LITERAL LIBRIS

Lately, I've been in a non-fiction-ish mood. Here's what I've read so far:

Musicophilia by Oliver Sachs is a collection of essays of varying length about music and the brain. He spends most of the book talking about music and various brain disorders, from Alzheimer's disease to obscure ones like Williams syndrome. Some of the essays illustrate more general points about how the brain processes music, but after the first few of them it became repetitive, with lots of specifics and no additional big-picture ideas. I also found it depressing to read about Sachs' various patients, many of whom have incurable diseases or horrific brain damage. Overall, this was an interesting read, but I wish I'd gotten it from the library instead of buying it.

Mysteries of the Middle Ages by Thomas Cahill was more interesting. He writes about the synthesis of Greek philosophy and Christianity during the middle ages, which produced the seeds of the modern world. His tactic is to look at one aspect of medieval culture and illustrate its development through a single person's achievements. For example, the chapter on courtly love examine the life of Eleanor of Aquitaine, as an illustration of how women's status rose in the late middle ages. I'm not sure I agree with all of Cahill's analysis, particularly the chapters about Ptolomaic vs. Christian philosophy in artwork, but the book is compellingly written, and it's obvious Cahill loves his subject. The conclusion was a criticism of the recent sex abuse scandals in the Catholic Church, which was entirely out of place; I sympathize with his views, but a history book is not the place to put them. However, I enjoyed the rest of the book enough that I'll probably look for more of his work.

Next up: Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang

x-posted w/minor edits from my l.j., a top-5 list . . .

I can't for sure remember the December/January reading time of Paul Krugman's "The Conscience of a Liberal," so while it is good enough to make the short list and I recommend it highly, it's going on next year's.

Anyway, here goes . . .

1. Evolving God by Barbara J King. Beautifully written book about notions of spirituality in general and the whole concept of god evolved, with the theory that it has its roots in the same part of our brains & thought processes that produces empathy, to oversimplify a lot. Also contains a lot about empathy and social interaction among non-human animals, espeically apes, and a lot about differing concepts of spirituality and deity. One of the rare books on religion that should manage to appeal to everyone from the more traditional theists to to the atheists on my f-list, and also anyone who's an animal lover. It isn't specifically making an appeal for animals rights or better treatment of animals for their own sakes, as opposed to just because preserving biodiversity is good for humans, but I can't see how anyone reading this book could NOT think of that. (if someone who is turned off by the notion of animal rights is on my friends list, this shouldn't turn you off the book, necessarily, that's my interpretation and not the point of the book)

2. Helen Caldicott's Why Nuclear Power Is Not the Answer -- not the best written of the books, but given the increasing number of people, most troubling the increasing number of people on the left, who want an immediate massive investment in nuclear power and think it is the only way to save us from globabl warming, I think this is the most *important* book that came out last year, or at least it would be if it had gotten lots of attention. Explains in detail why nuke isn't even a particularly good short term solution--grossly expensive and beyond risky. In the same vein, the Utne reader had nice piece on this subject in their most recent issue, and Scientific American has a cover story on how solar could be supplying all our energy needs by the end of the century, even without new technology (which one would presume will come about, since solar has yet to see really big time investment, alas that Carter lost in '80; we'd probably already be mostly solar and minimally fossil fuel if he had won reelection). My original review w/discussion of a book that took the totally opposite point of view is here: http://mojave-wolf.livejournal.com…


3. Terry Glavin, The Sixth Extinction: Journeys Among The Lost and Left
Behind. Wow. In a lot of ways, the best written and most fun to read non-fiction book I've ever read. Docked a couple of spots because the author annoys me a few times with his dismissive views towards animal intelligence and those who think whales are up there on a level with humans (complete w/pointless shots at Carl Sagan), but other than that you could certainly make a strong case for this being far and away the best book of the year, fic or non-fic. I went on about this at great length in two separate places earlier this year, which I will link to, but first a quick summary from one of those: A beautifully written,
lyrical book, as can be gleaned from from chapter titles such as "Valley of the Black Pig", "The Singing Tree of Chungliyimti", and "The Last Giants in the River of the Black Dragon".
Most of the first half of the book is concerned with the lost of wild land
and species. The second half is mostly concerned with the loss of human
cultures, languages and domestic plants/food crops. One may be dismayed to learn of "patent-protected 'terminator' seeds that produce plants that kill their own seeds or refuse to grow at all unless sprayed with one of the company's herbicides." One may find
oneself agreeing with Richard Manning that the great agribusiness
revolution of the 1960's is "the worst thing that has ever happened on the
planet",that solved (some) local problems only by exchanging them for
unprecedented, global-scale problems."

Despite the author's optimistic view, by the time I got to the finish, I
saw it more as an ode to things passing away than as an optimistic work
showing how humanity is working to save things. Yes, many humans are. More
are working to enrich themselves however possible, and those w/the most
power and least actual need to enrich themselves are doing this in the
worst possible way.

http://mojave-wolf.livejournal.com… (for review # 1, before I'd finished, concerned w/writing style as much as anything else)
http://mojave-wolf.livejournal.com… (once I'd finished, w/lots more detail, esp about the latter parts of the book)


Those three were way ahead of everything else, but also making my top 5:

4. Deep Economy, by Bill McKibben (edited from original review) Points out how traditional economics as taught and practiced in most places these days fails to account for all sorts of social and environmental costs, and towards a sort of economics that does these things. Also does a nice job of illustrating that there are all sorts of environmental damage beyoned global warming or even pollution and habitat destruction -- northern China as an example of the kind of catastrophe the whole world is going to face from diminishing water sources unless we get more responsible about our usage of this, amongst other things. And takes apart a lot of big agriculture propaganda against smaller or more localized farming.

I confess, some stuff in the book kinda rubbed me the wrong way -- while I certainly agree we have a responsibility for each other, the emphasis on
community was a little too much for my anti-social taste, & I nearly quit reading when he said "the rest of this book is devoted to the economics of
neighborliness" (don't stop there, btw, the rest of the book is actually
really good); didn't care for his overall excessive cheeriness or his
repeated mentions of being a Sunday school teacher or his being way, way
way too kind in his evaluation of all sorts of people and arguments, but
then, this may be exactly the kind of person/book/argumentation most
likely to reach those people who still resist more
environmentally/socially friendly ways of life.


5. Infidel, by Ayaan Hirsi Ali A really gripping if sometimes problematic memoir. Don't always agree with her politics or her analysis, but nonetheless an extremely worthwhile read. For a longer take, http://mojave-wolf.livejournal.com…

For what it's worth, "Confessions of an Economic Hit Man" would have made the list in the #4 spot, except I've heard people cast doubts as to its authenticity, and I haven't had time to check it out. Certainly, most of it rang true to me, but there was one point in particular where I wondered about embellishment, so holding off on ranking/reccing it for right now.

Conquering the Impossible: My 12,000-Mile Journey Around the Arctic Circle
by Mike Horn

An account of man challenging the limits of mental and physical endurance, January 20, 2008

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Truth and Consequences: Special Comments on the Bush Administration's War on American Values
by Keith Olbermann

"I don't care if you're a Democrat or a Republican. This isn't right -- you're not doing what you said you were going to do.", December 30, 2007

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The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil
by Philip Zimbardo

A scholar seeks to understand "How good people turn evil", December 21, 2007

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From Hire to Liar: The Role of Deception in the Workplace
by David Shulman

A superbly executed study of deception at all levels, January 20, 2008

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cross-posted to lagizma and booksalon

Elephants on Acid: And Other Bizarre Experiments
by Alex Boese



If people on acid see pink elephants, what do elephants that take acid see?, January 21, 2008

Historian Alex Boese was enamored with bizarre experiments in college. During his graduate studies, Boese spent his free time tracking down the more obscure mad scientist experiments that were mentioned in his texts. He amassed a library of notes on bizarre experiments, went on to found the Museum of Hoaxes and publish two books on hoaxes, and now returns with a title about all those bizarre experiments which once intrigued and delighted him. Boese includes only research which was undertaken with genuine scientific curiosity and methodology--that which was published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.

Elephants on Acid contains overview and author commentary on experiments from the 1800's through the 2000's, in ten different categories - surgery, senses, memory, sleep, animal behavior, mating behavior, babies, bathroom research, human nature, and death. For each experiment, the author sets up the broader social and scientific context, describes the experimental design and results, and includes any follow-on work. Bibliographic details for each scientific publication are included. (But good luck tracking down European journals circa 1803!)

The opening chapter on Dr. Frankenstein-like research is a bit unsettling (Can a head live without its body? Can asphyxiated dogs be brought back to life?). Not surprisingly, few of the Frankenstein experiments took place in modern times. The remaining chapters are enchanting glimpses at scientific fact and fiction over the ages. Boese demonstrates that waitresses who touch customers statistically receive higher tips ("Touching Strangers"), repeats the real Pepsi Challenge ("Coke vs. Pepsi"), exposes the myth of the `Mozart effect' on IQ ("Mozart Effect"), and provides scientific proof of the synchronous menstrual cycles of cohabitating women ("Scent of a Woman"). Studies of human behavior discuss the power of suggestion in creating false childhood memories ("Lost in the Mall"), the effect of a crowd of roaches on an athlete roach navigating a course ("Racing Roaches"), and the role of fear in sexual arousal in humans ("Arousal on a Creaky Bridge").

Two of the most famous studies of good vs. evil are presented in this text. In the infamous 1970's Stanford Prison Experiment, college students playing the role of guards became drunk on their power and humiliated and dehumanized their mock prisoners. In another experiment, researcher Stanley Milgram proved that otherwise "good" individuals could be coerced into delivering painful or deadly electric shocks to other volunteers under pressure from a scientific researcher.

Ranging from the trivial to the socially far-reaching, Boese's compendium has something for everyone.

Last year I requested that my local library buy a few books on zombie cinema. Pretend We're Dead: Capitalist Monsters in American Pop Culture was okay - it read a bit too much like a dissertation (which it was). Very "cultural studies" - I had a hard time discerning the chicken or the egg - did the filmakers intentionally make horror films that critiqued capitalism or do we read them that way because we want to critique capitalism?

Anyway, next up was Book of the Dead: The Complete History of Zombie Cinema. I made it my bedtime reading (yes, I am so much of a zombie cinema fan this did not give me nightmares - in fact, dreams I have with zombies in them tend not to be nightmares) and savored every word. From the looks of it, Book of the Dead is a reference book with lots of color pictures. In fact, the first half of the book is chronological and insightful criticism, while the second half is a movie-by-movie reference guide to every zombie film.



Russell doesn't paint zombie films with a broad stroke - rather, he starts with the White Zombie (1932), explaining the origins of zombie cinema in the American occupation of Haiti and covers every decades, every nation, and every variation up until the present (he ends with Romero's Land of the Dead). Throughout the book zombie cinema is contextualized; you cannot understand Spanish zombie cinema without taking Franco into account and you can't understand Japanese zombie cinema without taking the Resident Evil video game into consideration.

Russell is just as willing to discuss terrible zombie movies as the excellent ones, from homemade fan films to Romero's classics. He covers the established interpretations and challenges them (are all Italian zombie films really about Catholicism? Probably not). Sometimes he can't help himself and cracks jokes or expresses shock. He includes fun details (I didn't know Simon Pegg had a cameo in Land of the Dead or that Tom Savini was also the special effects artist in Dawn of the Dead) and gave me a long list of films to see.

I'm really interested in the history of the idea of environmental determinism. I don't want to be convinced that it's wrong, or that it's right, but I'd like to read something on the history of the debate, and how it's shaped various academic disciplines.

Does such a book exist, or shall I have one of you write it for me?

What have I been reading? Lately, it's been Hannah Arendt's Origins of Totalitarianism, a daunting tome. It's to help me understand teh current of history for the new book I am writing.

Two biographies of Hillary Clinton came out recently (within days of one another) - A Woman in Charge and Her Way: The Hopes and Ambitions of Hillary Rodham Clinton. With the election coming up, and after hearing an interview with one of the New York Times book reviewers about both books, I'm really interested in reading one or the other (but goodness knows not both). The NYT reviewer seemed to think the former was superior, though they've both got the same rating on Amazon.

Anyone read either or both of these?

This place has been awfully quiet, so I thought I'd share my recent nonfic reads.  Well, as of this year, anyway.

In January, I read Graham Hancock's Supernatural in which he runs the gamut from early human cave paintings to gods, and angels, fairies, psychedelics, shamans, and aliens and links them all together as basically the same phenomenon.  In my mind, (being subjects I've already spent a fair amount of time studying) he does a very good job of forming a solid theory with many examples to back up this theory.  Basically he is saying that our encounters with the supernatural, are the same, only the outer appearance changes along with our technology and world view, that what we once thought were angels became fairies in later times, and then became aliens in the present.  He makes sure to state that this all presupposes that these experiences are real.  And if we suppose that they are, then how do we begin to study a supernatural reality.  As I said, the book is great and very entertaining.

In March, I read A Year in the Merde by Stephen Clarke which is a slightly exaggerated account of the Englishman Clarke's year in France to open a set of British tea shops.  I have not laughed so hard and so often while reading a book as I did during the first quarter of this one.  The entire thing is brilliant, but the opening scenes and the language miscommunications are laugh-out-loud funny and it sheds a strange strange light on life in Paris.  An excerpt:

"My good friend Chris told me not to come to France.  Great lifestyle, he said, great food, and totally un-politically correct women with great underwear.  His theory was that the French are like the woman scorned. Back in 1940, they tried to tell us they loved us but we just laughed at their accents and their big-nosed General de Gaulle, and ever since we've done nothing but poison them with our disgusting food and try to wipe the French language off the face of the earth.  That's why they built refugee camps yards from the Eurotunnel entrance and refuse to eat our beef years after it was declared safe.  It's permanent payback time, he said.  Don't go there. Sorry, I told him, I've got to check out that underwear."

Then in June, I read A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson which is the funniest book ever written about science.  This man is hilarious and could probably write a knee-slapper about the Holocaust.  He covers just about anything you ever would want to know, as a non-scientist, about science, from the amazing level of facts about how it is, for all intents and purposes, an absolute statistical impossibility that we even exist, all the way to black holes and airplanes and vaccines and the history of the weird characters who invented all the things that make our improbable existence longer and better (and often worse as well.  Don't get me started on the insane amounts of lead we used to ingest.)  One of my favorite side notes is about a scientist (I forget what he did) who married, had some kids, the wife died in childbirth, so the wife's sister moved in to help him take care of the children, they fall in love, marry, have more kids, she dies in childbirth, when grown, his daughters die in childbirth, the Nazi's blow up his house and all his work during the London bombings, and his last remaining son is executed when he is caught in a plot to assassinate Hitler.  Yeah.  that part wasn't so funny.  But the whole book is funny and informative and the U.S. would lead the world in the sciences if people like Bryson taught it.

Years ago, I read Prague by Arthur Phillips. I can't write a full review since it was so long ago, but I remember it being remarkable. A very rich story about the joys and difficulties of expat Americans living in Budapest.

One of my favorite parts--that I'm still mulling over years later--is one of the characters studied the "history of nostalgia." So, in conversation, other characters will tell him, for example, that the cafe scene in Paris is nothing like it was years ago--and he'll call bullshit on it. Then, he goes to some length quoting various historical figures who have thought the same thing about Parisian cafes--that they're were better years ago--going back decades and centuries. Basically, making the point that nostalgia is misleading but an easy trap.

[Those of you who've read the book recently, I apologize if I'm butchering the scene. Those of you who haven't read it, I'm making the book sound way more academic than it is--it's very witty.]

I would love to read a cultural studies book that explores these issues of nostalgia in more detail, or maybe a case study of nostalgia? Can anyone recommend one? An Amazon search came across The Future of Nostalgia by Svetlana Boym and The Way We Never Were by Stephanie Coontz. Anyone read these? Know others?

x-posted