06-27-2010, 01:58 PM | #41 | |
Elf Lord
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Quote:
Though in all fairness, all I've read of Scruton is his "Short History of Western Philosophy" and his part of "German Philosophers: Kant, Hegel, Schopenhauer and Nietszche" (he wrote the Intro and the section on Kant) which, while both being excellent, are not exactly the liveliest of subjects. I watched the BBC series on Beauty you posted, and am going to reply in the next week when I've got a bit more time to re-view it (end of term, very busy), but it did bring a bit of Davies to mind. In "What's Bred in the Bone" he deals with an artist who would have been hailed in previous ages for his skill, but is forced to become an art forger in our age when only "shock" and "imagination" count for anything. When being appprenticed to one of the last of the Old School Masters, his first test is to draw a perfectly straight line - freehand, of course- down the middle of a page; the point being if you can't do that you're not even fit to be a beginner.
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Glendower: I can call spirits from the vasty deep. Hotspur: Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them? "I like pigs. Dogs look up to us, cats look down on us, but pigs treat us as equals."- Winston Churchill Last edited by GrayMouser : 06-27-2010 at 02:09 PM. |
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06-27-2010, 02:06 PM | #42 |
Elf Lord
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Special shout out to inked- have you read this guy? I think you'd love it.
Start with the Cornish trilogy- while I think the Deptford trilogy is on the whole is a little better the opening may be a little rougher for non-Canadians- though any small town North American may appreciate it.
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Glendower: I can call spirits from the vasty deep. Hotspur: Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them? "I like pigs. Dogs look up to us, cats look down on us, but pigs treat us as equals."- Winston Churchill |
06-30-2010, 06:11 AM | #43 | ||
Elf Lord
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Quote:
Quote:
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Glendower: I can call spirits from the vasty deep. Hotspur: Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them? "I like pigs. Dogs look up to us, cats look down on us, but pigs treat us as equals."- Winston Churchill |
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06-30-2010, 09:44 AM | #44 |
Dread Mothy Lord and Halfwitted Apprentice Loremaster
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It's been pointed out that there are many, many beautiful moments in the works of Dostoyevsky, as well: Alyosha falling to the ground, the kiss in the Grand Inquisitor, the redemption of Rodya at the end of C and P, etc. The imagery which, apparently, was used for these decorations doesn't seem to really capture the scope of Dostoyevsky; it remains down in the dregs, while failing to turn its gaze upwards, as he does so well.
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Crux fidelis, inter omnes arbor una nobilis. Nulla talem silva profert, fronde, flore, germine. Dulce lignum, dulce clavo, dulce pondus sustinens. 'With a melon?' - Eric Idle |
07-18-2010, 04:27 PM | #45 |
Elven Maiden
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I finally finished The Wicked Day. It was kind of disappointing. I really couldn't get into that one much because Merlin's not in it. But I still liked it and The Last Enchantment better than a lot of books I have read. I'm glad I'm finished with the series now so I can read something else, though.
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~~eat until you can't anymore, play until you drop, sleep the day away, laugh, cry, yell, just live live live!~~ |
07-19-2010, 01:27 AM | #46 | |
Elf Lord
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Quote:
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Glendower: I can call spirits from the vasty deep. Hotspur: Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them? "I like pigs. Dogs look up to us, cats look down on us, but pigs treat us as equals."- Winston Churchill |
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07-19-2010, 04:41 AM | #47 |
Half-Elven Princess of Rabbit Trails and Harp-Wielding Administrator (beware the Rubber Chicken of Doom!)
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Dostoyevsky is well worth reading, although his works are certainly not chirpy and light-hearted! But I think that the subjects for the wall murals were not a great choice ...
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. I should be doing the laundry, but this is MUCH more fun! Ñá ë?* óú éä ïöü Öñ É Þ ð ß ® ç å ™ æ ♪ ?* "How lovely are Thy dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! ... For a day in Thy courts is better than a thousand outside." (from Psalm 84) * * * God rocks! Entmoot : Veni, vidi, velcro - I came, I saw, I got hooked! Ego numquam pronunciare mendacium, sed ego sum homo indomitus! Run the earth and watch the sky ... Auta i lómë! Aurë entuluva! |
10-12-2010, 01:29 PM | #48 |
High King at Annuminas Administrator
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Just finished up a re-read of LOTR, and while starting into the appendices, picked up some Dickens books. Have gone about 5-6 chapters into Little Dorrit. Also picked up Bleak House and Tale of Two Cities.
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My Fanfic: Letters of Firiel Tales of Nolduryon Visitors Come to Court Ñ á ë ?* ó ú é ä ï ö Ö ñ É Þ ð ß ® ™ [Xurl=Xhttp://entmoot.tolkientrail.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=ABCXYZ#postABCXYZ]text[/Xurl] Splitting Threads is SUCH Hard Work!! |
10-12-2010, 07:33 PM | #49 |
Half-Elven Princess of Rabbit Trails and Harp-Wielding Administrator (beware the Rubber Chicken of Doom!)
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I wasn't wild about Little Dorrit, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE Bleak House and Tale of Two Cities. BH starts a bit slow, but just remember that Dickens was often paid by the word, and feel free to skip over some of his long, descriptive sections that must have happened because of unexpected bills
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. I should be doing the laundry, but this is MUCH more fun! Ñá ë?* óú éä ïöü Öñ É Þ ð ß ® ç å ™ æ ♪ ?* "How lovely are Thy dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! ... For a day in Thy courts is better than a thousand outside." (from Psalm 84) * * * God rocks! Entmoot : Veni, vidi, velcro - I came, I saw, I got hooked! Ego numquam pronunciare mendacium, sed ego sum homo indomitus! Run the earth and watch the sky ... Auta i lómë! Aurë entuluva! Last edited by Rían : 10-21-2010 at 01:01 AM. |
10-12-2010, 08:41 PM | #50 |
Elven Warrior
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I also loved A Tale of Two Cities! It is pretty descriptive, but it's very well written and has a captivating plot. A very enjoyable way to study the French Revolution!
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Elleth Valatari "We have come from God, and inevitably the myths woven by us, though they contain error, will also reflect a splintered fragment of the true light, the eternal truth that is with God. Our myths may be misguided, but they steer however shakily towards the true harbour, while materialistic 'progress' leads only to a yawning abyss and the Iron Crown of the power of evil." — J.R.R. Tolkien |
11-16-2010, 01:52 AM | #51 |
High King at Annuminas Administrator
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I liked Little Dorrit. After it, I quickly read The Good Shepherd by CS Forester. He wrote the Horatio Hornblower series. This one is about a WW2 destroyer captain, fending off German U-boats while escorting a convoy.
I've just started Tale of Two Cities.
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My Fanfic: Letters of Firiel Tales of Nolduryon Visitors Come to Court Ñ á ë ?* ó ú é ä ï ö Ö ñ É Þ ð ß ® ™ [Xurl=Xhttp://entmoot.tolkientrail.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=ABCXYZ#postABCXYZ]text[/Xurl] Splitting Threads is SUCH Hard Work!! |
12-02-2010, 03:24 AM | #52 |
Enting
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Yes I did, I'm reading right now is "The Fellowship of the Ring"*...(I'm reading it again.)
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Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky, |
12-18-2010, 08:32 AM | #53 |
High King at Annuminas Administrator
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I finished Tale of Two Cities, then re-read Voyage of the Dawn Treader before going to see the movie.
I've just read The Devil in the White City. It's really two stories - one about the building of the Chicago World's Fair for 1893, the other about a psychopath who moved to Chicago around this time and went on an undetected killing-spree. The book has had rave reviews... but I really didn't like it that much. For one, I think it OUGHT to be two stories - unless the author intends both parts to be commentary on 'the American City' or 'the Modern City'. Also - the handling of the serial killer is inconsistent, but maybe that last is quibbling on my part.
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My Fanfic: Letters of Firiel Tales of Nolduryon Visitors Come to Court Ñ á ë ?* ó ú é ä ï ö Ö ñ É Þ ð ß ® ™ [Xurl=Xhttp://entmoot.tolkientrail.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=ABCXYZ#postABCXYZ]text[/Xurl] Splitting Threads is SUCH Hard Work!! |
01-04-2011, 09:19 AM | #54 |
The Chocoholic Sea Elf Administrator
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Finally finished Tolkien's 'Letters from Father Christmas'. This time of year seemed liked the perfect moment for reading that one. Very sweet, it reminded me of some of the Sinterklaas letters I got when younger. Good childhood memories. Although Tolkien managed to keep on going for twenty years and for four kids. With drawings. Quite an achievement!
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We are not things. |
01-07-2011, 04:00 PM | #55 |
Sapling
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: England
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After finishing my tolkien collection, including History of Middle Earth, I started reading books from an American author called Brendan Dubois. Some of his stuff is old but he is still writing new books. A very good bit of light reading
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"I liked white better," i said. "White!" he sneered "It serves as the begining. White cloth may be dyed. The white page may be overwritten; and the white light may be broken." "in which case is is no longer white" siad I. "And he that breaks something to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom." |
01-09-2011, 05:24 PM | #56 |
Enting
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I'm reading "The Hobbit" right now. After that I will read "The Voyage of the Dawn Threader by C.S. Lewis".
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Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky, |
02-12-2011, 09:55 PM | #57 |
Hobbit
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I am a huge fan of John Irving, especially "A Prayer for Owen Meany" and his latest (I believe), "Last Night in Twisted River"
Fantastic author, two incredible books that I could read over and over again.
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"Fool of a Took! Throw yourself down next time, rid us of your nuisance!" "We're flat broke, but hey, we do it in style." |
02-21-2011, 01:54 AM | #58 |
Elven Maiden
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I just finished Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother which was interesting and got me to write a "tiger daughter" list of things to do everyday (like brush my teeth, I know, high standards I have for myself).
Then I read The Winter of our Disconnect about a family that goes "screen-free" for 6 months which was kind of interesting, kind of interesting also because the family reminded me of my own family. Might try to cut down on my aimless internet surfing that I find so very spiritually draining. Read a chapter and a half of a book called "War is a Force that Gives us Meaning", which is interesting but not a very enjoyable read in a way (the writing itself). Interesting ideas though. Before that I finished "Nausea" by Jean-Paul Sartre, which I liked quite a bit. But I was totally having an existential crisis which I'm largely "over" now. I've been reading at a pace of more than a book a week. I have an insatiable thirst for knowledge all of the sudden. (Last couple years have been about 25 books a year.) Been leaning heavily toward non-fiction.
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~~eat until you can't anymore, play until you drop, sleep the day away, laugh, cry, yell, just live live live!~~ |
02-22-2011, 01:42 PM | #59 | |
Peer of the realm of Sanguine
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Quote:
My recent favorite read was "The Life of Pi" by Yann Martel. It's a book about survival and spirituality, humorous and sad, that can be read and interpreted on many levels. It's great book to discuss. Also, like JRRT, Martel shows a deep appreciation for the natural world: "I am not one given to projecting human traits and emotions onto animals, but many a time during that month in Brazil, looking up at sloths in repose, I felt I was in the presence of upside-down yogis deep in meditation or hermits deep in prayer, wise beings whose intense imaginative lives were beyond the reach of my scientific probing."
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“"I am the friend of bears and the guest of eagles. I am Ringwinner and Luckwearer; and I am Barrel-rider," Fear Complacency! ___________________ Something under the bed is drooling Last edited by barrelrider110 : 02-22-2011 at 01:58 PM. |
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02-23-2011, 10:58 AM | #60 |
Elf Lord
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Being turned into a movie by Ang Lee, currently being filmed here in Taiwan
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Glendower: I can call spirits from the vasty deep. Hotspur: Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them? "I like pigs. Dogs look up to us, cats look down on us, but pigs treat us as equals."- Winston Churchill |
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