Mendalla
Wondercafe Reads!!
Posted on: 09/12/2012 12:49
No, we're not going to nominate books, argue about them, and vote them off the shelf. This is just a thread to talk about what we're currently reading and maybe talk a bit about books. IOW, use it as you wish as long as books and reading are involved.
My book du jour is Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore. If you’re not familiar with Moore, he tends to write darkly comic novels, often with rather irreverent humour, with a supernatural element. In this case, he’s writing a mystery about a nameless colorman (provider of pigments to painters) and his shapeshifting female companion who team up to drive painters to madness and worse with a seemingly supernatural shade of ultramarine blue (Moore has been quoted as saying he wanted to write a novel about the colour blue and mostly he has). It appears that the woman is, in fact, some kind of personification of the colour as her seductions do as much damage as the colour itself.
The painters in question are the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists of 19th century Paris, which means lots of cameos from well-known historical figures like Monet, Renoir, Seurat, and Van Gogh (whose death kicks the whole thing off). The focal characters, aside from Colorman as he's simply called, are fictitious baker turned painter Lucien Lessard and the very real, historical figure of Henri Toulouse-Lautrec. After Van Gogh’s death, these two start investigating and realize that the mysterious colorman that Van Gogh mentioned in a letter has affected their lives (possibly causing the death of Lucien’s father) and those of others in their circle. Along the way, flashbacks reveal that the mystery may go back as far as the Middle Ages when the colorman provided pigments to glassmakers working on Notre Dame and also fill in the story of Lessard and his relationships to the painters and the colorman.
About 60% done (according to my Kobo) and loving it. A neat element is that Moore includes images of paintings that are mentioned as well as period portraits from of the various painters (e.g. Monet painted by Renoir). As a follow-up, I’m thinking about looking around to see if there’s any good non-fiction about the Paris art scene of that period (1860s to 1900 or so) just to see how accurate the portrayals are. Moore does have an acknowledgements page so maybe he cites something that’ll do.
Mendalla
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Mendalla
Posted on: 03/27/2013 21:09
I've been tackling the Stephen Mitchell translation of the Tao Te Ching. Given how often the Tao is referenced in Kylie Chan's novels I thought it would be worth it. So far what I mainly have is a headache and the feeling I am going to be looking for some reference books that analyse the thing. In one of Chan's novels the Tao Te Ching is said to read 'like the clues to a particularly cryptic crossword puzzle' and I have come to the conclusion that I couldn't have put it better myself.
It is a rather cryptic beast but well worth the effort. It ranks with the Bible and the Bhagavad Gita in my personal scripture library. Being cryptic, of course, means there is lots of room for individual understanding and interpretation. Use references to learn the meanings of the imagery and about the original Chinese context but don't assume they are "right" when it comes to the meaning any more than any given Bible scholar is "right".
Mendalla
InannaWhimsey
Posted on: 03/27/2013 21:20
Have you had any synchronicity experiences whilst 'studying' it?
Rowan
Posted on: 04/01/2013 22:49
Re-reading Robert A Heinlein's Stranger In A Strange Land. Always good for both entertainment and the stimulation of deep thought. I seem to be doing a lot of re-reading of late. There are some books I just never get tired of, they always seem fresh even when I've read them often enough to be able to quote large portions of the text.
carolla
Posted on: 04/02/2013 18:36
Oh goodness - I feel like a real lightweight here! I'm presently reading a little book called "The Hundred Year Old Man Who Jumped Out a Window and Disappeared". It's quite simply written, with an entertaining cast of characters who adventure along in amusing and unexpected ways. I find myself giggling out loud at some times ... so that's good for late winter reading!
iwonder
Posted on: 04/03/2013 16:33
One of the books I am currently reading is The Universe Within - From Quantum to Cosmos by Neil Turok who is a leading physicist and Director of The Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics.
This book is based on his 5 Massey Lectures which were delivered on the IDEAS program of the CBC in 2012. In it he explores the current ideas in physics and astronomy in a language that is fairly accessible for scientifically literate lay perople.
He presents the seemingly bizarre ideas of quantum physics and some of the latest theories of astronomy and the "Big Bang" in a way which I found to be very exciting and stimulating.
He also says that we are on the verge of another major transformation in which the coming quantum revolution will make today's digital age seem primitive.
InannaWhimsey
Posted on: 04/04/2013 23:36
a great African indeed :3
i like how when i listen to his accent my mind is constantly switching around in categorizing his accent...
Arminius
Posted on: 04/05/2013 12:37
One of the books I am currently reading is The Universe Within - From Quantum to Cosmos by Neil Turok who is a leading physicist and Director of The Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics.
This book is based on his 5 Massey Lectures which were delivered on the IDEAS program of the CBC in 2012. In it he explores the current ideas in physics and astronomy in a language that is fairly accessible for scientifically literate lay perople.
He presents the seemingly bizarre ideas of quantum physics and some of the latest theories of astronomy and the "Big Bang" in a way which I found to be very exciting and stimulating.
He also says that we are on the verge of another major transformation in which the coming quantum revolution will make today's digital age seem primitive.
Hi iwonder:
If, as I speculate, the unfolding physical universe radiates its actions into the wave universe, and the wave universe is omnipresent and ever-present and we will one day be able to access it, this could be the quantum revolution Neil Turok is talking about.
And, if the wave universe is regarded as the "spiritual universe," then this coming quantum revolution would be a spiritual revolution as well, radically spiritualising our species.
Heady thoughts, eh?