|
May 15
|
|
Matthew
gave
 
to:
The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare (Modern Library Classics)
by G.K. Chesterton
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
Matthew said:
"A philosophical novel which looks like a spy novel which is actually a dream? The Man Who Was Thursday tells an interesting, sometimes difficult, story, which is very characteristic o
"
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
Orthodoxy (Paperback)
by G.K. Chesterton
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
read in January, 2005
Matthew said:
"Orthodoxy is a classic of Christian apologetics, and it is worth reading if only for a taste of Chesterton's wit and prose, which are about as sharp as any English writer of the twentieth century. It is a short book, but not necessarily easy to read...more
Orthodoxy is a classic of Christian apologetics, and it is worth reading if only for a taste of Chesterton's wit and prose, which are about as sharp as any English writer of the twentieth century. It is a short book, but not necessarily easy to read; there is a greater deal of density to Chesterton's writing, and the arguments in his chapters take some concentration to follow....less
"
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
Thousand Cranes (Paperback)
by Yasunari Kawabata
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
Matthew said:
"A solid novel filled with symbolic subtleties. The plot centers around a young man fated to continue his death father's live, especially the tangled relationships with his various lovers. Using the tea ceremony as a setting, it explores the way in ...more
A solid novel filled with symbolic subtleties. The plot centers around a young man fated to continue his death father's live, especially the tangled relationships with his various lovers. Using the tea ceremony as a setting, it explores the way in which individuals are swept along by the past, the fundamental differences in individual disposition, all in a very simple, easy-to-read prose. It is short, quick to read, but there is a still a profound depth to it, which makes it worthwhile for those who like understated novels which are about characterization more than plot....less
"
|
|
May 08
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
The Classical World: An Epic History of Greece and Rome (Paperback)
by Robin Lane Fox
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
read in February, 2008
Matthew said:
"It used to be the case that knowledge of ancient Greece and Rome was essential for an education. This is sadly untrue anymore, but, still, I did not realize how ignorant I was until I read through this book. Fox is detailing with an immense amount ...more
It used to be the case that knowledge of ancient Greece and Rome was essential for an education. This is sadly untrue anymore, but, still, I did not realize how ignorant I was until I read through this book. Fox is detailing with an immense amount of material, but he handles it very well, organizing the themes around things that people in that that time themselves would have said were important: freedom, justice, and luxury.
The book is solid, informative, and perfect for anyone looking at a modern introduction to the Classical World....less
"
|
|
May 05
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time (Paperback)
by Jeffrey Sachs
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
Matthew said:
"This is a good book, between three and four stars, but I gave it four because it is worth thinking about these things. Sachs is an economist who has experience helping nations whose economies are in crisis to overcome their crisis. He gives an acco...more
This is a good book, between three and four stars, but I gave it four because it is worth thinking about these things. Sachs is an economist who has experience helping nations whose economies are in crisis to overcome their crisis. He gives an account of how poverty might be ended in the next 25th years. By "poverty" he is referring to extreme poverty—the inability of people in some countries to provide even their basic needs (poverty, in this sense, does not exist in developed countries). His project may sound impossible, but, its true that, for most of human history, people were living at a level where we could barely subsist. After the Industrial Revolution, population after population has been rising out of extreme poverty. Ending this poverty has truly been a developing story of recent economic history.
Sachs gives easily understandable explanations of why some nations do not rise of poverty, and he gives a plan for how to do it. His attitude towards topics like capitalism, UN intervention, debt cancellation, and the like are guaranteed to irritate almost anyone who has any feelings on these matters at some point. But Sachs makes his case, and the sheer moral weight of this issue makes it important to listen....less
"
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Aftermath of World War II (Allen Lane History)
by John W. Dower
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
read in July, 2007
Matthew said:
"This books gives an impressionistic flavor for life in post-WWII Japan. Dower pulls off a difficult accomplishment, covering both the drama at the high-levels of government, the "big men" like MacArthur and Emperor Hirohito, and also the d...more
This books gives an impressionistic flavor for life in post-WWII Japan. Dower pulls off a difficult accomplishment, covering both the drama at the high-levels of government, the "big men" like MacArthur and Emperor Hirohito, and also the daily lives of many Japanese people, trying to survive in a nation ruined by war. The tone is, at times, quite depressing, but the situation is serious, and many of the events, from the writing of the new Constitution to the war crime trials, come alive. It is hard to read the book and not feel a bit cynical towards those in power, both the Americans and the Japanese, or feel sympathy for the experiences of the common people during this extraordinary time in history....less
"
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
Freakonomics Rev Ed: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything (Hardcover)
by Steven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
Matthew said:
"An interesting book to read, it works well as a collection of stories about unusual applications of economics to different areas of life. The authors explore some interesting topics, and at times, the arguments are compelling. Other times, the auth...more
An interesting book to read, it works well as a collection of stories about unusual applications of economics to different areas of life. The authors explore some interesting topics, and at times, the arguments are compelling. Other times, the authors sound confident, but I wonder, "Are they really controlling for the variables?"...less
"
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
The Twilight of Atheism: The Rise and Fall of Disbelief in the Modern World (Paperback)
by Alister McGrath
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
Matthew said:
"With numerous books which explore religion from a sociological standpoint, trying to explain believer's faith through economic, social, or other causes, it is good to see atheism receiving a similar treatment. Alister McGrath, a former atheist turne...more
With numerous books which explore religion from a sociological standpoint, trying to explain believer's faith through economic, social, or other causes, it is good to see atheism receiving a similar treatment. Alister McGrath, a former atheist turned Christian theologian, explores the history of atheism, building a case for its rising popularity and success in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as well as its subsequent(?) decline. He credits three individuals: Feurerbach, Marx, and Freud for the intellectual background and then shows how religion (specifically Christianity) failed at particular points to fully satisfy people's needs, such as in science or the imagination, leaving an opportunity for atheism to take the cultural mantle.
The book reads like a popular intellectual history, and some of its main points are interesting. Given the style of the main argument, however, there are some obvious unanswered questions. What about the rise of atheism in non-Christian countries (for example, communist China)? Where their religions also failing them? McGrath proposed that the rise of atheism was a worldwide phenomenon, then keeps his analysis focused on Western Europe and the US. There are some times, also, when the consistency of the argument seems to suffer, for example, in the 1960s, was the "death of God" movement a serious perception or wasn't it? He seems to say both.
All in all, it gives some useful data countering popular notions that belief in God is dwindling. As a rough overview, it works well, but this is a topic on which much more could be said. And more recent bestsellers are opening the question if atheism is really declining at all....less
"
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine, Volume 1: The Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (100-600) (The Christian Tradition: ... of the Development of Christian Doctrine)
by Jaroslav Pelikan
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
Matthew said:
"This is the first in a five book series by Jaroslav Pelikan, who, before his recent death, might have known more about church history than anyone other English speaker. I gave it five starts...more
This is the first in a five book series by Jaroslav Pelikan, who, before his recent death, might have known more about church history than anyone other English speaker. I gave it five starts because this series is, more or less, a perfect example of historical scholarship: insightful, easy to read, good for reference.
In this volume, Pelikan traces Christian doctrine from its origins to the end of the six century, after the creeds had been written, several councils had been formed, and the standards of orthodoxy for future Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox Christians had been written. Pelikan shows how all of these doctrines came about, and also sets the stage for the impending Catholic / Orthodox split....less
"
|
|
May 02
|
|
Matthew
gave
to:
The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order (Paperback)
by Samuel P. Huntington
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
read in April, 2007
Matthew said:
"An important and influential political science book, written before 9/11, The Clash of Civilizations has proven both prophetic in its predictions (considering the future conflict with Islam nations as well as the current strife with Russia) as well a...more
An important and influential political science book, written before 9/11, The Clash of Civilizations has proven both prophetic in its predictions (considering the future conflict with Islam nations as well as the current strife with Russia) as well as controversial, both in its statements regarding Islam and its possible influence upon foreign policy decisions during the Bush administration.
Most of the criticisms, I think, miss the point that Huntington is describing the world which he saw emerging, and how to avoid a major conflict, not trying to do any saber-rattling, and picture that he draws seems largely accurate. As he says, after the Cold War, it is difficult to break the world apart in to three groups anymore, and his pairings based on cultural and historical civilizations are as helpful in understanding the current political makeup as anything else I have encountered....less
"
|
