Henry Books

This wonderful book allows the reader to experience a place and a people now gone. The "stars" of Ballymenone come alive again in story, song and the descriptions of their lives by Henry Glassie. Unlike most academic books, this one is written by a poet...lyrical, powerful and evocative prose by a writer with suberb descriptive powers and spiritual impact. My husband and I recently visited Ballymenone and spent the day searching for what we had read about...but the people described are mostly gone, the landscape altered, the old replaced by new. For anyone who loves Ireland and wants to understand its ways and its culture this book is a must.

I read this excellent book over a year ago and am amazed at how often my thoughts return to visit. I find that many of the folkways described by this extraordianary observer are part of my own everyday life as American Scotch Irish over two centuries removed from roots in Ulster, Ireland. The descriptions of the kitchen hospitality, even the arrangement of the kitchen furniture are very familiar to me. The gifts of storytelling and musicmaking so vividly described are as frequently celebrated in my current mileau. Thanks for an excellent piece of research and writing.

This wonderful book allows the reader to experience a place and a people now gone. The "stars" of Ballymenone come alive again in story, song and the descriptions of their lives by Henry Glassie. Unlike most academic books, this one is written by a poet...lyrical, powerful and evocative prose by a writer with suberb descriptive powers and spiritual impact. My husband and I recently visited Ballymenone and spent the day searching for what we had read about...but the people described are mostly gone, the landscape altered, the old replaced by new. For anyone who loves Ireland and wants to understand its ways and its culture this book is a must.

For years anthropologists and folklorists have often "looked down" on the subjects of their studies, attempting to fit their subjects into preconceived boxes and categories. Unfortunately some anthropologists and sociologists continue to regard their "subjects" with condescension or even amusement. Henry Glassie's work is a much needed antidote to such practices. _Passing the Time in Ballymenone_ is a jewel. Henry Glassie regards the people of Ballymenone with respect and affection, allowing them to describe their ideas, life-ways, and values on their own terms, not his. Recognizing that theirs is a mindset and lifestyle that must be seen as an integrated whole, Glassie studies everything about Ballymenone from traditional songs to entertainment to religious beliefs to architecture, liberally quoting from the people who welcomed him into their homes over his extended stays. Some of his insights are pure brilliance, such as recognizing the way the poets and storytellers of a rural Irish district have adapted ancient Gaelic metrics to the English they use today. You will learn more about Ireland and its people in this one book than in a host of others. You may also find yourself re-evaluating your own lifestyle after encountering the wisdom of these tradition bearers. The book also serves as an excellent model for those who plan to work and study in folklore or anthropology.

As a study of the folklife and history of a community in Ulster, this book is full, rich, fascinating, and moving. I've used it as a first reading for graduate classes in fieldwork because it merges useful ethnographic research techniques with insightful analysis and eloquent prose. Students find the book both practical and inspiring, and it is a tour de force of the best of folklore research. Glassie's insights are more than relevant today for thinking through contemporary concerns about a range of important social and political concerns including what it means to foster healthy community life and provide honor and respect to old masters and stars. It is also a wonderful read for anyone interested in storytelling and Irish history and culture.

So first I'd like to admit I spend alot of my spare time searching for the greatest children's books ever written and stumbling upon this has been a magical little treat. I frequent the library and Borders and Barnes and none of those places have I found "Perfect the Pig" this book is really something special. The illustrations are all in black and white throughout the book but are done by a masterful illustrator that was something about the book I hadn't known before purchasing but don't let that tidbit stop you its definitely enough to hold the attention of your toddler. "Perfect the pig" himself is charming, unique, loving and deserving of all the attention he desperately seeks. The story starts out with "perfect" on the farm with his other pig siblings and he's clearly the smallest of the bunch and is really different from birth I mean "he was so small his mother didn't even know he was there" I think that says it all! So you see charming "perfect" laying in the sun and day dreaming and of course never wants to roll in that dirty mud and his siblings often tease him and he really just doesn't fit in but one day something big happens to him, "perfect" being the sweet pig he is hears a sow stuck in the mud on its side and rushes to her to help so he wedges something and helps turn her and the sow is so grateful she says "I'm gonna grant you a wish" and so "perfect" asks for wings so he can fly and see the world from way up above and a few hours later viola "Perfects" got his wings and hes soaring to a big city nearby where he eventually becomes tired needs to rest and stumbles upon the fire escape of a tenderhearted woman named "Olive" and immediately the two are inseparable she likes to grow all kinds of delicious veggies in her apt and of course "Perfect" loves to eat them and shes an artist and she paints him and they take walks together in the city (of course with a litlte sweater she made for "Perfect" so people don't take notice to his unusual wings" and the two are so happy but "Perfects getting a little big for the apt and eventually misses flying. So one day Olive starts taking "Perfect" to the rooftop for flying but one day a when Olive isn't with him a storm rolls in and fog appears he loses his way and then becomes so tired from flying around trying to find home he stops to rest on a park bench where a shady mean looking man stumbles upon him and thinks hes found his fortune a winged pig and snatches up tired and tender "Perfect" just to make a buck. He chains "Perfect" up and hardly ever bathes him and makes him perform in the streets and never feeds him yummy vegetables only garbage and you watch as "Perfect" almost loses all hope of ever returning to his best friend Olive. But Olive never stops looking for her winged pig and one day sees signs advertising the "amazing flying oink" and becomes curious stops inside to glance and sees a sad slumped "Perfect" being yelled at and forced to fly around for a crowd, and luckily she swoops him up he flies into her arms, the mean man and Olive get in a disagreement about who's pig it is the crowd yells "Let a judge decide" and sure enough in the end the judge says "Let the pig decide" and of course "Perfect" returns to sweet Olive and they move to the country together and live happily ever after. I think to sum it up its a whimsical tale of friendship and love great for ages 3+ or whoever believes pigs CAN fly.

I loved this book from when I heard James Coco reading it on Reading Rainbow in 84 I think. I LOVED the book too-it really helped me to have a great interest in pigs. This is the story of a flying pig who is kicked out of barnyard for his newfound wings and ends up the muse of a kind artist who cares for him. When he misses flying the artist lets him do so,only for Perfect to end up with a sleazy man (who from the sound of things should be arrested for animal cruelty-he locks Perfect in a cage crying and literally feeds him trash) who exploits Perfect for profit. The artist finds out what's happened and a judge allows Perfect to decide who he wants to stay with. He chooses Olive,the artist and they pair move to a home in the country and live "happily ever after". This is a great book and with all the modern day adaptions of famous childrens books I think 'Perfect The Pig' would be a great story to adapt for the silver screen,especially with all the CGI characters you can make. This book made me think a lot more of pigs and,like many Reading Rainbow books truely enouraged me to think imaginately in all things and reach for my dreams.So even though it's almost twenty years along I want to say hats off to you Pefect!!

This is a wonderful book that was read over and over and (need I say) over again to my 3 year old daughter once upon a time. Our copy finally fell apart from all the "loving" it took. My daughter is now 20 years old and a sophomore in college and in an early childhood ed program. I am so excited to have found that I can still get this book to surprise her!

"Perfect the Pig," is a story about a pig who rises from a lowly birth and sees its dreams come true. The relationship between Perfect and his guardian Olive is lovely. Young children I know who have read this book have simply adored it, even the tenth or twelfth time.

I have been trying to figure out what the name of this book was for years. Little did I know, I could have saved a lot of time by doing a quick Google search.

This is a magical story that children, as well as their parents, will love. I remember watching the special on Reading Rainbow, and then running off to the library to check out the book.

I'd recommend this to any child, or child at heart.

Foodies and feminists alike should read this book. As part of the Modern Food Library reprints, chosen by Ruth Reichl (who is known for her good taste and her own laudable literary contributions - "Tender at the Bone" and "Comfort Me with Apples"), "Perfection Salad" describes all the elements present at the turn of the century that combined to forever change the way Americans view food. Food, its preparation and presentation became a female obsession in an time where the kitchen was really the only arena in which a woman could rule. The female nutritionists and cooks from that era seemed bent upon exerting control on SOMETHING, and that something turned out to be food - with sometimes terrible consequences. After reading "Perfection Salad", I understood the recipes that my grandmother (born in 1898) and my mother after her learned and served. Don't be frightened by the scholarly look of "Perfection Salad" - there are hilarious nuggets in the text - like color-themed menus (everything green and white, for example), putting everything into gelatin for the sake of "daintiness" (no messy lettuce leaves hanging out of your mouth) and covering absolutely anything and everything with "white sauce". For more laughs, peruse "The Gallery of Regrettable Food" by James Lileks in which he has gathered some of the most revolting-looking photos of the consequences of "Perfection Salad".

This is a "must read" for anyone who fancies themself a chef, professional or home-cook. The writing is fluid and interesting, laid out in a comprehensible and sensible manner, and quite the scholarly document. Even those not intersted in cooking, but enjoy great nostalgia and history will love this book. Highly recommended as a gift where appropriate interest exists.

the late 19th century movement for scientific household management is an almost unbelievable amalgam of middle-class protestant social standards and religious impulses, intellectural curiosity and discipline, political thought (compare it with leninism--everything the same for everyone all the time, and the middle class knows better than the proletariat), and naivete. while having less influence on its time than its proponents would acknowledge (even when reporting its failure), the movement led, through corporate exploitation and perversion, to many of the problems with eating, cooking, and "food production" in america today. it also led to many improvements we take completely for granted.

the author seems to be unaware that there was a comparable movement in britain. my british mother could remember horrific results from the school recipes she was forced to produce (one stew was so bad her friend's dogs refused it) and the british government published many educational pamphlets about "proper" methods of cooking, to the same indifference or resentment that met the domestic scientists' efforts.

i was a bit disappointed that the author did not pursue the links to the Transcendental Movement, though she did mention the connection with american protestentism. of course, the attitude of the 19th century cooks (and twentieth century nutritionists) has a long history: a Classical philospher (i'm too lazy to look up his name) wrote: "a man should eat to live, not live to eat" before the christian era. the author does discuss some of the social attitudes towards women and physical pleasure and how the ideal of a woman's being without appetite encouraged the domestic scientists to ignore the actual food in the cooking process.

while there is much to amuse in the domestic scientists' efforts and belief (and horrify--did anyone actually eat this way?), and while the author does acknowledge the dire state of production with reference to, for instance, the stock yards, i don't think she understands the appeal of predictable levening (how many of us want to make baking powder from wood ash?) preditable results (my british mother adored measuring cups and spoons--as a very short woman, she couldn't use the "two handsful of flour" recipes her family used and), and flour and sugar that are actually flour and sugar (the colonial housewife was warned by one contemporary author to make sure the sugar she bought in loaf form [and had to pulverize by hand] was not plaster of paris). the fact that 20th century corporations, especially after the second world war, {influended} their ideals into food which has caloric content without nutrition or taste should not detract from the real benefits the movement bestowed in its heyday.

this is an enjoyable popular history. i wish there had been more analysis of the movement's origins. the book's main strengths are its demonstration of how the movement's ideals were subsumed by industry and the analysis of the attitudes of the movement's founders.

the worst part is the description of the baked bean and celery "salad"--with dressing and whipped cream. that will live in my nightmares for years. and years.

This highly readable, beautifully researched book provides a fascinating look into American "cuisine" circa 1850-1920. The Boston Cooking School and other institutions promoted Americanization through cooking conducted on scientific principles, although immigrants proved reluctant to give up their "coarse and unsavory" meals for triumphs of digestibility such as the following, served to President Wilson on his first day in office: "cream of celery soup, fish with white sauce, roast capon with two white vegetables, a fruit salad,and a dessert made with gelatin, custard, and whipped cream"(212). Other triumphs included a salad made of bananas and pimentos bound together with mayonnaise and whipped cream and, later, grapefruit pieces mixed with dessert mints. Often funny and always interesting, this book
also helps readers to understand the convenience food mania of the 1950s.

I found Perfection Salad in a used bookstore in Manhattan ten or twelve years ago. I read it, was fascinated and stirred by its tale of the psychological manipulation of women - particularly, the women who were new immigrants to America at the turn of the century. I loaned the book to someone who never returned it, and have been quoting it -- and longing to re-read it -- ever since. I have just re-ordered the "back in print" edition...Here is what is important about this book: it details an overlooked, but critical, thread in the fabric of family and community life -- a thread that was quietly pulled until the greater tapestry unraveled.

One scholar once called Plotinus 'The most brilliant and original Philosopher after Plato.' While one could also perhaps give that same title to Aristotle or another Philosopher (i.e. Epicurus reached similar speculative heights but in materialism rather than the spiritual side of philosophy), it must be acknowledged that Plotinus is one of the world's most brilliant spiritual teachers, mystics and philosophers, all in one man.

Plotinus was taught by a fellow called Ammonius Saccas, the same man who taught the outstanding Christian Philosopher Origen. Plotinus found Saccas at the age of 26 (so his biographer Porphyry tells us) and proclaimed 'this is the man I have been looking for!' Plotinus is also said to have remarked about not wanting to have his portrait painted because he was in a material body, and telling his students 'to unite the divine in you with the Divine in the universe.'

By the accounts we have Plotinus was a very gentle, intelligent and humble man, probably from the Aristocratic class. While highly virtuous and shunning material wealth, he had many aristocratic friends and also looked after the raising of children and orphans.

Plotinus was a Platonist through and through, regarding all of Plato's works essentially as divinely inspired truth about both the visible and invisible realms of reality. However, Plotinus was also very much in his own right, an original speculative philosopher and mystic of immense creative power. Plotinus was also deeply rational, and was averse to any kind of fanatical adherence to religious beliefs or claims salvation was found by irrational means, such as by magic, divination or worshipping a saviour figure. Plotinus looked sympathetically upon such practices for those who needed the emotional in religion, but for Plotinus, the main goal was to find and unite with the Absolute in so far as it was possible in this mortal body.

Plotinus's cooly rational system is extremely abstract and difficult to fathom. A.H. Armstrong's translation is the best I've seen in English, but even so Plotinus does not write well stylistically and often repeats himself or goes on long digressions over the same point when he doesn't need to. But even so, Plotinus has immense and profound insight into both himself and the Absolute, rarely matched anywhere in the world's mystical or religious literature.

To summarise, the aim and goal of man on Earth is to unite with the highest reality which exists, which Plotinus calls 'The One.' The One is the source of all being, life, and existence, and the creator of the universe, however at the same time it is so transcendant we can't say what it is, only what it isn't. Plotinus identifies the One with the Good and the Beautiful as it occurs in Plato's works, and also says it is unlimited, infinite, and beyond being.

From the One comes the Soul, and from Soul comes Nous or Intellect. From this triad everything in existence rests, comes into being, and returns in a grand procession which never ends.

Despite the fact the One is essentially incomprehensible and ineffable and there is really no way we can rationally understand it as it is, Plotinus believed union with the Absolute was possible by looking within the Self. For Plotinus, this marvelous 'vision', which is the highest happiness to be held in this life, happened four times in his life and references to this estatic mystical experience occur throughout the Enneads. The ascent to the highest reality occurs by looking in oneself once the philosopher has 'purified' himself through the practice of virtue, or by contemplation of the Forms. All help in the ascent to the highest, the One itself.

Plotinus's brilliant mystical philosophy is not only a work of genius in itself, but also had an immense impact on Christianity, Judaism and Islam. St Augustine and many other Church fathers were very deeply influenced by his mysticism, and adopted many elements of Plotinus in their own theological and mystical systems. Plotinus also influenced Islam through the so called 'Book of Causes', attributed to Aristotle, but which in fact was a mixture of the Enneads and Proclus (another Neo-Platonist) in Arabic, especially in Sufi mystical thought.

Today in our age, when the spiritual seems to have less relevance because so much can be explained by material causes, laws and forces through the application of Science, Plotinus can at times seem to be an archaic remnant of an age where irrational belief in magic and the unseen held a superstitious hold over the mind of humans. But, if one tries to read Plotinus not as a master of science but of the spirit, then his striking genius radiates from every page.

Any seeker should try to read and understand Plotinus and listen to what this calm and sagely philosopher has to say.

This Loeb Classical Library edition of the works of Plotinus is in seven volumes. The titles are as follows:

Plotinus I: Porphyry on Plotinus, Ennead I (Loeb Classical Library, 440)

Plotinus II: Ennead II (Loeb Classical Library, 441)

Plotinus III: Ennead III (Loeb Classical Library, 442)

Plotinus IV: Ennead IV (Loeb Classical Library, 443)

Plotinus V: Ennead V (Loeb Classical Library, 444)

Plotinus VI: Ennead VI, Books 1-5 (Loeb Classical Library, 445)

Plotinus VII: Ennead VI, Books 6-9 (Loeb Classical Library, 468)

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Below is the combined table of contents for those volumes:

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR VOLUME I:

Preface (editors)

Sigla (editors)

On the Life of Plotinus and the Order of his Books (Porphyry)

Ennead I:

1. What is the Living Being, and What is Man? (53)

2. On Virtues (19)

3. On Dialectic (20)

4. On Well-being (46)

5. On Whether Well-being Increases with Time (36)

6. On Beauty (1)

7. On the Primal Good and the Other Goods (54)

8. On What Are and Whence Come Evils (51)

9. On Going Out of the Body (16)

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR VOLUME II:

Sigla (editors)

Ennead II:

1. On Heaven (40)

2. On the Movement of Heaven (14)

3. On Whether the Stars are Causes (52)

4. On Matter (12)

5. On What Exists Actually and What Potentially (25)

6. On Substance, or On Quality (17)

7. On Complete Transfusion (37)

8. On Sight, or How Distant Objects Appear Small (35)

9. Against the Gnostics (33)

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR VOLUME III:

Sigla (editors)

Ennead III:

1. On Destiny (3)

2. On Providence I (47)

3. On Providence II (48)

4. On Our Allotted Guardian Spirit (15)

5. On Love (50)

6. On the Impassibility of Things without Body (26)

7. On Eternity and Time (45)

8. On Nature and Contemplation and the One (30)

9. Various Considerations (13)

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR VOLUME IV:

Preface to the Loeb Plotinus IV-V (A. H. Armstrong)

Sigla (editors)

Ennead IV:

1. [2] On the Essence of the Soul I (4)

2. [1] On the Essence of the Soul II (21)

3. On Difficulties About of the Soul I (27)

4. On Difficulties About of the Soul I (28)

5. On Difficulties About of the Soul III, Or On Sight (29)

6. On Sense Perception and Memory (41)

7. On the Immortality of the Soul (2)

8. On the Descent of the Soul into Bodies (6)

9. If All Souls are One (8)

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR VOLUME V:

Preface to the Loeb Plotinus IV-V (A. H. Armstrong)

Sigla (editors)

Ennead V:

1. On the Three Primary Hypostases (10)

2. On the Origin and Order of the Beings Which Come After the First (11)

3. On the Knowing Hypostases and That Which is Beyond (49)

4. How That Which is After the First Comes From the First, And on the One (7)

5. That the Intelligibles are not Outside the Intellect, and on the Good (32)

6. On the Fact that that Which is Beyond Being does not Think, and on What is the Primary and What the Secondary Thinking Principle (24)

7. On the Question Whether there are Ideas of Particular Things (18)

8. On the Intelligible Beauty (31)

9. On Intellect, the Forms, and Being (5)

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR VOLUME VI:

Preface to the Loeb Plotinus VI, VII (A. H. Armstrong)

Sigla (editors)

Ennead VI (continued in volume VII):

1. On the Kinds of Being I (42)

2. On the Kinds of Being II (43)

3. On the Kinds of Being III (44)

4. On the Presence of Being, One and the Same, Everywhere as a Whole I (22)

5. On the Presence of Being, One and the Same, Everywhere as a Whole II (23)

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR VOLUME VII:

Preface to the Loeb Plotinus VI, VII (A. H. Armstrong)

Sigla (editors)

Ennead VI (continued from volume VI):

6. On Numbers (34)

7. How the Multitude of Forms Came into Being, and on the Good (38)

8. On Free Will and the Will of the One (39)

9. On the Good or the One (9)

The numbers in parentheses indicate Plotinus' order of composition, which differs from the order given them by Porphyry and which this edition follows.

The bracketed numbers for the first two chapters of Ennead IV are an alternate ordering for them.

As is typical for the Loeb classical library books, the volumes are physically small, and the original text (Greek, for Plotinus) is given on the left hand page, with the English translation on the right.

The Preface describes the historical context within which Plotinus wrote, offers a summary of this thought, and a survey of Plotinus translations, commentaries, and studies. This material is supplemented by short introductions and synopses at the start of each chapter, and by abundant and detailed footnotes. The footnotes explain translation difficulties (not uncommon with Plotinus), and also identify the sources of Plotinus' references to other writers. These materials are excellent.

The only thing that this edition lacks is an index. The editors plead the difficulty of indexing Plotinus, and recommend "Lexicon Plotinianum" by J. H. Sleeman and Gilbert Pollet as an alternative. This work is, however, out of print (is it even in English? I am not sure) so it is not a very helpful suggestion. As it is, given Plotinus' rather scattered way of writing, an index is missed.

The Enneads are a collection of Plotinus' writings from fairly late in his life. Porphyry, his student, encouraged him in writing down his teachings, and acted as his posthumous editor (he also wrote a short biography of Plotinus which is included in the first volume). The works as they exist today are as they were received from Porphyry. As editor, Porphyry created his own organization for the works based on subject matter. This order is completely different from the order in which Plotinus wrote them. Porphyry, however, did document the original ordering.

From my own experience, however, I would recommend strongly reading Plotinus' writings in the order Plotinus wrote them rather than the order in which Porphyry arranged them. The major advantage I found was that it was much easier to follow the reasons why Plotinus believed what he did, even if the subject matter does jump around a bit. I tried Porphyry's order first, and almost gave up in despair before trying again in Plotinus' order. I have come to the conclusion that much of Plotinus' reputation as a bad writer is due to unfortunate but well-intended editorial decisions by Porphyry. Given that the Loeb edition presents Plotinus' writings in Porphyry's order, and that the Loeb edition is in multiple volumes, reading Plotinus this way does have a certain entertaining quality as well (first get volume IV, read a treatise, then get volume VI, read another, then get volume I, read another, and so on).

An important recommendation I would make for the reader is that he be properly prepared in his background reading. All of Aristotle and all of Plato would be ideal (as well as a worthwhile activity in its own right), but if the would-be reader of Plotinus finds that a little daunting and wants to get started sooner, there are still a few works that he should make a particular effort to read: Plato's "Phaedo", "Republic" (Books VI, VII), "Parmenides", and "Timaeus"; Aristotle's "Physics", "On the Heavens", "On the Soul", and "Metaphysics". Plato, as the earlier writer, should be read first (by the way - don't be discouraged when you find you don't understand the second half of "Parmenides", Plotinus is going to tell you what he thinks it means in due course, so all you need to do is understand the references). If you don't have Plato or Aristotle, for Plato, Cooper's "Plato: Complete Works" (in one volume), and for Aristotle, Barnes' "Complete Works of Aristotle" (in two volumes), are excellent.

Plotinus' logic is second to none. I personally found more from reading Plotinus than from 6 years in college. the Emanationism as illuminated by Plotinus is the only philosophically logical description of the cosmos, opposite to both creationism and Nihilism/athiesm, as well as opposed to Pantheism and Gnosticism, the philosophy of Plotinus is pithy, intense and has NO EQUAL in intelligence and breadth, period.

Having myself many 1000s of books on philosophy and as an translator of ancient pali philosophical texts, I must say i find that most of which I have read in life to be utter trash, or worthless at best, save for Plotinus.

I personally find the Enneads of Plotinus to be my "Bible", his concise and laser-like accuracy to logic and emphasis of "Union with the One" to be the Paramount of metaphysical writtings.

Its unfortunate that so many Christians seek 'God-talk' in the works of Plotinus, when in fact there are none, for Plotinus, an Emanationist who speaks of the insentient Absolute, the Divine, is utterly opposed to a sentient self-aware Creationistic GOD who holds the fate of mankind in his hand.

Its absolutely unreal that Plotinus' works are so unknown, by and large, having read from all the Presocratics, and other Neoplatonists, and Plato and the rest, none approach the intelligent and insight that Plotinus reaches in the Enneads.

A.H. Armstrongs translation is the best available, the work by Mr. Steven MacKenna is poor at best, and that of T. Taylor is incomplete and far too lose.

I cherish this 7 Vol. translation with the Greek more than any other set of works, the metaphysical emphasis of wisdom and Union (EPISTROPHE) with the One in this collection is the best of its kind which exists. Buy this collection and youll never regret it.

While Plotinus has always had his devotees -(Neo-)Platonism has received a heavy bashing in our times, chiefly a legacy of Nietzsche's and Heidegger's strictures. According to them, it was all something of a mistake.

However, the fact remains that 'Platonism' of a certain sort has to be thanked for some of the most inspired - and inspiring elements of Western culture. Meister Eckhart - for instance, who has certainly been back on the map - is an heir to the Platonist tradition. Nietzsche's view of the Renaissance as a kind of 'inversion' of Platonist thought was entirely mistaken. People like Ficino and members of the Florentine Academy were ardent students of Platonism - especially as re-stated by Plotinus.

Walk round any classic Italian city - and the beauty you see is very much a legacy of Neo-Platonism. It isn't - and wasn't, the 'dead' claptrap Nietzsche and Heidegger spoke of. One upshot of the contemporary disdain for 'traditional' Western philosophy is to look at 'Oriental' teachings. That is a fine and meaningful enterprise. Yet Meister Eckhart - highly infuenced by Platonism, is frequently cited as a Western 'thinker' who is in tune with 'Oriental' thought.

Read Plotinus carefully, and you'll be in for some pleasant surprises. He hints about a process called 'henosis' - becoming 'one'd' with the action of the divine energeia. For him, this was not just something inside the cranium, but an actual experience - like a Zen 'satori.' We are no longer accustomed to the kind of terms and language employed by Plotinus, but the effort to recapture his terms of thinking
brings all sorts of precious intuitions. The most dualistic elements of the Western tradition are relatively recent - a legacy of Cartesian philosophy, modern rationalism and the Industrial Revolution.

It is nothing more than a shallow generalisation to 'lump' all the bad elements of Western philosophy together - as a legacy of Platonism. There is much sublimity and beauty in it, and you will find both in good measure - if you digest the writings of Plotinus.

One or two were amazing, and most were good, but I wasn't crazy about the somewhat snotty ("we're all so well-read and a good STORY doesn't matter") attitude of the editor, which showed through in the selection.

If you are only able to read one book this year make it this book, I just want to thank you Mr.Dark for being the creative god that you are!

Excellent collection of cutting-edge short fiction. If you want to see the extreme edges of today's scene and what, hopefully, is the future of short fiction, buy this collection every year. Extremely compelling work, wide variety of styles, and not the same old names.

As an avid reader of the O.Henry series, I felt that it was in a bit of a rut until this new editor, Larry Dark came along. Last year and especially this year, the O. Henry has become exciting and cutting edge, and Dark must be given all the credit. C'est magnefique Monseiur Dark!!

Though I majored in English, I never took a creative writing course while in college. When I started writing fiction a few years ago, I knew that I couldn't enter an MFA program because I'm a full-time attorney with a family to feed and a mortgage to pay. So, I decided that I should read as much fiction as possible to help teach myself the craft of writing. One of the books I purchased was the then-new 1998 Prize Stories: The O'Henry Awards. I couldn't have made a better choice! In this one volume, I read Lorrie Moore's heartbreaking "People Like That Are the Only People Here," Steven Millhauser's chilling "The Knife Thrower," Alice Munro's evocative "The Children Stay," among many other wonderful and powerful fiction from The New Yorker, Zoetrope: All-Story, Ploughshares, Harper's, and others. Larry Dark, the series editor, and the prize jury, Andrea Barrett, Mary Gaitskill and Rick Moody, did a wonderful job pulling together the best short fiction of that year. This collection not only gave me great joy as a reader, but also wonderful lessons in the art and craft of fiction writing.

Denise Fleming's Pumpkin Eye is a wonderful book for pre-schoolers and early elementary children. Her pulp paintings are very unique. Her work is often compared to that of Eric Carle's. In this book the author uses simple rhymes to describe the various aspects that create Halloween. On each double page spread there is a rhyming couplet. Fleming's writing encourages the reader in indulge in all the excitement and spookiness of this particular night. These include the sights and sounds of the holiday. Fleming sets a mysterious mood in the beginning of the book by describing the rising moon. Next she describes pumpkin eyes, candlesticks, pounding feet, and jack-o-lanterns lining the street. There are also spirits spilling down the hill and dragons and unicorns walking around. Every couple of pages begin with the words "Trick-O-Treat"! Also there are images of eyes throughout the whole story. For example, on some pages there are cat eyes in the illustrations and on others there are pumpkin "eyes", and the startled expressions in children's eyes. In addition, the author creates an eerie mood by describing the dark shadows, swooping bats, hissing cats, tattered rags, toothless hags, pointed tails, and blood-red nails. The suspense builds as the reader reads about witches and skeletons filling the street. Fleming uses onomatopoeia repeatedly. For example, trick-o-treaters hear wolves howling, clacking bones, muffled moans, and hearts thumping. These sounds and feelings make the reader feel like they are in the street trick-o-treating themselves. Pumpkin Eye encourages the imagination to run wild!
This book would be perfect to get young children in the mood to do Halloween art activities. Students could make their own Halloween masks. Paper plates, crayons and markers, scissors, construction paper, and elastic bands are some materials that could be used in the construction of these masks. The children could also make their own trick-or-treat bags to go along with their masks. Grocery or shopping bags could be used. Students could make handles for their bags using ribbons. These activities could give students a chance to express their creativity.
I liked this book a lot. Fleming does a great job creating a festive mood! I could easily imagine walking through the streets on Halloween and seeing all the mysterious sights. The text in the book seems to jump off the page. For example, the pictures are dark and the text is big and white. The vivid descriptions are excellent and the illustrations represent the Halloween theme well. This book would be great for a holiday theme read aloud.

Caldecott Honor artist, Denise Fleming, has truly outdone herself with this spooky and mysterious celebration of Halloween. From eerie shadows, swooping bats and clacking bones, to wretched witches, hissing cats and muffled moans, her evocative, simple, rhyming text, full of imagery and magic, sets the mood and is beautifully complemented by her bold, expressive, larger-than-life artwork. Young imaginations will soar as they read this wonderful picture book and pore over all the special details on each page. Perfect for youngsters 4-8, Pumpkin Eye really captures the very essence of Halloween night and is sure to get all young ghosts and goblins ready for seasonal fun. "Trick or treat/Pounding feet/Halloween has found our street!"

As a children's librarian, I am always on the lookout for those special books to add to my collection of story time treats. "Pumpkin Eye" caught my eye the moment I opened its covers. Short, catchy text, bright, attention getting illustrations and, best of all considering my intended audience is an impressionable eight years and under, just the gentlest touch of spookiness. I can hardly wait to share it with the children.

This book is a great Halloween tale for younger students. The illustrations are wonderful and catch the attention of the reader. The twist at the end is really fun for children. I work in an elementary school and have had a lot of fun watching the students react to the colorful characters and silly storyline.

I think there is still a little kid that lurks deep inside all of us. The cover of this children's book caught my eye as I roamed through my favourite book store. It was just too impossible to resist; a little peek, who will see? I picked up the book and actually did not put it down until the end. From bats and dragons to a harvest moon and orange pumpkins, children will love the colour and verse of this simplistic yet creative book. When you take a look at the enchantment of this delightful book, you will realize the wonders of childhood that we truly miss. Children will love the way the book is illustrated with rich colours and eye-catching orange pumpkins!

The Quiet Little Farm is a charming and wonderful book. The tone, while peaceful and calming, moves the youngest reader (and his parents) along with anticipation for the awakening of the new season. The painted sepia photographs glow with great beauty.

Janet Kerr's Quiet Little Farm is a beautiful and charming book. My children loved it because of its simple and classic story and I love to read it to my children (as well as my friends do)because of the book's extraordinary photography. Janet Kerr's painted photos are unique, touching, and inspiring.

Janet Kerr's camera has captured a world which is almost impossible to believe still actually does exist. It is a world irresistable to imagine exploring with the tiniest of children. Turning each exquisitely colored page, virtually cries out for a toddler in the lap, to point, to laugh, to quack or oink, or to put a cheek down and get right into the image.
A sure-fire "read-it-again" favorite!

A very beautiful little book that is as much of a joy for adults as it is fun for the children. The illustrations are dreamy, handcolored photographs of a small timeless farm of built of red stone in the eastern Dordogne. It never loses sight of the fact that it is a book for preschoolers and it has to be simple and entertaining. An instant classic!

This is a wonderful book, full of real pictures of animals realized in an almost impressionistic technique that turns each hand colored photograph into a dream. Perfect for parents to read to children, seeing the baby animals with their parents going from winter to spring teaches children about the continuity of life and the seasons. The photos, taken in the Dordogne at a few different locations, show a timeless world with no trace of the modern age. The main location is an ageless red stone farm from a fairy tale. Janet has a house in the Dordogne and welcomes visitors in a bed and breakfast that is as much of a work of art as her photography. The sweetness of her life there certainly comes through loud and clear in the pages of this little gem of a book!

I thought this was a fascinating, even if fictionalized account, of a 50-year old mother's escape from slavery with her 7 children. The story and the characters pull you into their minds and experiences and make you read voraciously through the book. I found the later letters between the younger sons during the Civil War to be an excellent means for the family to reflect back on their experiences. The manner in which the children began to understand and appreciate their mother and her uncommon bravery through this experience was also a great part of the story. Great for high schoolers and adults of all ages.

Henry Burke & Dick Croy's historical novel, The River Jordan, is an important book. It's not the best written, it's not the best plotted, the dialect is distracting, and the dialogue somewhat predictable, but it doesn't matter. This is an important book because for the first time in a long time, in my recent memory anyway (and I'm no expert), readers have the opportunity to learn about some of the people who traveled and conducted the Underground Railroad.

Mixing fact with fiction, Burke & Croy use the escape of a slave named Jane and her seven children in August 1843. The reproduction of an Ohio newspaper article about the escape and a copy of the reward poster give the story an authenticity that otherwise may be lacking.

When Jane discovers that her two oldest sons, Alfred and Augustus, are about to be sold down the river, she takes action. She's already lost her husband to the slavers and is not about to let her sons leave her. With the help of the Underground Railroad, Jane and her family cross the Ohio River and head for Canada where they will be free, as long as they don't commit any crimes, however. An escape attempt by this many people at one time is not the usual escape. But Jane is determined, and she and her family set out on a dark, foggy night.

What follows the family's escape route, how they avoided the posse led by their owner, Solomon Harness, a glimpse of those who conducted the line, and a topograhy of Ohio. As I mentioned earlier, the book isn't well written, too much is trying to be covered in too little space and the sentence fragments drove me nuts, letters from the Civil War between two of Jane's youngest sons are ill-placed and jarring. However, I enjoyed Jane's story and could feel the desperation she must have felt. I think that The River Jordan is a must for every public and school library across the country. By putting names and faces together with a story, children (and adults) learn more easily; The River Jordan gives reader pause to think about the people who put themselves in harm's way so they could be free or they could help some enjoy the freedoms they already knew.

There is a need for this story to be told. Slavery was an evil institution. And yet there were brave people who violated the Fugitive Slave Law in order to obey the dictates of conscience.
Black and white Americans once worked together to help black men, women and children escape from slavery. Obviously the black people who helped escaping slaves risked their own lives in the process. So did some of the white people, particularly those who operated the Underground Railroad inside the borders of slave states.
I have done some Underground Railroad research myself on the West Virginia side of the Ohio River, and I can say with some authority that the events in this story are true. Co-author Henry Burke is an African-American whose roots in Southeastern Ohio pre-date the Civil War. He has spent his life learning about the Underground Railroad as it operated in his part of the country.
The River Jordan is a fictionalized account, in very readable form, of a true story. This book has a wonderful book review printed on the back cover.
The Underground Railroad scholar who wrote the book review for The River Jordan is none other than Dr. Ancella Bickley, one of the most distinguished African-American women of West Virginia.
Dr. Bickley was part of the U.S. government effort, through the National Park Service, to document the Underground Railroad. Obviously, her word on anything connected with the Underground Railroad carries great weight. Here's what Dr. Ancella Bickley wrote about The River Jordan:
"The River Jordan is an important addition to the regional literature of slavery. Blending fiction and fact, it brings to the public a daring tale of an enslaved family's Underground Railroad-assisted escape from western Virginia, an area seldom considered in tales featuring "the peculiar institution." Enriched by memorable characters and incidents and masterfully rendered, the novel connects the authenticity of history with storytelling. Juxtaposing slavery against family love, which powers the compelling and dangerous quest for freedom, the story illustrates the motivating influence of a mother's concern. Combined with the bravery, artful maneuvering, and humanitarian commitment of Underground Railroad workers, this concern facilitates the family's audacious escape. The River Jordan is a must read for all those who are interested in a truthful and enlightened look at a dark period in our country's history."

The River Jordan: A True Story Of The Underground Railroad is the fictionalized account of a true story - the escape of the slave Jane and her seven children from a western Virginia tobacco plantation, on land once owned by George Washington. All major characters and events are not only real, but also closely researched from newspapers and documentation of the time. Careful attention to detail and powerful imagery bring this near impossible journey of hope and freedom to vivid life. Highly recommended.

Reading history made into fiction can be quite disappointing, especially when the authors aren't "established" (mainstream) fiction writers. We read this book to see if we wanted to stock it in our bookstore; we prepared for a long and difficult experience.

Turns out the only difficulty was in having to put it down to tend to daily chores. The story of Jane and her 7 children, escaping from slavery when she finds out her two oldest sons are about to be sold, was fascinating.

It is the story and details that will capture your interest, though the writing is fine. Told from multiple views -- most from Jane's thoughts and concerns, her oldest daughter's journal, one of her son's letters two decades later, the slavehunters actions and the beliefs of the abolitionists -- you will never be bored.

In fact, there were times when we slowed our reading because we didn't want the story to end, but more often, there were times we just couldn't stop reading.

More than just a runaway story, Jane's story is that of a middle aged woman, leaving the only life she's ever known. To attempt to escape means to be aware of the consequences if captured -- especially difficult when you are making the choice not just for yourself, but for your children.

Jane's children -- ages 25 to 9 -- are brought into a new awareness of their mother's courage and that of her first husband, sold away from the family long ago.

For those of us who don't know a lot about slavery, this book offers an educational experience that is only painful as we realize what slavery must have been like, and wonder what we would have done had we lived back then.

There were slaves who risked their lives to rescue other slaves (without finding their own freedom); there were people who thought slavery was wrong, but did nothing to protest it since it was a way of life; there were folks who turned others in for money or just because they thought slavery was right; there were those who gave their lives because they knew slavery was wrong. Readers can't help but wonder - "how courageous would I have been?"

This might be good reading for older children -- high school level -- but be aware there are some very graphic descriptions of slave treatment that will be disturbing to any reader.

Also includes photocopies of the ads slavehunters placed with the bounty on Jane and her children, plus maps of the route they followed.

Be sure to read Henry Burke's introduction, a too short tale of his childhood and life -- it is as fascinating as the fiction story.

This book is mostly set in America (maybe); it's about dreams (perhaps) and death (somewhat); a girl (who sometimes isn't); a guy (most of the time is unless he's not); you'll understand after you've read it (doubtful).

Erickson is always fun to read, if for no other reason than to give your brain a workout. I'm not trying to compare these folks, but if you like Vollman, D. F. Wallace, Pynchon, etc., then you will probably like Erickson. Not liking any of them doesn't preclude you from liking Erickson, though.

I'm reading Erickson's books in the order he wrote them, but I let a few months pass in between.

This book is two parts Kafka to one part Matrix. It starts out in some futuristic dream world and the reader is drawn in immediately. I found this book addictive and could not put it down as Erickson led me from the dream world to more reality based (or were they) worlds in which the initial dreams kept cropping up. It's a fascinating book by a talented author and I cannot believe it is out of print. Read it if you can find it.

A very ethereal and dreamlike book, it would make an amazing movie, probably directed by Ridley Scott or Wim Wenders. A journey into our minds, into America and into the spirit of Los Angeles. Having just moved to LA recently, I have been experiencing the surreal, alien nature of this city and Rubicon Beach expressed it perfectly.

I cannot possibly recommend this book enough. One could spend a decade reading this book with a shovel and still not find all the levels underneath. Erickson's gorgeous prose has gorgeous ideas to back it up. This book is about everything and everywhere, from the country of America and what lies to the West, to one little girl beautiful beyond compare with eyes that are blades of light. I do not have the word capacity to fully describe this book. But it is not for the weak. Ignore logic and physical time or space before you dare attempt it. Erickson fightened and delighted me. There cannot possibly be another book like it

Steve Erickson doesn't write novels; he chronicles dreams. Set in a futurtist LA, where water floods the streets, the narrator goes about a mysterious quest. This is a book of shadow and light, enigma and truth. It will frustrate and amaze you at the same time. It is a rare book that looks to your intuition, rather than your mind, to decipher. Gorgeous and unsettling, like the best of Dali

This book claims something no other chess book (that I have seen) does: total accuracy. Dr. Nunn prepared this book on Rook and Pawn endings with the help of Ken Thompson's endgame database, so that every position therein, and every solution given, is guaranteed to be 100% accurate. This book covers ONLY the subject of chess endgames with king, rook and a single pawn against king and rook, but this topic is much, much bigger than it may seem at first glance. While a computer can crank out solution after solution to endgame problems, only a strong human chess player like GM Nunn can take the resulting data and explain it in ways that make it useful to other humans who want to understand how to win (or avoid losing) these difficult endgames. Nunn has done an excellent job of explaining the whys and wherefores of each move (because frankly, the ONLY winning move in some of these positions is very counterintutive). I know that my endgame play will be stronger after working through the problems in this book and I recommend it to anyone who finds rook and pawn endings daunting.

This book is the absolute and final truth on rook and pawn vs. rook endgames. Another book will never need to be written. If you really want to know the truth on these endgames, then this is truly the book for you.

It's not as bad to read as a previous reviewer claimed. Of course, if you want to study rook endings more generally or less deeply, then this isn't the book for you. "Surviving Rook Endings" probably is--and it is a really good introduction. If you have any doubt, then you almost certainly want "Surviving" rather than this one.

Thanks to Dr. Ken Thompson's work, we have the standard 5-piece (also some of other simple) endgame database. Based on Dr. Thompson's database, Dr. John Nunn prepared a 3-volumn book-set that covers "almost all" 5-piece endings. Rook and Pawn versus Rook is the first of the set. Using the symmetric property, they are able to cut the workload to 25%. By writing from the white's point-of-view, who has material advantage, the work is cut by half; then by mirroring the Q-side and K-side, only work for the P on the Q-side is sufficient (another 50% reduction). The final positions are: a) white can promote the P (win), b) white wins black R (win), c) black can eliminate white P (draw) (and force trading R's.) The study starts with the P on the 7th rank to see if it's a win or draw. Then the P retreats one step to 6th rank, and continues all the way to 2nd rank.
A few years ago, I know only one R and P ending (Lucena position) and about four general rules:
1) Rook on the seventh is worth one (or even two) P-sacrifice.
2) Active Rook is important in the endgame.
3) The side with material advantage has "more" chance to win if he can cuts off the defending K.
4) The defender should get his K in front of the P; otherwise he has "less" chance to draw.
"More or less" are relative terms here. In this book, Dr. Nunn provides the "absolute truth" about this type of endings.
His work in this book is outstanding (5 stars). I wonders who could remember most of the analysis he gives in the book. He mentions that even Kasparov might have trouble to play this with such precision. So, how practical is the book? I don't see how the average players can see the practicality of this book (I can't), except for the practical tips Nunn gives at the end of every section. That's a good place to start. If we want simpler study, then Averbakh's Essential Chess Endings is another good start. My C- and B-players don't care much for simple endings; they like to play with pieces. This is where I have a little edge on them. The analysis from Nunn's ending set provides a good means for post-mortem discussion.

I reccommend this book to any serious chessplayer. Nunn gives the low down on all rook versus rook plus pawn endings. Firstly, the information in this book is 100% accurate since a computer created the database. Any serious chessplayer would normally be looking for none other than the truth and in rook endings this is hard to come by. Secondly, Nunn demonstrates a fantastic concept known as reciprocal zugzwang. It turns out, assuming white is up the pawn, that in most positions, white to play wins while black to play draws. In a reciprocal zugzwang position, white to play draws and black to play loses. Hence, unlike normal zugzwang position where one color has a waiting move, reciprocal zugzwang positions offer neither color a waiting move (the easiest example you'll ever see is white- ka8 rb8 pa7 black- kc7 rc8). Lastly, the setup of this book is good too. Nunn starts with positions with the pawn of a7 and works his was to a2 (for obvious reasons). He then tackles b, c and d positions in the same way. To conclude, I did want to say that while this book contains all the information you'll ever need to know about this particular ending, the information will not seep into your brain from under your pillow. You will need to put in an obscene amount of time to get from cover to cover.

This book is often touted as being the final word on K+R+P vs. K+R. I agree with this contention but I have to say that this book is more than a reference work. The basic methods of play are elucidated here as in no other text. Even the famous "Rook Endings" by Smyslov and Levenfish devotes only 47 pages to K+R+P vs. K+R. Other books just give Lucena, Philidor and some general methods of play. Anyone playing a rook ending has to constantly keep in mind the possibility of simplification to a simpler rook ending. Consequently, the material covered by Nunn serves as the building block for a rigorous study of rook endings in general. The book offers unparalleled insight and understanding. John Nunn, in the three books he has written on endings, constantly strives to translate computer results into ideas and insights palatable to the human mind. Every student of the game should have this book on his shelf.