All,
My apologies that it’s taken so long to get a second post up. When school hits, it hits hard, you know?
Anyway, I’ve got the second title and I think you’ll all find it interesting! It’s well worth the wait, I assure you.
Best,
Matt
The Invisible Dragon, Four Essays on Beauty By Dave Hickey I feel particularly lucky to have stumbled on this title last Tuesday evening, and I admit, I was initially attracted by the interesting cover art. Upon a closer inspection, however, I realized what a find it really was. Hickey has, in these four relatively short essays (the book is only sixty-four pages in its totality) captured some incredible moments in his writing. He begins by discussing the concept of beauty in the artistic prints and photographs we see on a daily basis, wondering “if images don’t do anything in this culture… if they haven’t done anything, then why are we sitting here in the twentieth century talking about them? And if they only do things after we have talked about them, then they aren’t doing them, we are.” He questions why we feel the need to criticize images, what criticism really is, and states his belief that the very rhetoric of how we look at art and the world around us is derived from the individual perspective of the critic in question. His mission in the book is to discover beauty, wherever it may lie, by throwing away his prior interpretation of the word and starting over. Hickey begins to question everything he was ever told was beautiful as he sets out to look for his own beauty in the world. The Quick of It Library of Congress Call Number: N 70 .H47 1993 Genre: Philosophical and Analytical Commentary Recommended For: Days when you are feeling exceptionally creative, or when looking for inspiration to write something incredible or make highly unique art. Biggest Strength: The writer’s impressive and quick use of vocabulary can leave avid readers satisfied that the right word was used in the right place (something hard to find at times), and his insights are very profound, allowing the reader contemplate his thoughts for days on end. Biggest Weakness: The author can, at times, delve a bit deeper than is necessary into some topics, making the thin collection seem to be an incredibly thick read and can bore the reader if one isn’t paying close attention to what he is saying. My Opinion: An absolutely fantastic read. It details how one man believes somebody should really try to look at the world from a different perspective in order to overcome the “banality of neutral comfort” that we all find ourselves slipping into sometimes. Overall Rating: 5/5
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Matt's Bi-Weekly Book
I work at a university library. The hours can be long, but the work is enjoyable and I've got a lovely opportunity to meet interesting people. When you're shelving books for hours at a time, though, you tend to start paying attention to the titles, and they're the most interesting of all.
I decided one night that they needed to be documented, so I started a blog about them. Here you'll find books that I thought interesting, funny, weird, and informative. I'll be reading a bit of the book and give you guys a short summary, as well as a picture of the cover and the Library of Congress call number with every edition so you can find the book at your local library, if you want.
I hope to update the blog around twice a week, but it depends on the kind of titles I find. You won't just find books here, though! I'll occasionally post DVDs, Video Tapes, and sometimes even musical volumes for you guys to take a look at.
The posts you'll find here will run the gambit of possibilities, and you'll see books from just about every genre you can think of. Some will make you laugh, others (hopefully) will make you think, but what I really hope they'll all do is encourage you to pick up a book again. Close the laptop for a few hours, go down to your local library, and take a look at their selection. You might be surprised at what you find; I know am almost every day. So spread the word... read a book!
If any of you find something you think is interesting and you want to see up here on the blog, send me a message with a photo and a brief synopsis of the work, and you might find it here one day!
DISCLAIMER: Please note that I mean no offense by anything I post or do not post here; they are simply titles that I found interesting and hope you do as well! The library I work at does not have a censorship policy, so you may find things here sometimes that disturb you or that you find unsavory. I urge you to just skip over anything like this and not look into it too much... it's all in the pursuit of knowledge!
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