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June 29
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Brian
gave  to:
Buddha (Penguin Lives)
by
Karen Armstrong
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my rating:
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read in June, 2009
Brian said:
"A number of years ago I had the opportunity during my travels in China and Tibet to visit a number of Buddhist temples as a tourist. They were fascinating, but I always felt a little lost in my understanding of Buddhism itself and the history of the ...more
A number of years ago I had the opportunity during my travels in China and Tibet to visit a number of Buddhist temples as a tourist. They were fascinating, but I always felt a little lost in my understanding of Buddhism itself and the history of the Buddha.
Finally, after reading this book, I feel like I have a better understanding both of the teachings of Buddha, and also of the time and place that produced him.
The book itself is fairly approachable for someone with a casual interest in learning about Buddha. That is to say you needn't approach the book in a scholarly fashion. There is a lot of terminology that is introduced during the course of the book, but there is a glossary in the back of the book that can be referenced easily if you forgot what a word means during the course of reading, but for the most part it isn't necessary.
I found particularly fascinating the discussion regarding the "axial age" when the Buddha and so many other critical religious and philosophic figures emerged, like Confucius and the hebrew prophet Isaiah, and Socrates, with new insights into the human condition.
All in all I found the book to be compelling reading, well written and informed, and enlightening on a subject I always wanted to know a little bit more about.(less)
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June 26
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Brian is on page 108 of 240 of Buddha "I've brought this along on vacation for beach reading. I guess that's kinda weird, but I don't care"
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June 14
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June 07
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May 31
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Brian
is currently reading:
This Will Kill You: A Guide to the Ways in Which We Go (Paperback)
by
H.P. Newquist
bookshelves:
currently-reading
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my rating:
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progress:
(page 49 of 352)
"Made it past Black Widows, Bombs, and Botulism...so much still to look forward to!"
— 27 days ago, 08:19PM
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May 26
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Brian
is currently reading:
The Chantry Guild (Childe Cycle)
by
Gordon R. Dickson
bookshelves:
currently-reading
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my rating:
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May 11
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Brian
is currently reading:
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (Paperback)
by
Junot Díaz
bookshelves:
currently-reading
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my rating:
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progress:
(page 167 of 335)
— 20 days ago, 03:46PM
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March 21
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Brian
gave to:
The Nonexistent Knight and The Cloven Viscount (Paperback)
by
Italo Calvino
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my rating:
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read in March, 2009
Brian said:
"Calvino just has magic. This book really consists of two long stories or novellas. The first one, The Nonexistent Knight is the somewhat amusing story of a suit of armor without a body inside that is serving in Charlemagne's army and of a girl in lov...more
Calvino just has magic. This book really consists of two long stories or novellas. The first one, The Nonexistent Knight is the somewhat amusing story of a suit of armor without a body inside that is serving in Charlemagne's army and of a girl in love with the knight she imagines inside.
But it is in the second story, The Cloven Viscount, that Calvino really lets loose. This is the story of a man cut in half by a canon ball whose two halves return home, one evil and the other good, and the adventures they have; one rampaging across the countryside on his black horse, killing plants and animals and people too, while the other good half travels about trying to cure all ills and heal all wounds.
The Cloven Viscount is a rich and humorous and visceral story that grabbed my fascination almost immediately and was hard to put down. The author's sense of humor really shone and there are passages that are simultaneously ghastly and hysterical. I definitely encourage anyone to read this one.(less)
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March 15
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Brian
gave to:
Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life (Paperback)
by
Steve Martin
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my rating:
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Brian said:
"I probably have a slightly inordinate fondness for this book because of the many hours I spent in Junior High School listening over and over again to the "Let's Get Small" and "A Wild and Crazy Guy" comedy albums of Steve Martin.
...more
I probably have a slightly inordinate fondness for this book because of the many hours I spent in Junior High School listening over and over again to the "Let's Get Small" and "A Wild and Crazy Guy" comedy albums of Steve Martin.
The book itself is a straight-forward and honest accounting of how fame, that seems to strike all at once, is actually the result of years of hard work and craft and an idea. It's really a simple autobiographical accounting of where and how he grew up, how he learned magic and comedy and performing, and how over the years he developed a routine that suddenly became the hottest thing around in the late seventies and early eighties, and then how he walked away from being a stand-up comic when fame ruined the gig.
I found the brief passages recounting jokes and gags that he used to do onstage reminded me fondly of hearing these same routines on his albums. I was too young, really, to have attended any of his comedy concerts, but the albums were very important to me in my understanding of humor.
The book reads very quickly, I finished it in two afternoons, and found it to be well worth while.(less)
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January 27
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Brian
gave  to:
Tin House: The Political Issue (Fall 2008)
by
Editors of Tin House
bookshelves:
periodicals
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my rating:
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