BernardN_KCMO's Completed Shelf
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L'avventuraL'avventura, DVD
DVD - 2014 | Two-DVD special edition. | ItalianDVD, 2014. Two-DVD special edition.. Language: Italian
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Apr 02, 2020
Tokyo storyTokyo story, DVD
DVD - 2013 | Two-DVD special edition. Second printing 2016 | JapaneseDVD, 2013. Two-DVD special edition. Second printing 2016. Language: Japanese
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Apr 02, 2020
Added Apr 02, 2020
Comment:
One reason to read poetry (and to read it aloud) is to listen to its music. Alexander Pope played the same tune over and over again, using the heroic couplet (iambic pentameter in aa bb cc rhyming scheme) exclusively in his verse.
That said, Pope was a master at the form. He may have had a limited range, but he could play that range exceptionally well. He was also a master at the pithy epigram -- where the couplet works very well. When you read Pope, you'll notice a lot of epigrams which have become cliches in our time, but which must have come across as remarkably forceful in their day. This collection contains his "Rape of the Lock," a poem which adopts a mock epic tone (Pope was a notable satirist, and often has a comic tone) about a stolen "lock" of hair, and his "Essay on Man," a didactic poem composed in four epistles, in which he argues that the "proper study of mankind is Man."
If you read Pope, be sure to read him aloud.One reason to read poetry (and to read it aloud) is to listen to its music. Alexander Pope played the same tune over and over again, using the heroic couplet (iambic pentameter in aa bb cc rhyming scheme) exclusively in his verse.
That said, Pope…
A Vindication of the Rights of WomanA Vindication of the Rights of Woman, BookAn Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Criticism
by Wollstonecraft, MaryBook - 1975 | 1st ed.Book, 1975. 1st ed.
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Apr 02, 2020
Comment:
This work, by Mary Wollstonecraft, is a milestone in the discussion and advancement of women's rights. Consider that it was written just after the American Revolution (George Washington was just about to begin his second term when it was published). Wollstonecraft argues for joint education of men and women and equal treatment of them.
She builds her case, rather like a lawyer might build a case in the court. Her chief points are that we must assume that all humans are capable of reason, or else God himself is unreasonable and cruel. If so, then equal educational opportunities are needed. As women oversaw the education of the very young, and, in some cases, must undertake the running of the family in the case of the death of a father, it is important that women not be ignorant. In addition, ignorant women, who don't have access and respect, are more likely to use subterfuge and deceit to get some power, thereby corrupting the world and male/female relations.
Wollstonecraft, though she is quite forward in some ways, is still a creature of her time. She expects that men will be the breadwinner, working in the world, while women remain at home taking care to run the home well and raise the children well. Her image of the good or correct life is also based on Wollstonecraft's situation as a woman of the upper middle class, which means she is not addressing the conditions of the poor and the working class.This work, by Mary Wollstonecraft, is a milestone in the discussion and advancement of women's rights. Consider that it was written just after the American Revolution (George Washington was just about to begin his second term when it was…
Ike and McCarthyIke and McCarthy, BookDwight Eisenhower's Secret Campaign Against Joseph McCarthy
by Nichols, David A.Book - 2017 | First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.Book, 2017. First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Mar 29, 2019
Comment:
Part of my April routine is to watch Emile de Antonio's "Point of Order" about the Army-McCarthy hearings, televised hearings in 1954 in which Sen. Joseph McCarthy took on the US Army and some of his Senate colleagues and lost. I'm glad that I came across this book, which gives more of the background of Pres. Eisenhower's part in helping to bring McCarthy down. In the film, there is a moment where McCarthy is arguing with Sen. Stuart Symington of Missouri (D) about the part that the Democrats had in some meeting that took place at the White House with the Republican Attorney General. That always seemed strange to me, and I thought that McCarthy, who had a tendency to be somewhat intoxicated at the Senate (especially after lunch) was just swinging wildly against the Democrats on the committee. But this book indicates that there were such meetings that happened at the White House, and McCarthy was right to be concerned and even afraid.
The book is well researched and well written.Part of my April routine is to watch Emile de Antonio's "Point of Order" about the Army-McCarthy hearings, televised hearings in 1954 in which Sen. Joseph McCarthy took on the US Army and some of his Senate colleagues and lost. I'm glad that I came…
Born A CrimeBorn A Crime, Audiobook CD
by Noah, TrevorAudiobook CD - 2016 | Unabridged.Audiobook CD, 2016. Unabridged.
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Feb 08, 2019
Comment:
Trevor Noah's recollections of his South African childhood and early manhood tell us a lot about the nature of apartheid. It is worth noting that Trevor, like his mom, though recognizing injustice and the silly inconsistencies of the system of apartheid, does not allow it to keep him down. Mr. Noah, current host of "The Daily Show" and a stand-up comic, tells his stories with a great deal of humor. This is one book, I would argue, best encountered in audio form. Mr. Noah does his own narration, and he brings his sense of timing and of speaking as different characters to the task with great effect.Trevor Noah's recollections of his South African childhood and early manhood tell us a lot about the nature of apartheid. It is worth noting that Trevor, like his mom, though recognizing injustice and the silly inconsistencies of the system of…
The Golden NotebookThe Golden Notebook, Book
by Lessing, DorisBook - 1999 | 1st Perennial Classics ed.Book, 1999. 1st Perennial Classics ed.
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Feb 06, 2019
Comment:
This was the first book of 2019 for the Great Books KC group that meets at the Plaza Library on the last Friday of the month. I found that I liked the book quite a bit more than I expected. It is challenging almost in the way of James Joyce, but here we get a woman's perspective unfiltered by the male mind (and so unlike Molly Bloom's monolog at the end of "Ulysses"). Of course, the author and the main character both come from privileged background, and who flirted with leftist politics, but without a clear drive (they weren't as committed as true believers). As the main focus of the novel, Anna, is herself going through something close to a breakdown, her perceptions and thoughts are often confused and jumbled as she tries to make sense of the world.
It is a difficult work, but one worth reading.This was the first book of 2019 for the Great Books KC group that meets at the Plaza Library on the last Friday of the month. I found that I liked the book quite a bit more than I expected. It is challenging almost in the way of James Joyce, but…
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Sep 19, 2018
Comment:
Faulkner remains my favorite American author, though there is a great gulf between him and me on many fronts. I'm a city feller from the North, whereas Faulkner's roots are in small-town Mississippi, even though the author spent several years in Hollywood as a script writer. And generally, I think I'm pretty optimistic, where Faulkner often seems rather dour. That said, I can think of few authors who can create a spell with their words like Faulkner. James Joyce comes to mind, and Shakespeare. Of course, Faulkner's spin on the English language has a Southern accent. Often Faulkner's narrative style makes you feel that you're sitting on someone's porch or veranda listening to some teller spin a yarn. The teller doesn't always get right to the point. Sometimes the teller dances around the point for a while before getting to it. Sometimes the teller is not entirely sure what the point is, so we only get hints dangled before us as we try to figure out what happened, and what it meant. The tale of this novel is light and fun, and is a good introduction to Faulkner, but for old-time Faulkner readers, there are plenty of references to the familiar names of Yoknapatawpha County that you'll get a nice feeling of deja vu.Faulkner remains my favorite American author, though there is a great gulf between him and me on many fronts. I'm a city feller from the North, whereas Faulkner's roots are in small-town Mississippi, even though the author spent several years in…
Added Sep 12, 2018
Comment:
This is actually a comment on Knut Hamsun's most famous work, and the work that largely earned him the Nobel Prize he won -- "The Growth of the Soil." My own impression of the work was that it was a lot like American Western novels -- the hard-working individual who clears land to make his world out of the wilderness. The Norwegian sensibility is not quite that of the American West (though there was a Norwegian presence in the upper Middle West), and the Stoic fortitude of Hamsun's characters is something to encounter.This is actually a comment on Knut Hamsun's most famous work, and the work that largely earned him the Nobel Prize he won -- "The Growth of the Soil." My own impression of the work was that it was a lot like American Western novels -- the…
Rock With WingsRock With Wings, Book
by Hillerman, AnneBook - 2015 | First Edition.Book, 2015. First Edition.
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Sep 12, 2018
Comment:
I read about half of the Tony Hillerman Navaho mysteries, and so I thought I'd check out what his daughter is doing with the characters. It felt like meeting old friends again, older and in somewhat changed circumstances -- the last time I saw Chee, he was beginning his relationship with Bernadette Manuelito, and Leaphorn was still in great health.
One reason to spend some time with Hillerman's cast of Navaho police is to simply spend time with them. Early on in the series, when Leaphorn was Tony Hillerman's only featured character was Joe Leaphorn, and Jim Chee is not even on the scene, we get a feeling that things are not rushed among the Navaho. This runs counter to the Western way of getting things done fast. But there is value in just taking time, for patience leads to insights that speed blurs or misses altogether. So, if you were wondering how Tony Hillerman's daughter is doing in carrying on the family tradition -- just sit a spell and find out yourself by reading one of Anne Hillerman's Chee, Manuelito and Leaphorn mysteries.I read about half of the Tony Hillerman Navaho mysteries, and so I thought I'd check out what his daughter is doing with the characters. It felt like meeting old friends again, older and in somewhat changed circumstances -- the last time I saw…
A House DividedA House Divided, Downloadable Audiobook
by Buck, Pearl S.Downloadable Audiobook - 2010 | Unabridged.Downloadable Audiobook, 2010. Unabridged.
Available
BernardN_KCMO's rating:
Added Sep 05, 2018
Comment:
Buck does a great job of exploring the complexity of Chinese life in the early 20th c., with its exposure to Western culture and values, but this is largely a book about the dynamics of this one family. The greater political dynamics at work in the background may be consequential, but they remain rather hazy. It seems unlikely that, in 1935, Buck had a clear sense of the rising Japanese threat to China, or the rise of the Chinese Communist Party. And the political reality we know the hero, Wang Yuan, would have had to live through is still a distant possibility, beyond the horizon.
This is a fitting end to the saga of the Wang family that began in "The Good Earth" and continued in "Sons."Buck does a great job of exploring the complexity of Chinese life in the early 20th c., with its exposure to Western culture and values, but this is largely a book about the dynamics of this one family. The greater political dynamics at work in the…
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