Customer Reviews:
Bland.......2006-06-26
The book is an easy read but the connnections that the author makes are very tennuous. He talks about coincidences in life but the stories he writes about are vague and far-fetched. The style of writing is not all that creative so the book does not offer very much.
I fell asleep while reading this book. Coincidence? You be the judge........2006-03-28
This short little book is a collection of two-to-four page stories about coincidences Auster has experienced or heard about. It sounded kind of intriguing when I first read about it, but in reality, I found this book kind of, well, I guess the best word for it would be the most simple one: just plain ol' dumb. Had it been written by anyone but Auster, a well-known and highly esteemed author, I can't imagine it ever having been published. Because, honestly, these stories are just laughably lame. For example, there's one that essentially goes like this: one day, I lost a dime. A few hours later, I was walking down the street and, gasp!, there was a dime on the sidewalk! And here's another one: one day my wife and I were really, really hungry, and the next thing we knew, a friend came and took us out to dinner! Whoaaaa! How exciting! How curious! How philosophically intriguing! How . . . utterly inane!
If there was supposed to be a point to this collection of stories, some kind of deeper meaning to it all, I sure didn't get it. It either went way, WAY over my head, or else. . . borrrrrrrring! But go ahead -- give it a try yourself. And then you can let me know which one you think is the bigger idiot -- me or the guy who told Auster he'd love to publish this brilliant, insightful book. I know which one my money's on: one, two, three, NOT IT!
The rescue of coincidence.......2005-04-18
This is going to sound really odd, almost like I am aping one the stories in the Mr. Auster's book, but I have to tell it, because it really is true and I think it bespeaks the delight of this small book. The night I read this book, I was helping my friend, Therese, with a short film she was shooting. The final scene in the film centered around a dinner party the main character throws, bringing together a number of ex-lovers.
Like most New Yorkers, Therese's apartment could barely handle eating dinner, much less filming the eating of dinner. So we were filming at Therese's friend Leah's apartment, a jaw-droppingly big loft. I'd never met Leah, or the several other people recruited for the shoot. This I suppose lent an air of authenticity to the awkwardness of having ex-lovers at a dinner party.
All through the dinner, Leah, our host, appeared mildly distracted, her laughter always coming a moment too late. Her boyfriend, with whom she lived was away in Mexico and I simply assumed that she missed him.
On the subway up to the dinner, I read the first forty pages of the "Red Notebook". Like all of Mr. Auster's books it reads marvelously well. The plainness of his prose masks how quickly he draws you into his world of coincidences and meta-fictions. As I set the book down when I arrived, I mentioned how wonderful the little stories it contained were.
When I arrived at dinner, after first being struck by the size of the apartment, I was taken aback by Leah's cat, Felix. Even at first glance, you could tell Felix was no ordinary house cat, she was too long and slightly too tall. After innocently reaching my fingers down, offering my scent to Felix, Leah warned, "Oh, I wouldn't pet her, she's not really friendly." Nevertheless, Felix licked my fingers and walked away. Both Therese and Leah commented on how unusually friendly the cat had just been. For a moment I swelled with the odd pride of being judged by a fickle animal and found acceptable.
Leah explained that Felix was a leopard cat, some odd breed concocted no doubt to exoticize the common house cat.
After the shoot, after cleaning up, after most of the guests had left, Therese and Leah retreated into another room to fetch a pirated DVD Therese wished to borrow. I was alone. Felix he sat perched on the top of bookshelf, staring down at me. I stared back. Finally, I reached up to offer my fingers once again to the cat. Silently she swiped at them, catching her claws on the skin just between the knuckles of my pointer and index finger. A light scratch, just barely enough to break the skin and let leak a spot of blood. I looked at the burgeoning red line and then stared back at the cat. The pride of acceptance vanished, replaced by something closer to mutual respect. I didn't mention the swipe to either Therese or Leah.
On the way home, I finished the "The Red Notebook." Mr. Auster's books read quickly. And the short ones, like this read even more quickly. But for a day or two they coat the world with an odd sense of pattern. Suddenly every event has purpose, if not clear meaning.
I never saw Leah again. But her cat stayed in my mind, perched on that bookshelf staring down at me.
Six months later, I came across a listing on the Internet. A beautiful leopard cat looking for a new home. Before I realized what I was doing, I called the number. The man, Carlos, told me the cat was still available. Later that day when he dropped the cat by, he said that he and his girlfriend were having a baby and they wanted to take no chances with allergies. He wouldn't tell me the cats name, saying he simply called her gato. I would have to find the right name for her.
As Carlos was leaving, he glanced at my bookshelf in that instinctual act of sizing people up. He stopped in the A's and pointed to "The Red Notebook". "I love this book. We're actually naming our child Siri after one of the characters he mentions. My wife bought it on someones recommendation at a dinner party the day after she found out she was pregnant."
I told Carlos that I too enjoyed the book; that while I found the quality of the anecdotes wildly uneven, certain ones struck a chord; that I thought some of the stories skirt around cliche, but that skirting is the brilliance of the Paul Auster project: to rescue coincidence from its damnation as clumsy plot device and elevate to the status of plot itself.
I also told him how much a I loved the some of Auster's observations, particularly the insightful realization, "that I know nothing, that the world I live in will go on escaping me forever."
I call the cat Felix.
Auster's 'Believe It Or Not'.......2004-03-13
In "The Red Notebook" Auster does something that is both whimsical and tremendously captivating. Most readers remember when they first read Charles Dickens and found his 'Deus Ex Machina' technique and his coincidences just too ridiculous to believe they actually happen in real life. However, they do. Everyone has some incredible coincidences that are basically one in a million chances, but just happen to take place.
Auster seems to have noted these incidents through his entire life, and then compiled them in this book. The coincidences are extraordinary, but not things that are impossible, just things that are extremely improbable. Auster enhances his style, by the use of "Kafkaesque" elements. His use of initial names is something that Kafka did all the time. And his ironic twists are also in the vein of Kafka, but instead of being novelistic, they are real and true stories.
The book is sure to captivate virtually any reader, and its conciseness both in writing and in length makes it an easily absorbed and quickly read piece of literature.
Great book, very short and interesting.......2002-12-15
I've never read Paul Auster before, but my wife made me read this slim little volume and thought it was enchanting. Perfect size for a stocking-stuffer for that literary-type person in your family.
Customer Reviews:
good book.......2005-10-16
I first saw Navy Brides at the store and since I am a Navy bride i thought i would read it. I usually dont read but that book caught my eye. I read it in about 3 days. I loved it so much i had to order Navy Grooms. Debbie is an awesome author and really captures the feelings of the Navy and the seperation and has a great love story to go along with each story. I higly recommend this book and Debbies other Navy brides book to anyone who loves a true romance novel and also can understand a little about the Navy
Book Description
"6/9: Evidently I wasn't supposed to put so much oil in the mower. The smoke went away fairly quickly, though. Connor even got to go for a ride in the fire truck."Alesia Holliday has survived scenes like this and more while her husband, a naval flight officer, has been away on military duty. They have forged a different kind of marriage-one that the 1.5 million current active-duty service members and their families will identify with. E-mail to the Front has a large built-in audience that boasts a camaraderie strengthened by shared difficulties and discoveries. E-mail to the Front consists of short commentaries by Alesia and an e-mail dialogue between her and her husband while he was on deployment. In text filled with empathy, gut-level honesty, humor, and unflinching support, chapters cover everything from "Departure: Only 183 Days to Go" to "Rebellion of the Appliances" to "It's Like Being a Single Mother, but I Can't Date." E-mail to the Front will appeal to everyone who appreciates the courage of those who choose to serve their country, the families who are meeting the challenge of military duty, and those who love and support them. Pulitzer Prize-winning humorist Dave Barry has written a cover quote for the book, and best-selling author Suzanne Brockmann said "This book should be required reading for all Americans."
Customer Reviews:
Honest and inspiring.......2007-07-29
I read this book as part of research into the type of challenges I might face before I married someone in the military. Unlike so many books that seem to claim that if you bake cookies everything will feel all better, Ms. Holliday bares her soul and shows us what a real military spouse goes through on a day to day basis.
Her emails and commentary are poignant and honest. My only criticism is that I feel she does fall a bit in the trap many military spouses fall into, that of trying to gloss things over and make them sound better than they actually are.
Nevertheless, I think this is a wonderful book, especially for those preparing for their spouse's first deployments.
Excellent!.......2007-01-10
This book was wonderful. Very well written and hilarious! Even though deployments can be a hard time, I enjoyed that she composed this book with a light-hearted and humorous approach. I have loaned it to several of my friends and they too have delighted in her story. Excellent read, I would reccomend it to anybody, military or civilian.
Ms Holliday speaks for those of us who can't...........2006-11-26
I am an AF Veteran but also military spouse for 21 years now. I have been trying to get this book for sometime and was finally able to get my hands on a copy. Of course, it arrived when I was 3 months into yet another deployment to Iraq and I debated on whether it was a good time to read it or not.
I chose to read it because the God's honest truth was I didn't think there was ever going to be a "good time" to read this.
The book does not disappoint. There were many stories I could sit back in my chair and smile and think "Thank God I am not the only one that did that". Some stories made me laugh and many others made me cry.
My daughter who is 18 saw the book sitting on the table and picked it up and asked if she could read it when I was done. She's grown up in this world and without having read a word of the book, commented that Military Wives were the strongest women she knew. That meant alot to me, knowing all the struggles her and I have had, which only seem to get worse when dad is off in some foreign land.
Us veteran wives know that what can go wrong will go wrong when there is a deployment. We try to prepare for every crisis, and we always think we're ready, but to be honest you can never be truly ready.
Thank you Ms Holliday for sharing your personal triumphs and crisis with us. And thank you for writing this book. This wife salutes you.
Wow, what a book!.......2006-09-27
This book may be difficult to find - take the time! A fantastic read. Alesia Holliday has crafted a wonderful representation of the world many of us live in nowadays. She presents her story in an interesting format of email between herself and her husband (with narration at the beginning of each chapter to introduce the topic of that chapter). Illnesses, job changes, children, deployments, and much more. It really runs quite a course, and is highly recommended for anyone with a relative in the military, new (or experienced!) military spouse, or just someone who would like some insight into the everyday life of today's military family. Warning however! Be careful drinking hot liquids while reading this book! I have a sweatshirt that took many washings to get the stain out after laughing so hard that I completely lost control of my coffee mug. Alesia has managed to turn some very stressful moments on their ear by relating it through humor. What an extraordinary woman, and a must-have book. Keep them coming!
Wonderful book.......2006-06-23
This was a wonderful book, probably one of my favorites from the summer so far. I loved the way she shared their experience of deployment. I highly recommend this book!!
Average customer rating:
- A light, quick, fun read
- Loved It
|
Navy Husband (The Navy Series #6) (Silhouette Special Edition, No 1693)
Debbie Macomber
Manufacturer: Silhouette
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
 MacOmber, Debbie | ( M ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | Subjects | Books
Macomber, Debbie | ( M ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Romance | Subjects | Books
Silhouette Special Edition | Series | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Contemporary | Romance | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:
-
Navy Woman (The Navy Series #4) (Silhouette Special Edition, No 683)
-
Navy Baby (The Navy Series #5) (Silhouette Special Edition, No 697)
-
Navy Brat (The Navy Series #3) (Silhouette Special Edition, No 662)
-
Navy Blues (The Navy Series #2) (Silhouette Special Edition, No 518)
-
Navy Brides: Navy Wife\Navy Blues\Navy Brat
ASIN: 0373246935 |
Customer Reviews:
A light, quick, fun read.......2005-09-30
"Navy Husband" was an enjoyable read. This book follows two sisters, Shana and Ali. Ali is part of the Navy, and when the Navy sends her overseas, Ali reminds Shana that she had put down her name as "support person" to take care of her daughter Jasmine, in this contigency. At the time that Shana had agreed to put her name down, it had seemed to be only a technicality, as it did not seem likely that she would ever be needed, but things change, and now Ali reminds her of her agreement.
The timing could not be worse. Shana has just broken up with her five-year boyfriend, and, as a gesture (to herself) that she is starting a whole new life, Shana quits her job, moves to another city, and buys a pizza parlor (a major career change). A little girl is exactly what she does *not* need right now. In the end, though, everything works out, and as they tend to in romance land, everything works out much better than anyone could have hoped for.
I had just read some of Debbie Macomber's older books, and I thought that this book felt more contemporary (DUH ME!!) - I thought that there was more of an *edge* to her characters than I've seen in this author's older books. (Shana spends a major part of the book *breaking up* with her old boyfriend - even though, as she keeps saying "I am SO over him!") I guess Debbie Macomber has updated - although, even with the more savvy and street-smart Shana, I thought at times that she *was* a little bit too good - she's always so polite, I kept waiting for her to *really* give it to him, which she never did. I guess even city girls in Debbie Macomber's books are still sweet girls, at heart.
There was not as much emotional depth to this story as in some of her other books, but on the other hand, it was fast-paced, never boring - an enjoyable, and quick, read. And, yes, I did think that the nine year old was pretty mature for nine - but not overly so, a very mature nine year old *could* pull it off, and I guess that perhaps Jasmine had grown up quick.
Loved It.......2005-07-12
This was the first romance novel I've read in quite sometime (I've been on a Stephen King kick since my husband introduced me to his writing a few years ago). Wow. I loved this book. My mom gave it to me after my aunt had finished it. My mom finished it in 2 days - I probably could have finished it faster than that, but housework calls!! I loved the story between the characters. The only (small) gripe I had about the book was the 9-year-old in the story. I have a 10-year-old cousin who does not act at all like this girl in the book. I know, it's a little thing, but Macomber made a point to mention her age over and over again. If she was 13, it would have been more believeable.
Other than that, though, the book was really good. As I was reading the book at my desk during my lunch break, I found myself smiling (almost laughing) along with the characters.
So it's your typical romance novel, I don't care. Sometimes you're in need of one and this one is definitely a good one. I think I'm going to have to read more of Macomber's novels.
Average customer rating:
|
A year in the navy,
Joseph Husband
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
History | Subjects | Books | Africa | Americas | Ancient | Arctic & Antarctica | Asia | Australia & Oceania | Books on CD | Books on Cassette | Europe | Gay & Lesbian | Historical Study | Large Print | Middle East | Military | Military Science | Russia | United States | World
ASIN: B000855OLM |
Average customer rating:
|
Navy Husband
Manufacturer: Not Avail
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1405636297 |
Average customer rating:
|
Navy Husband
Manufacturer: Not Avail
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1405636289 |
Book Description
At Cahuenga Pass, in a stagecoach inn on the road to Los Angeles, Mendoza meets her new cyborg colleagues in this third novel of the Company. In the vein of Grand Hotel, we get to know the lives and stories, both sad and funny, of these operatives from the twenty-fourth century. As bullets fly overhead, we learn that Mendoza is being haunted, in her dreams, by the man she loved and lost three centuries ago and whose ghost is unexpectedly reincarnated by the arrival of a very large, very suave, and very handsome British spy, Edward Alton Bell-Fairfax. We watch the immortals' reactions as they screen, for relaxation, D. W. Griffith's Intolerance; we root for Oscar, an anthropologist in the guise of a traveling salesman, as he tries repeatedly to sell the Criterion Patented Brassbound Pie Safe.
Amazon.com
Ah, pity poor Mendoza. She's a botanist stuck in dusty southern California in 1862, with a broken heart, bizarre companions, lousy food (frijoles and steak again, anyone?), and no plants to study. On top of all that, she's immortal--a cyborg created and maintained by Dr. Zeus, also known as the Company. From its 24th-century headquarters, the Company sends orders back in time to Mendoza and her fellow cyborgs, who collect stuff from the past and send it ahead through time machines for inscrutable uses. But things go from bad to worse for our heroine when drought and smallpox decimate the region, leaving her with nothing to do but pine for her three-centuries-lost mortal love, the martyred Nicholas Harpole. But what's this? Along comes a British agent--the spitting image of Nicholas--hell-bent on upsetting the Union in its hour of need. Mendoza must decide whether to help him in his plot to ensure British rule of the Americas, thereby directly disobeying her Company mandates. She finds herself in a weird race against time itself in this story of science fiction adventure, mystery, and comedy, with not a few reverential in-jokes about SoCal culture thrown in for good measure.
Kage Baker's style and wit make her novels among the best reads in science fiction today. Mendoza in Hollywood, the third book in the Company series (10 are planned) is simply delightful, with the focus back on dear, tragic Mendoza, and tantalizing hints of mysterious conspiracies aplenty. Lots of questions remain unanswered, but Baker weaves such a delicious tale, it's a pleasure to be teased. The series began with In the Garden of Iden and Sky Coyote. --Therese Littleton
Customer Reviews:
Somebody Get This Book Some Ritalin (tm).......2007-09-02
_____I could've sworn I wrote up a full and decent review of this bland blathering book some time ago... Well, whatever: With some minutes before dinner, I'll just recap my thoughts on this text. It truly was boring for one thing. For another thing, the book was tangental--always and again popping from one branching plot development to another. Top it all off with how this book reads more like an anthology with a short attention span, and it does not even qualify as a novel. Having MENDOZA IN HOLLYWOOD published as a novel is something like labeling oatmeal a sweet and putting it on the candy-store shelf: a deceptive thing to do.
_____The deception begins when we get to meet a truly awesome set of characters--awesome a great selection of ways. The main protatonists are cyborgs. Meaning, they have computer-enhanced brains with access to remote knowledge, have bodies endowed with super powers, and they are immortal. One would expect a mighty assemblage of immortal cyborgs to be put to some amazing and appropriate test of abilties. One would therefore expect rip-roaring science fiction. So you are led to believe, ladies and gentlemen, so you are led to believe...
_____OF COURSE YOU DON'T GET AN AWESOME BOOK. This book, after the first several chapters, degenerates into a haphazard series of events that involve characters alternating between investigating the antics of gun-toting locals and watching movies. That's right: the super-duper immortal cyborgs spend maybe as much time munching popcorn and watching movies as they do in actually DOING something. I'll tell you what: If I was an immortal cyborg with super-powers and was sent back in time on a mission, you would not catch me wasting half of my time eating buttered maize. That, and my attention would focus on ONE PLOT DEVELOPMENT AT A TIME.
_____Yes, in terms of plot development, the book has a hard time getting and keeping a plot. So the protagonist is first sent to collect rare plants. Then the protagonist decides to go help sell some pie-safes. And then the protagonist investigates a time-cave thing (a la Stephen King's DARK TOWER series). This then meanders into the protagonist deciding to part-time it as a prostitute...among other things. Only at the very freaking tail-end of this donkey of a book do we a coherent and finalizing plot development--that which leads to the main protagonist's professional downfall. It was as if this book was just made up as it was being typed with no real sense of direction. By the way, we all know what comes out the tail-end of a donkey, right? That would pretty much match the quality of this book's construction--plotless, meandering, and pointless.
_____By the way, before folks think that I'm just a lone-star madman out to slam random sci-fi novels, have a look at comments posted by other reviewers regarding MENDOZA IN HOLLYWOOD. Was this book boredom-inducing--as claimed by another reviewer? Why, YES it was! "Meandering," somebody else said that. I'll drink to that sentiment as well. Was there a problem with only the best development in the book happening at the VERY END--like say, in the last seventy pages? I see that same problem, and I'll raise you a five-dollar gold-piece to boot. If you don't believe my cinnamon-tinged verbal antics regarding the awfulness of this book's plotlessness, then you are very welcome to browse around at other reviewers' posts. This guy is not alone in slamming this book.
_____Maybe the only saving grace of this book was that it had a coherent writing style. What do I mean by that? Well, there is a problem with a lot of the science fiction novels out of the 1990s. Maybe it is a problem with LSD, because a lot of novels from that decade and beyond have an acid-trip style of writing: writing styles so crazed and incoherent that a person has to pick through the pages like a psychiatrist digging through the dialogue of a serial killer or something. Damien Broderick, Julian May, those are just two authors that come to mind when it comes to mindless madness and senselessness in writing. Kage Baker actually managed to stay coherent for the duration of MENDOZA IN HOLLYWOOD. For that reason, I gave the book two stars instead of one. Now I'm off to get my dinner--not popcorn. And somebody get this book something to make it more focused.
Another Company title.......2007-08-01
I'm working my way through the Company series. The underlying story of the immortals and the "company" of the 24th century that produced them and the time travel involved fascinates and Baker seems to be able to carry it through. Easy reads,well written and hard to put down. A wonderful multi-faceted drama
Wandering Aimlessly.......2007-06-10
In this installment of the Company novels, Mendoza is stationed in the hills of Hollywood, California, during the early 1860's. Her task, as always, is to collect rare and/or valuable plant species that would not survive the centuries without the Company's help.
Beyond Mendoza's task to collect plant species for the Company, the plot in this installment was pretty thin. The characters just did not have much of a purpose...there was no cohesive plot holding everything together. And, while we do end up with a bit more information about the Company at the end than we had at the beginning...there was nothing to move things along to reach the climax of the story.
Overall, Mendoza's jaunt in Hollywood has been the biggest disappointment of the three Company books up to this point. I look forward to things hopefully picking up with the next installment.
Savour it slowly.......2007-02-20
kage Baker's rich and evocative writing makes this haunting tale of haunted "Mendoza in Hollywood" fascinating. Future and past revive in a strange never-never land of the soul, in which Mendoza is living, whilst interacting with her fellow Time Traveler colleagues. You'll feel the strange melancholy of the immortal, the whilst beiing entertained by Oscars' funny antics as he tries to peddle a curious piece of kitchen furniture, and you'll be intrigued and moved as another cyborg develops an attachment to the birds he's studying. A bit slow in climaxing, this book is nonetheless a joy for the reader.
look at Baker's Amazing review of "Intolerance" .......2006-07-15
If you live in Los Angeles, Baker's novel is replete with so many local references. Especially centred on the suburb of Hollywood. The setting in the novel is in the 1860s, while much of Hollywood is still chaparral and dirt. But Baker gives a crazy juxtaposition of that Los Angeles with its 20th century equivalent. So there are many remarks about, say, Hollywood and Vine, or the 710 freeway. Makes one wonder if Baker actually lives in Los Angeles. Either that or she has certainly done her homework.
The book is also distinguished by a very long and hilarious review of D W Griffith's Intolerance. Here I am, writing a review of Baker's book. But I tell you that in some weird fashion, her narrative review of Intolerance is one of the best reviews of a movie that you might ever read, in any context. Baker's descriptions of the plot of Intolerance are given in a fast paced style, reminescent of the idea behind MST3K. Baker uses the characters in her novel to spice up her analysis in a way that she simply could not otherwise do.
Customer Reviews:
Comments by a satisfied reader.......2007-02-03
Scholarly and credible. Be ready to spend some time with this book, and have a dictionary handy if you are not familar with the philosophy and theology of morality.
Clarity for Morality.......2004-12-22
Pinckaers very clearly and concisely shows that Christian morality is about fulfilling our longing for happiness, excellence, joy, and truth. The end is not merely to obey commandments but rather to obey commandments in order to be truly happy. The power to walk that path of obedience comes not from dry logic but from the gifts of the Holy Spirit that animate the virtues of a Christian. Most telling is Pinckaers' distinction between mere pleasure and joy as two radically different conceptions of happiness. Many of our life-changing moral decisions come down to the choice between transient, superficial pleasure that is illusory and ends in bitterness and even hatred, while true happiness is, in the words of Augustine, "joy born of the truth" (p. 77). Pinckaers describes the path of happiness that ends in lasting joy, not the path of mere pleasure ending in disappointment.
The Pursuit of Happiness.......2002-10-01
This is an introductory text of unusual depth and breadth. Father Pinckaers' thesis is that since the 14th century moral philosophy and theology have posited human freedom as primary to human nature. From this premise have come a series of "moralities of obligation" in which freedom is seen as restricted by externally imposed moral rules. Almost by definition, such a model tends to disassociate happiness from morality.
According to Pinckaers, a better, more classical, and more Thomistic approach is to consider human freedom as part of human nature, rooted in and ineradicably woven among our yearnings for the good, the beautiful, and the true. Thus the best use of our freedom is virtue, which is not only compatible with happiness but in its highest form (i.e., love) is the source of joy.
Pinckaers' analysis of the fundamental flaw of modernist ethics is penetrating and, in my view, probably correct. The concept of human nature presented here is a high one, and may strike some as too exalted. But that's the point. Catholic morality looks to humanity as it was intended to be, and as it can be when redeemed by grace.
A brief but lucid presentation.......2002-08-27
This tiny book is, apparently, a condensation of the author's more scholarly "The Sources of Christian Ethics". It is written at a level suitable for those with little or no philosophical background, though even the studied can benefit from his forthright discussion of some of the more difficult topics.
The book is divided into two parts : a survey of the sources of Christian ethics, and a proposal for renewing our moral thought by a return to the classical and mediaeval models. Thus he discusses the sources for ethical reflection in the Gospels and the other New Testament documents (notably the Sermon on the Mount), then relates how these ideas were grafted onto the Greek philosophical tradition by the mediaevel thinkers. He dwells at (comparative) length on the structure of ethics as it was conceived by Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century; namely, morality is a search for human happiness and fulfillment. He then relates how this ancient ethical tradition was undermined in the late mediaeval period (it is William of Ockham who gets the lion's share of the blame), and how a new conception of Christian ethics as "ethics of obligation" came to dominate in the post-Reformation period. Finally, he discusses the impact of the Vatican II on Catholic moral reflection, in which he sees hope for a return to the ancient model.
The second part of the book is a reflection on how ethics might be reconceived in the image of Aquinas' ethics. In particular, he argues that our notion of freedom has to be fundamentally changed if we are to refound moral thought, for the dominant notion of freedom in modern times - what he calls 'freedom of indifference' - is at the root of the chaotic state of morality in western society. In opposition to the prevalent idea of freedom as the ability to choose without bias between contraries, he advocates 'freedom for excellence', which is the ability to act with excellence in whatever one chooses. His discussion of this issue is the best and clearest that I have encountered.
He goes on to a number of other topics, including the relationship of freedom and natural law, and the specifically Christian understanding of morals in relation to the Church and the work of the Holy Spirit.
I recommend this book to anyone who is discouraged with the present cacophonous state of moral discourse in terms of restrictions, rebellion, and rights; to students of intellectual history who want to better understand the nature of the break modernity has made with the Greeks and mediaevals; to those who are curious about the Catholic view of morality. Readers of Alasdair MacIntyre (who contributes the introduction to this book) and Josef Pieper should find much to enjoy.
Books:
- The Snow Garden: A Novel
- The Spring of the Ram: The Second Book of The House of Niccolo
- The Story of Lucy Gault
- The Town That Forgot How to Breathe: A Novel
- The Water and the Blood: A Novel
- Two Girls Fat and Thin
- Unknown Man #89
- Unquiet Earth
- Utopia Parkway: The Life And Work Of Joseph Cornell
- Vegas Heat
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- With the Heart of a King: Elizabeth I of England, Philip II of Spain, and the Fight for a Nation's S
- Stories on Stage: Children's Plays for Reader's Theater
- Monkey Beach: A Novel
- Lakota Woman
- Junie B., First Grader: Aloha-ha-ha!
- Numerical Recipes in C: The Art of Scientific Computing
- Projects for the Birder's Garden: Over 100 Easy Things That You can Make to Turn Your Yard and Garde
- Marie Antoinette: The Last Queen Of France
- Model Tax Convention on Income and on Capital: June 1998 Condensed Version
- When Your Plastic Melts: The He-Said/She-Said Guide for Couples in Financial Trouble
The Invention of Solitude
Collected Prose: Autobiographical Writings, True Stories, Critical Essays, Prefaces, and Collaborations with Artists
The Brooklyn Follies: A Novel
True Tales of American Life
The New York Trilogy (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)
