Fields Books

And Then, a novel by Natsume Soseki, opens with an image of extreme isolation: Daisuke, the protagonist, has woken up, and stares blankly at the ceiling with his hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat. He belongs to a wealthy family, has a cultivated aesthetic taste, is well-read, knows multiple languages, and has graduated from a prestigious university, at a time in Japan's history when universities were so new that the government had to hire Western expatriates to teach in them. It seems that Daisuke could get anything he wanted from life. Surely he was ambitious in his university days; it's difficult to imagine how a talented, educated, proud young man couldn't see himself as headed for greatness. But, by the time the book begins, Daisuke lives in seclusion, without an occupation, continuing to depend upon his rich father. He is about thirty years old.

The novel poses the following question: How could a man who showed all the promise in the world ultimately come to naught?

In his university days, Daisuke had two friends, who also had great plans for the future. But, when the thirty-year-old Daisuke meets them again, he learns that their hopes fell short of their mark. One of them, Hiraoka, sought to forge a brilliant career in Japan's civil service system, but fell into conflict with his superiors, mismanaged the money entrusted to him, and was fired. Daisuke's other friend, Terao, intended to become a world-renowned novelist, but failed to find a sponsor, and found himself having to scrounge, day by day, for one-time deals writing articles for cheap rags, or translating documents from English, in order to survive. Both men are now consumed with the fear of dying in poverty.

Daisuke has a strong sense of dignity, emerging from his refined aesthetic sensibilities. To him, such fear is degrading; his idleness becomes the only way to preserve his clarity of thought. Consequently, his reluctance to enter the "world of men" is confirmed in his mind, widening the gulf between him and his former friends, who view him as lazy and sheltered. When Daisuke writes to an acquaintance about a certain book he had sent, the acquaintance politely thanks him for the gift, but says, with regret, that he no longer has time to read. Soseki writes, "As he put the letter back in the envelope, Daisuke felt keenly the fact that this old friend, with whom he once shared the same inclinations, was now playing a different tune, governed by thoughts and actions that were nearly the precise opposite of those of the past."

Daisuke is adrift without ties to history. Unlike his father, he has no attachment whatsoever to traditional Japanese society; his education has given him the knowledge that the world is too vast to be confined to the boundaries delineated by tradition. Furthermore, Daisuke cannot help but notice that his father is motivated by selfish, ulterior motives as much as by any sense of obligation to tradition. Unlike his friends, however, Daisuke also cannot form a connection to modern society, which views education as a means to advancement in a bureaucratic order. He has no roots anywhere; one might say that he remains standing still at a crossroads after all other passersby have left. When Daisuke considers the occupations that he might be qualified for, were he to look for a job, he concludes that he would be incapable of doing anything other than begging on the street.

Daisuke's peace of mind is dependent on such artificial circumstances that it essentially rests on the head of a pin, where the slightest vibration will send it tumbling down. The more intent he becomes on continuing to be a detached observer, the more difficult it is for him to do so. His family has long given up hope that he will do anything with himself, and is willing to support him for the rest of his life, but demands in return that he get married, and threatens to disown him if he doesn't comply. Daisuke prefers to deliberately take a self-destructive path by categorically rejecting his family's demands and falling in love with Hiraoka's wife Michiyo.

Of all Japanese writers, Soseki, the father of contemporary Japanese literature, is the most inscrutable. His works cannot be called "beautiful" in the same way Kawabata's works can; "precise" is a more appropriate adjective. Kawabata's books overflow with beautiful, painfully fragile imagery of nature, glass, fabric, arranging these things in a way that creates a mood of deep melancholy. Soseki, however, is concerned above all with his characters' thoughts, which he faithfully records with painstaking levels of detail. They are not told in interior monologue, or any other such device, but rather conveyed straightforwardly in the third person. The book is absorbed in Daisuke's situation, yet simultaneously detached from it. One may find this style of writing to be pedantic, even artificial, but it enables Soseki to describe emotional truths that are complicated to the point of abstraction.

Soseki's writing is not without flourishes. Until the very end, Daisuke regards his circumstances with a charmingly carefree air, and is witty in conversations with his family, which makes him quite likable. Soseki also uses colours to symbolize his themes. There is a recurring image of white lilies, perhaps representing an ideal of frail beauty that, as it turns out, is impossible to attain, and the novel's ending is painted in bright, fiery red, carrying an air of beautiful, tragic finality, conveyed in sharp, concise language.

And Then is the greatest work by Japan's greatest novelist. Like all of Soseki's works, it moves very slowly. There is no real action in it, and yet, when it ends, one feels that a great upheaval has occurred. This is not a book to read when one is living a peaceful, wholesome life; however, in times of personal crisis, when one is driven to sleepless self-analysis, there is no book more relevant than this one.

Let me start off by saying that I cannot do this novel sufficient justice. The words I have put down are those of a fan. Soseki is regarded most highly by literary critics, in as many ciruits as they run, and to this I can only toss in my own small verbal confetti. For more adroid renderings, please see Donald Keane, Edward Seidenstiker, and Norma Moore Field.

Of all modern Japanese writers, Soseki is one of my three most favorites. Of his books, I have read Kokoro, The Three Cornered World, Grass by the Wayside, Light and Darkness, and, And Then. Of these, And Then, is by far my most favorite. I probably love it for different reasons than most.

Whenever I begin re-reading it (I have read it four times now), it is initially for the feeling of being transported into Daisuke's beautiful, if fragile world, where he set against a cast of lovable if predictable characters. His lazy houseboy, Kodono ("is that right, Sensei?"), his niece, Niu ("I'm warning you, you'd better watch out") who changes her hair ribbon several times daily, his sister in law with her love of Western music and concern for Deisuke's future and keeping the peace with Father, and so on. But as the novel evolves, the imagery takes on stronger substance, while retaining the light touch of a master. Of the lighter: the time when Daisuke and Kadono strip down to their waists and toss water around in the garden; when Daisuke fills a bowl with water and floats white lillies to offset a pounding headache, how he sets off to take a trip (in an attempt to avoid facing the pressure from his family to choose a bride) and never quite goes anywhere, and his foolish mishandling of his personal affairs.

Daisuke sees no point in trying to overcome his enui and take a stand of any kind, nor to try and resolve a series of issues that offer no simple resolution. Daisuke is a man with his feet planted in neither the past nor the future, and as the story comes to crisis, he loses his already delicate equilibrium, and plunges into a near mad state, where, since he cannot conceive of hurting anyone else, he runs headlong into trouble.

It is unfortunate that my copy gives no credit to the translator, for the prose is of exceedingly high calibre.

I highly recommend this book.

"And Then" ("Sore Kara") is a perfectly beautiful novel. Soseki always writes with an elegant clarity, tackling complex emotions and situations that creep up just like life. Nothing seems forced or unreal.

The plot reminds me of a quote I heard once. "I was a soldier so that my children could be merchants, and their children could be artists." The main character, Daisuke, is a dilettante, an appreciator of life's fineries who has never turned his hand towards anything seriously in his life. His father was a famous soldier during the Russo-Sino war, and his older brother is successful in business, and neither of them can understand this luxury object of a younger sibling that they both maintain financially. Seeking to find some value in him, his family attempts to pressure him into an advantageous marriage, which Daisuke's refinements does not permit. Love, however, will destroy everything.

The story floats along at Daisuke's pace, with nothing hurried or in crisis. Inside of this veneer are heavy issues of family obligation, the distaste of working for food as opposed to working for pure artistry, and most of all the undeniability of love, something that none of us can choose for ourselves.

Like all of Soseki's novels, "And Then" lingers long after the last page is turned, forcing us to evaluate our own lives and wonder what we would do in similar circumstances. How much of our own dreams have been sacrificed for necessities, and what does it mean to be human besides eating, sleeping and making more humans?

Having the good fortune to be able to collect Anne's paintings, this book
does indeed capture her magnificent talent. I have been purchasing her work for many years now, and also have had the wonderful opportunity to meet Anne
and discuss her philosophy regarding her paintings. She is indeed a colorful personality - no pun intended - and look forward to her new book
which is due out September 2008. I encourage all patrons of naturalistic
art to delve into this volume for a sumptuous treat.

Kurt Meister
New York, NY
August 2008

I first discovered this artist when I ran into her work in St. Augustine Florida. One of her paintings was displayed in a gallery storefront and I stopped dead in my tracks. As an avid gallery and museum goer, it takes a great deal to knock my socks off...and this artist did. It was the first time (and only time) I have ever looked at a piece of work and had tears well up. Anne Packard has managed to do what every artist aspires to, she has burned her soul into her work. Her energy, deepness, and love leap out of her seascapes. Naturally I had to learn more about her and since I could not afford her work, I bought her book and was not disappointed! This volume is a large, lovely addition to any collection and a proud display. At the time I thought the book was also pricey, but once recieved, it's worth every penny. All of her paintings are well presented and large enough to be truly appreciated. Her quotes are beautiful and inspiring...very thoughtfully put together and highly recommended.

How wonderful to have all these beautiful images in one beautiful book.
Her paintings are masterful and mesmorising. I especially enjoy the insightful comments that the artist shares about her process and philosophies about her work.
This is a treasure! I would heartily reccomend it to everyone!

This is an amusing, entertaining and surprisingly intelligent introduction to archaeology. It covers not only the basics of how to do archaeology (digging, mapping, etc.) but also where archaeology fits in society and where it is going intellectually. This is not only a perfect beginner's text but a valuable guide to anyone interested in what we can learn from the past.

"Archaeology - The Comic " is an introductory book for archaeology students or for introducing archaeology to any beginner - but - and here's what's different - it is in COMIC form.
The book covers a vast number of topics including how to survey, excavate, analyze, interpret, and preserve archaeological sites and their material remains. The main character learns about site protection laws, consultation, museum exhibition and a variety of other public archaeology topics. She visits experts who explain the complexities of carbon dating, ground-penetrating radar, flotation, and thermoluminescence, among other analytical methods. And she develops an understanding of how all these tools allow archaeologists to make confident interpretations of the past.
There is a complete glossary and bibliography too, which makes this book a great reference book.
Anyone seriously interested in Archaeology, young or old, will enjoy this book, and learn a lot from it.

A very original approach to introducing the science of archaeology is taken by Johannes H. N. Loubser in Archaeology: The Comic. A professional archaeologist working for New South Associates (a contract firm in Georgia), Loubser is an expert on rock art, having done extensive field research in North America, South Africa, and Australia. Loubser draws upon his considerable expertise to provide readers with a graphic novel approach to explaining archaeology in terms of what it is and how it's done. Readers will follow young Squizee after some antiquarian pots are discovered on her family farm. Squizee learns from professional archaeologists how to survey, excavate, analyze, interpret, and preserve archaeological sites and their material remains. Also covered are the site protection laws, consultations with native peoples, museum exhibitions, radiocarbon dating, ground-penetrating radar, plant flotation, thermoluminescence, and more. Ideal for school classroom curriculums, Archaeology: The Comic would also serve as an ideal template for presenting other science disciplines!

This is an incredible adventure story written in in a very descriptive manner. It's unbelievable what we can endure if we put our minds to it. This is a MUST READ!

I highly recommend this book for those who love true adventure stories. This is a rare and unique one. While I would not rate this book a 5-star simply on the basis of the writing, as sometimes I find descriptive language to linger too long, I must give it an overall 5 stars due to its amazing content and intriguing story of a woman who dared to follow her dreams into one of the last wildernesses remaining on Earth. Jean Aspen went where few dare to go, and she did it as a college-aged young woman. The reader is amazed at the matter-of-factness of her descriptions of pushing off of the bank into the mighty Yukon River, alone with a boyfriend and a puppy in an unweildy overladen canoe. Have they packed all the necessities to live a year alone in the Alaskan bush? Will they really be able to find a site and build a cabin before winter? Will they survive despite Aspen's own admission that there odds at making it through the winter are perhaps 50/50? And obviously, though you know they make it somehow, you constantly want to know HOW? What was it like to live through a dark deathly-cold winter on the edge of the Arctic Circle, under the Brooks Range in a cabin built by two with no outside help? What does Alaska's bush really look like? What does it FEEL like to be out there alone? What are they going to eat? How will they stay warm? Don't read ahead! This is truly an adventure few have ever lived to tell about. Descriptions of the sights, sounds and emotions are beautiful.

I was at a friends house when I first picked up Arctic Daughter by Jean Aspen. I sat down and started to read the first few pages, two hours later it was time to go home and I was still reading this book. My friends were kind enough to let me borrow the book and I finished it the next day. I returned the book to my friends and went directly to the book store and ordered it. I was told it was out of print and I was very upset. I then spent about two weeks searching to find a copy of Arctic Daughter and I was lucky enough to find a new copy. I gave it to my wife and she also read it in one day. This book takes the reader to a place that many people will never see. The courage and spirit of true adventure in Jean Aspen prevails in this book and it is a shame it is out of print. I would encourage any person who has the dream of "chucking" it all away in order to live a life more simple to pick up a copy of this book. It is the real deal and puts the adventurers' life in a new perspective. A must read!

The book is a great for anyone in the exercise field. It is easy to read and straight forward. It covers every aspect of athletic training, rehab, and injury diagnosis.
A DEFINITE MUST HAVE!

I am the Head Athletic Trainer and Professor of Athletic Training Curriculum at a college in Oklahoma City. This is the best text I have ever read which caters to the education of Athletic Trainers. It is the text of choice for my Care and Prevention of Athletic Injuries class, as well as a source of reference for any challenge I face within the training room. This book is the "Trainer's Bible" bar none! I personally used the eighth edition when studing for the NATABOC exam and have used the ninth and tenth editions in my classes. I highly recommend this text for everyone in the sports medicine field. If you are a Student Atheltic Trainer and are debating whether or not to spent the Seventy-something dollars for this book. this book will make the difference between pass and fail!

This book is one of the most important books for an athletic trainer. It covers everything that is in each of the 5 different domains of an athletic trainer. Their sections on sports injuries, and treatments are invaluable to anyone who is preparing to sit for the NATA exam. It is fondly termed by those that I know as the "trainer's bible." And that is exactly what it is.

The order came very expediently and the book was just as described. Will definitely order again from this vendor.

I am a student Athletic trainer. As such I needed a book that clearly explained the material that I was covering in class and in labs. This book has a lot of very useful information, is easy to read, it is organized well, and I would strongly recommend it to anyone in the field of sports medicine/ athletic training.

This huge book, now in its 12th edition was begun in 1963. It is intended for the education of atheletic trainers. Its primary concern is in preventing and when necessary treating sports injuries.

This new 12th edition is a major upgrade to the book. It has been extensively reorganized into major sections that have related subject matter concentrated together. In addition, each chapter has been rewritten to reflect the latest techniques, equipment, procedures, and drugs that affect sports medicine.

The biggest changes are in chapters devoted to the musculoskeletal injuries. These chapters have beeg significantly expanded and are now as comprehensive as possible within the scope of practice in atheletic training.

Finally, each book comes with a license to use the extensive on line support for the book. This is broken into two areas. First is additional information related to each chapter including flash cards, self-quizzes, and other resources. Second is the eSims area which helps students prepare for the atheletic training certification exam.

This is the standard in the industry.

I purchased this book after many other arrowhead/artifact book purchases, this book gave to me, personally, more information, it was simple to read and understandable. I was able to identify alot of items I had found on my property here in the mountains. I know he is in CO. but there were a good lot of items I could identify from here in OR. by the illustration and writing identification. I would like to thank Mr. Yeager for writing an easy to follow book on artifacts and such...I would also LOVE to see his collection sometime. :0)

This guide contains information on what artifacts are made of, how they were made as well as the types of places to look for them. It also offers valuable moral advice on site preservation and the laws pertaining to artifact collection.

June 19,1992 was surface finding in a plowed field in Wilmore Ky., found to my surprise found a 10 pound mint, polished axe. Was very excited... I have found 2000 pieces over the past 10 years. Just found a top to a water jug. Would enjoy any correspondence from other collector's. have many different types found in only 5 fields. cannot identify all of them...One is a triple fulton turkey tail arrowhead, notched at bottom. I also have a piece of drift wood with a large spear inside wood with a celt, and other piece unidentified.

Set during the years of the Great Depression and World War II, Barefoot In The Stubble Fields by Mary Frailey Calland is the story of a young woman whose father is struggling desperately to eke a living, and who must send her to a wealthy city aunt after the death of her mother. A skillfully written "coming of age" novel, Maggie Fahey's journey to womanhood amid the trials and conflicts of people, nations, and families makes for a rewarding and entertaining reading.

"Barefoot in the Stubble Fields" is a Depression-era story unlike any other I've read. The story is told from the point of view of a young girl who went to live with an aunt & uncle when her mother died. It explores the life of a child who was the product of both farm community and a city; who experienced both poverty and wealth. It also portrays the very Mid-Western characteristic of being stoic and silent when confronted with adversity and the Irish characteristic of keeping family matters so private that even other family members are kept in the dark. The story continues through the protagonist's early adulthood-the World War II years. The rather stilted love scenes are very much a part of the reserved manners of the day-probably much more realistic than an imposition of current mores, as is usually the case. I found the book to be well-written and compelling.

This book provides a unique look at the Great Depression and WW2 through the eyes of Maggie. Maggie's family are Iowa farmers who have worked hard all their lives, but are struggling to survive. When Maggie is 6 her mother passes away and the father can't take care of all 6 children on his own so Maggie is sent to live with her wealthy Aunt and Uncle.

Maggie spends her life torn between her life with her aunt and uncle and her farm life. She sees the great depression from two angles, those who are struggling to eat, and those who have plenty. Through out the depression and war, Maggie goes through personal turmoil to find a place that feels like home.

I highly recommend this book.

This book is an example of the new attention ethnographers are paying to writing. Not only is it wonderfully written but it is an honest account of Zuni lives today. Tedlock went to the pueblo with her husband Dennis Tedlock (author of the "Popol Vuh" and the "Rabinal Achi") as a painter and after a number of visits and encouragement from Zuni women she decided to become an ethnographer. During her graduate education she also did work in Guatemala, see her classic book "Time and the Highland Maya." There is now a new book about to appear "The Woman in the Shaman's Body: Reclaiming the Feminine in Religion and Medicine." I've seen the advanced copy and it is fabulous! All these books are must reads for young documentary writers and spiritually alive women and men today!

This is a beautifully written, honest, book about a young woman ethnographer coming of age. She first went to Zuni Pueblo as a young woman painter with her anthropologist husband and fell in love with the people and place. As a result she went on to get graduate degrees in Ethnomusicology and Anthropology herself and began working with the Maya in Guatemala. Since then she has written a book on women shamans worldwide: The Woman in the Shaman's Body. These books are worth the time to read.

I really enjoyed reading Tedlock's work. The writing reverses the notion of "participant observation" to the "observation of participation." Instead of a removed, monological account, we are offered a polyphony of voices, including the authors. In fact, the ethnography reads much like a novel; however, these are real people with real stories to tell. The text offers a rich and evocative account of the Zuni people and their experiences in the borderzone between the past and present. Tedlock's work and writing strategies were central to the writing of my own ethnographic account of a Southeastern Native American Tribe in search of a visible past--the Pee Dee of South Carolina (Title: Native Americans in the Carolina Borderlands: A Critical Ethnography, Carolinas Press, 2000). Tedlock's ethnography is a must read for those on the verge of engaging ethnography, no matter the methodological bent, and students and academics interested in Native American Studies, Cultural Studies, Cultural Anthropology, and alternative ethnography.

When you are interested in World War 1, western front then this is the book for you. It gives great and interesting details about the war under ground. Not only easy to forget facts, but knowledge about how they did it. For example, how did they create the tunnels in quicksand like ground and in the blue clay.

For a variety of reasons, the tunnellers of WW I never got the recognition they deserved. Many of the techniques and tools were never given much publicity at the time, and the work lacked the heroic aspects of "going over the top" or fighting in the air. Beneath Flanders Fields is one of just a few books that address the war underground, and it does a superb job: there are firsthand descriptions, black-and-white photos from WW I, excellent line drawings (on a par with, say, Biesty), loads of maps and sketches, and to top all of that off, many color photos done long after WW I showing the remains of dugouts and other underground works. Looking at a black-and-white photo from 1917 may not be too bad, but looking at a color photo done much more recently of disused tunnels, with rotting supports, knee-deep water, badly rusted bunks, etc, is something else altogether. I would not have enjoyed venturing in to take those photos.

We all know about the gas masks that were needed by the troops in the trenches, but the illustrations of the special equipment that was needed underground after an explosion left dangerous gas will remind you of space suits or alien monsters from science-fiction movies. Counter-mining was ubiquitous, listening devices were sophisticated (an ant crawling would sound like an elephant herd). There were occasional battles underground when tunnels met: the book describes fighting in pitch blackness, and how the tunnelers would feel for the epaulettes that the Germans wore on their uniforms.

A fine book--and certainly not for the claustrophobic!

The authors are to be commended for producing such a fine book on a little known subject, the tunnel war beneath ground during World War One. Some very rare old photos, plenty of details on the equipment, some excellent line drawings and maps and a lot of information on the brave men that fought and died underground. Well worth obtaining a copy if you are a WWI buff. Highly recommended.