a coordination of words (philosophies are nothing more than that) can resemble the universe very much. It is also venturesome to think that of all these illustrious coordinations, one of them -- at least in an infinitesimal way -- does not resemble the universe a bit more than the others.” -- Essay: "The Avatars of the Tortoise.
I first fell in love with Borges for his fiction, but have also been impacted by the creativity and novelty of his nonfiction. My reading...more
I first fell in love with Borges for his fiction, but have also been impacted by the creativity and novelty of his nonfiction. My reading...more
Borges, nothing else need be said.
I particularly enjoyed: "The Analytical Language of John Wilkins."
I finally finished this one, which I've been nursing for several years. I read it slowly not because it's not great -- Borges is one of my favorite authors -- but it's so persistently erudite and tricky that it's hard to go through a lot of pages at once.
I like his short stories more, but his essays about Dante are fascinating and he has some other really intriguing stuff -- I remain dazzled by the breadth and depth of Borges' reading and knowledge about the world.
I like his short stories more, but his essays about Dante are fascinating and he has some other really intriguing stuff -- I remain dazzled by the breadth and depth of Borges' reading and knowledge about the world.
Great fun thats not just for completists. I love Borges, but he made his name as a critic writing for a magazine whose numerous articles are somewhat reprinted here. The book is broken down by type and form, but even some of his throwaway thoughts are brilliant. Also it's pretty fun to find out what novels Borges read over and over again (he was someone who really loved to read), and snarky fun to read whom he hated or thought was overrated.
Borges understood literary translation like almost no one has (even if his own translations can be problematic and less than thrilling). As much as his ficciones make me sing, I love this compilation of essays for allowing me such direct access to his incisive, sparkling mind.
Eternal thanks to Andrew Hurley for his brilliant translations of nearly everything this wonderful man wrote. What a gift you have given English.
Eternal thanks to Andrew Hurley for his brilliant translations of nearly everything this wonderful man wrote. What a gift you have given English.
Essays on translation and time refuted? Check.
Imaginative fragments on Coleridge, Joyce and Khayyam? Check.
Citizen Kane and King Kong reviewed? Check.
Essential Borges brain candy? Check
Imaginative fragments on Coleridge, Joyce and Khayyam? Check.
Citizen Kane and King Kong reviewed? Check.
Essential Borges brain candy? Check
In my mind Borges represents the pinnacle of erudition. His short stories are generally filled with wide ranging references. The selected nonfictions gives you a sense of what he reads and draws upon when he composes his fictions. Histories, metaphysical exercises, philosophy, book reviews, biographies, film criticisms, and political writings are all found in this large but rewarding volume.
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Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo (Spanish pronunciation: [xoɾxe lwis boɾxes]) was an Argentine writer and poet born in Buenos Aires. In 1914, his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school and traveled to Spain. On his return to Argentina in 1921, Borges began publishing his poems and essays in Surrealist literary journals. He also worked as a librarian and public lecturer. Bo...more
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“The thought came over me that never would one full and absolute moment, containing all the others, justify my life, that all of my instants would be provisional phases, annihilators of the past turned to face the future, and that beyond the episodic, the present, the circumstantial, we were nobody.”
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“The European and the North American consider that a book that has been awarded any kind of prize must be good; the Argentine allows for the possibility that the book might not be bad, despite the prize.”
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