If Harold Kushner had been a literary critic instead of a rabbi, he might have asked, “Why do bad books happen to good writers?” And if Leo Tolstoy had also been a critic, he might have answered, “All good books are alike, while every bad book goes bad in its own way.” These bloody thoughts are occasioned by Henning Mankel and Jim Crace, novelists of proven quality who have … [Read more...]
Book review: Harrowing tale of life behind bars remarkably even-handed
By Bill Williams Wilbert Rideau was 19 when he impulsively decided to rob a bank in Lake Charles, La., so he could flee to a new life on the West Coast. The botched 1961 robbery ended with Rideau taking three hostages. In the ensuing chaos he fatally shot and stabbed a female bank teller.Rideau was black and the victim was white, and a seething mob nearly … [Read more...]
Harrowing tale of life behind bars remarkably even-handed
Wilbert Rideau was 19 when he impulsively decided to rob a bank in Lake Charles, La., so he could flee to a new life on the West Coast. The botched 1961 robbery ended with Rideau taking three hostages. In the ensuing chaos he fatally shot and stabbed a female bank teller. Rideau was black and the victim was white, and a seething mob nearly lynched him. He was quickly convicted … [Read more...]
Books feature: Renowned translator of Japanese literature moves to China’s ‘source of sources’
William Scott Wilson.By Chauncey Mabe After the Bible, the Tao Te Ching is the second most translated text in the world, and certainly it is the most famous and influential book of ancient Chinese wisdom in the West. Why, then, with dozens of versions already available, would we need a new one – especially by a translator who made his name in classical … [Read more...]
Eminent translator of Japanese turns to China’s ‘source of sources’
After the Bible, the Tao Te Ching is the second most translated text in the world, and certainly it is the most famous and influential book of ancient Chinese wisdom in the West. Why, then, with dozens of versions already available, would we need a new one – especially by a translator who made his name in classical Japanese samurai literature? “My friends all ask that same … [Read more...]
Book review: ‘White People’ examines dispiriting history of racial constructs
By Chauncey MabeThe spectacle of Americans choking with rage at Tea Parties, or tossing around racist epithets at Sarah Palin rallies, has our European friends worried.Recently, French journalist Jean-Sebastien Stehli, writing in Le Figaro, bemoaned the “climate of violence” in American politics, which he identifies as white fear and resentment at the rise of … [Read more...]
‘White People’ examines dispiriting history of racial constructs
The spectacle of Americans choking with rage at Tea Parties, or tossing around racist epithets at Sarah Palin rallies, has our European friends worried. Recently, French journalist Jean-Sebastien Stehli, writing in Le Figaro, bemoaned the “climate of violence” in American politics, which he identifies as white fear and resentment at the rise of a black president. Nativist … [Read more...]
Book review: ‘Savor’ offers useful perspective on weight control
By Bill Williams Few people have done more to promote the spread of Buddhism in the West than Thich Nhat Hanh, the monk from Vietnam who lives in France and conducts well-attended retreats around the world.Nhat Hanh has written more than 100 books, most of them revolving around the theme of living mindfully in the moment. Now he has joined with co-author Lilian … [Read more...]
‘Savor’ offers useful perspective for weight control
Few people have done more to promote the spread of Buddhism in the West than Thich Nhat Hanh, the monk from Vietnam who lives in France and conducts well-attended retreats around the world. Nhat Hanh has written more than 100 books, most of them revolving around the theme of living mindfully in the moment. Now he has joined with co-author Lilian Cheung, a lecturer at the … [Read more...]
Book review: Banville’s latest a wizardly look at gods and man
By Chauncey MabeThe modern literary novelist faces two large difficulties. One is how to write something worth reading, a story perhaps, invoking, perhaps, the human condition, without recourse to the worn-out conventions of realistic narrative fiction (a situation brilliantly discussed by James Wood in the March 15 edition of The New Yorker).The second problem is what might be … [Read more...]