My Copy: 9780785808725 (image from abebooks.uk.com, different design from what's available today) I've had this book on my shelf for roughly fifteen years, and hadn't so much as cracked it open til this week. I suppose there was a reason for that. I had to struggle to hit the 100 page benchmark before giving up. … Continue reading Essential Tibetan Buddhism, by Robert A.F. Thurman
My Copy: 9781935429067 (image from bn.com) Oh how the heavens shake...or certainly the Earth is around Tokyo now. Akira is alive, awake, and in charge of the Great Tokyo Empire (whatever that is). At least, that's what his supporters and worshipers believe. Tetsuo is his loyal right-hand, determined to understand Akira more...even if it means … Continue reading Akira (volume 4), by Katsuhiro Otomo
My Copy: 9781593082567 (image by bookdepository.com) I admit, this is one of the more approachable religious/philosophical texts that I've tried to read. I think part of that is the intro and the translation. That said, much of it is not that hard to grasp, and some other parts are like "whaaa?" Tao Te Ching has … Continue reading Tao Te Ching, by Lao Tzu
I first saw The Great Dictator when I was writing a grad school research paper. I'd read contemporary articles about the film and its reception, and always saw it on "top comedies" lists, but never watched it til I finally bought the Criterion Collection version. I'm one of those people who love to watch the … Continue reading #056–Can You Think of a Better Way to End the Film, “The Great Dictator?”
This is beyond New Year's Resolutions (which are already on shaky ground). This is about an over-arching goal I need to work on, to keep it simmering in the background as I try various other things. I discovered this goal probably a week after writing those initial resolutions. In 2018, my goal is to do … Continue reading 2018: This sleeper must awaken…
My Copy: 9781593082192 (image from amazon.com) Well, after The Inferno, I was curious how the rest of Dante the Pilgrim's journey was to play out. Maybe it's because The Inferno is so well known in comparison, but I was a bit disappointed with this one. The Purgatorio is the continuation of Dante and his guide, … Continue reading The Purgatorio (The Divine Comedy #2), by Dante Alighieri, trans. by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
My Copy: 9781435108424 (image from bn.com) A Treatise on Tolerance is a conglomeration of letters and pamphlets Voltaire wrote after the brutal public execution of Jean Calas, a Protestant accused of murdering his son because he supposedly decided to become a Catholic (though later information and what was given at Calas' trial makes this reasoning … Continue reading A Treatise on Tolerance and Other Writings, by Voltaire
My Copy: 9780809023097 (image from amazon.com) Previously titled The Accident, Day is the last book of the Night trilogy and the second fiction book of the series. I found this one a tough read, with questions that kept me going long after I closed the book. Day is about an anonymous narrator who is with … Continue reading Day (The Night Trilogy, #3), by Elie Wiesel
My Copy: 9781566195546 (image scanned by me) The Brothers Karamazov is Dostoevsky's last work, and tells the story of four brothers (3 legitimate, 1 not) who have been raised apart most of their lives and come together back at home with their disgraceful father. At some point, the father is murdered, and one of these … Continue reading The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky
My Copy: 9780062502155 I've tried reading "The Analects," without a shred of success a couple of different ways. Then again, they weren't compiled by Thomas Cleary, who I've read before and is probably the best translator of religious/philosophical texts I've found so far. The Essential Confucius is a bit strange to look through at first, … Continue reading The Essential Confucius: The Heart of Confucius’ Teachings in Authentic I Ching Order, by Thomas Cleary
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