A great collection. I'd give it five stars, I really would — but I've got a story in it, and that probably makes me incapable of making a dispassionat...moreA great collection. I'd give it five stars, I really would — but I've got a story in it, and that probably makes me incapable of making a dispassionate judgement...(less)
A very good reader, with well-chosen and (for me at least) challenging texts. Worth reading, even if some of those seminal 20th century Chinese texts...moreA very good reader, with well-chosen and (for me at least) challenging texts. Worth reading, even if some of those seminal 20th century Chinese texts are not, to be frank, a whole load of fun.(less)
Unfortunately out of print—Clinamen Press was very short-lived—but a superb book about Lucretian physics and ethics, an argument for its Archimedean r...moreUnfortunately out of print—Clinamen Press was very short-lived—but a superb book about Lucretian physics and ethics, an argument for its Archimedean roots, and an astonishingly cheerful vision of what philosophy could be.(less)
An excellent collection of varied and thoughtful essays about translating poetry from various Asian languages into English. My only complaint is that,...moreAn excellent collection of varied and thoughtful essays about translating poetry from various Asian languages into English. My only complaint is that, given that the book is about translation, it would have been illuminating to have had the originals alongside all of the translations.(less)
Perhaps not as wide-ranging as some of Jullien's other books (such as In Praise of Blandness), but there are some beautiful and compelling moments her...morePerhaps not as wide-ranging as some of Jullien's other books (such as In Praise of Blandness), but there are some beautiful and compelling moments here, and I have a sense that some of these ideas may resonate for a long time. A book worth returning to.(less)
The satire should have been sharper, the book should have been funnier, the plot should have been not quite such an unholy mess. And there was somethi...moreThe satire should have been sharper, the book should have been funnier, the plot should have been not quite such an unholy mess. And there was something about the world in which it was set that felt flimsy to the extent that every time it rained in the book, or somebody let off a fire-hose, I was worried that all the cardboard would turn to mush. I couldn't bring myself to give Ballard one star. So he's got two. But only because it's him.(less)
Geoff Dyer's Zona is perhaps not as moodily profound as some Tarkovsky fans might like: but there's something to be said for a book about Stalker that...moreGeoff Dyer's Zona is perhaps not as moodily profound as some Tarkovsky fans might like: but there's something to be said for a book about Stalker that stands a little apart from the monochrome, waterlogged, high seriousness of the film (and one that contains jokes).
This book about man (in a cardigan) who writes about a film about a journey to a room makes me want to return to watch Stalker another time. Given that much criticism has the opposite effect — making you want to continue to admire something from the safe difference of remembering, rather than plunge back into experiencing the original — it seems to me that Dyer has done an admirable job.
An engaging, easy read, but not half as explosive, bold, outrageous, provocative, subversive or disturbing as the reviews claim. I'd hoped for more.
Pe...moreAn engaging, easy read, but not half as explosive, bold, outrageous, provocative, subversive or disturbing as the reviews claim. I'd hoped for more.
Perhaps, in the end, what strips this of its power to unsettle is that Pullman is too much of a good old-fashioned moralist, not sufficiently attuned to ambiguity and uncertainty. Worth reading, then; but I couldn't help comparing this unfavourably to Saramago's vastly superior — and far more subversive — "The Gospel According to Jesus Christ"(less)
Kaufmann sets a fairly narrow agenda (it's more a book on the Greek tragedians and philosophy than a book on tragedy conceived more broadly), but neve...moreKaufmann sets a fairly narrow agenda (it's more a book on the Greek tragedians and philosophy than a book on tragedy conceived more broadly), but nevertheless this is a wonderfully readable book in a way that few philosophy books are, and was a pleasure even for a reader for whom -I confess, having read through the plays years ago, and having only the haziest memory of which is which - Sophocles blurs into Euripides, who in turn blurs into Aeschylus.(less)
Despite the obvious complexities of the subject-matter, and the occasional fear of getting lost in tangles of acronyms, this is a clear-sighted, thoug...moreDespite the obvious complexities of the subject-matter, and the occasional fear of getting lost in tangles of acronyms, this is a clear-sighted, thoughtful and often very funny overview of the financial crisis and What Went Wrong.(less)
I'm not the biggest Stephen King fan, and he gets a bit tangled up in dark and perhaps rather spurious imaginings at the end of this book: but it is,...moreI'm not the biggest Stephen King fan, and he gets a bit tangled up in dark and perhaps rather spurious imaginings at the end of this book: but it is, in the main, an excellent, brisk exploration of the craft of writing.(less)
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