Book Description
Henry Mulcahy, a literature instructor at progressive Jocelyn College, is informed that his appointment will not be continued. Convinced he is disliked by the president of Jocelyn because of his abilities as a teacher and his independence of mass opinion, Mulcahy believes he is being made the victim of a witch-hunt. Plotting vengeance, Mulcahy battles to fight for justice and, in the process, reveals his true ethical nature.
Customer Reviews:
Ambitious & Profound.......2004-05-27
This ambitious little novel uses a story of a small progressive college in the early 1950¡¯s to make some rather weighty inquiries. It begins when professor Mulcahy receives his letter of dismissal. From this point on, Mulcahy schemes to keep his place. In the process, the reader is treated to many a stimulating dialogue between the learned members of the faculty. The message is one of tolerance and a resigned acceptance of the often contradictory nature of experience. When the book was written, the era of Eugene McCarthy¡¯s ascendancy, this was exactly the message the public needed to hear. Observe the argument against a tyranny of the masses and in favor of something that sounds vaguely like syndicalism.
Quote:
¡°Teaching, like all the arts, can¡¯t be democratic or subject to referendum; it must be run from within, by an autonomous guild, according to guild standards.¡±¡Now what are these standards to be? Are they to be administrative or internal? Like the standards of a poem? Within certain limits, isn¡¯t it possible for each teacher to make his own, as a poem makes its own laws?...¡±But a poem¡justifies itself in the long run by referring back to life¡.¡± ¡ ¡°Somebody¡ªI believe Orwell¡ª¡says that you can¡¯t prove that a poem is good. A piece of news we must keep from the students at all cost or we should all be out of a job.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t prove that a poem is good, but you can know it,¡± said Domna, suddenly, with conviction¡ ¡°In general, we submit ourselves to the judgment of the poets in these matters; we allow our poets to tell us that Donne is superior to Milton, and here perhaps we are wrong, but we cannot know that we are wrong until we also become poets. Tolstoy was wrong, in my belief, about Shakespeare, but his wrongness has a certain authority; we pause to listen to him because he was a poet. In the same way, it is only we teachers who have earned the right to be listened to on the question of another teacher¡¯s competence, who have earned,¡± she finished, somewhat defiantly, ¡°the right, if you want, to be wrong.¡±
The argument can be read as a comment on the blacklisting of artists & intellectuals by Senator McCarthy. McCarthy (the author) however, is too much of an artist to present her indictment in simple terms. You see, Mulcahy, the hero/victim, is a thoroughly unwholesome character. A reader is hard pressed to sympathize with him as he goes about manipulating his colleagues to secure his stated goal of ¡° ¡®Justice for myself as a superior individual.¡¯¡± When Mulcahy voices this appraisal, the reader has seen enough of his disregard for other people to doubt his sanity. Even so, Mulcahy has his virtues. And in professor Bentkoop¡¯s view, they make him a valuable asset to the faculty.
Quote:
¡°There¡¯s a good deal to be said for Hen on the plus side¡He¡¯s interested in ontological questions, which are the great binders of diverse humanity¡What¡¯s needed at Jocelyn or any college is a mind concerned with universals and first principles; the students take to them like catnip if they¡¯re given half a chance¡A student reads an author for his ideas, for his personal metaphysic, what he calls, till you people teach him not to say it, his ¡®philosophy of life.¡¯ He wants to detach from an author a portable philosophy.¡±
I don't think McCarthy would write that if she didn't want a reader to approach her book from that angle. And for that matter, take the following:
Quote:
His talk was, in fact, so clear that the best disposal the Literature faculty could make of it was to assume that they had not understood it, that of the proverbial four levels of meaning that they so stringently enforced on their classes they themselves had seized only on the literal and had failed of the moral, the allegorical, and the anagogical.
There's a whole scene, in chiaroscuro, where Bentkoop & Domna work out the philosophical ramifications of Mulcahy's behavior. Here¡¯s the tail end of the conversation, throughout which, Domna attacks Mulcahy & Bentkoop apologizes for him.
Quote:
¡°This abrogation of judgment you practice is an insult to man¡¯s dignity. Everybody has the right to be judged and to judge in his turn. This ¡®understanding you accord Henry is dangerous, both to him and to you. God is our judge, you will tell me. But there is no God. God is man.¡± The blasphemous words rang out; the windows rattled; but John seemed unaffected. ¡°God is man, Domna, if you wish,¡± he said gravely. ¡°But He is not men.¡±
Domna suddenly looked tired. ¡°No,¡± she admitted. ¡°I suppose in a certain way I am on your side. If I presume to judge Henry, I don¡¯t presume to punish him. That is not my affair. She sighed. ¡°And yet I can¡¯t help but feel that I¡¯m implicated in a frightful swindle.¡±
This passage can be interpreted from a variety of angles. Morally, a middle ground between condemnation & forgiveness is reached. The ethical heart of the matter is located in the individual¡ªnot in any institutions, dogmas, or formulas. Any human being can judge another, precisely because of their shared humanity. The ¡°first principles¡± mentioned before are the basis for such judgments, not the formulations--political, intellectual, or religious¡ªof ¡°men.¡± The foremost of these principles is dignity. It¡¯s beneath the dignity of man (forgive the gender bias) to surrender the power of judgment to any outside force. But it is also beneath the dignity of man to punish the accused. The allegorical angle can be extracted painlessly. Between the McCarthyites on the one side & the Communists on the other, the dignity of the common man was hard pressed in the 1950¡¯s (as it is nowadays between the neocons & the fundamentalists) As for the anagogical angle, just replace the ¡°dignity of man¡± with ¡°God in man¡± and there you have it.
Not McCarthy's best..........2003-02-14
I am an alum of the small college "Groves" is based on. I am also an academic and great fan of McCarthy's novel "The Group". I should have found "The Groves of Academe" engaging on these three facts alone. Sadly, the book left me cold. As a satire the novel is dissatisfying on several levels -- where we spot the familiar, the recognition is only sad, not humourous; and the plot, even for an academic who can be expected to find campus politics interesting, is deadly dull. If you aren't familiar with McCarthy, start with her far more interesting and accessible "The Group" instead. If you are new to academic satire, start with "The Lecturer's Tale" for a far more entertaining and cunning critique of academic culture.
Flat and uninteresting.......2003-02-13
As an academic, I anticipated liking this book very much. I find the day-to-day petty politics of the university amusing in real life and thought such a satire would be enjoyable. The Groves of Academe, however, proved to be lifeless and long-winded. The protagonist is so entirely unlikeable that I found myself wishing he'd just leave and get it over. None of the other characters were particularly engaging either; they tended to be rather flat stereotypes (e.g. the dried-up spinster), which usually work in a satire, but really needed to be more human to counteract the distaste inspired by Mulcahy.
The setting in the post-war, commie witch-hunt days really turns out to be less important than anticipated. While it provides some interesting strategies for our anti-hero, it could be replaced with any number of "isms" without changing the essential effect.
McCarthy's style is excruciatingly dry and her dialogue is stilted to the point of being stylized. The sheer boredom of plowing through her prose deadens the mind to the point that any satirical effect is largely lost.
The jabs at "progressive" education were mildly entertaining, thus two stars rather than a mere one.
Language more literary than illuminating.......2002-01-01
With my interest in the academic genre -- David Lodge is good, light humor, Richard Russo's "Straight Man" was a wonderful, comedic treat -- Amazon directed me to "Groves", where I quickly proceeded to become lost among the trees.
Like Kingsley Amis' "Lucky Jim", a book I found to be absent much appeal, McCarthy offers a highly literate analysis of the travails of a male professor struggling at university after World War II. McCarthy's Henry Mulcahy is strapped by poverty, with a sickly wife and four children, in a temporary teaching position offered, in part, out of a sense of guilt by the college president. Then Mulcahy gets the dreaded and unexpected "non-renewal" letter.
Some aspects of academic life have not changed in fifty years: petty squabbles and politics, the longing for job security, the poor wages of some professors, the need for intrinsic interest in teaching, the complaints about students' habits. But the focus on communism and loyalty oaths as a basis for job insecurity is a distant memory to most people. And Mulcahy's own dishonesty (or grasp of reality) left me confused rather than sympathetic. Rather I found myself attuned to Mulcahy's nemesis, the president.
The story is simple yet the tone of the book put me off. There was more philosophy than conversation, and when academics did speak, they spoke in a fashion most would find hard to expect in conversation. I grew bored. The characters weren't that interesting despite their intelligence, and I found myself speed reading the last thirty pages. And I found myself as displeased with "Groves" as I had been with "Lucky Jim".
Sometimes very literate and well-educated authors don't translate well to my level, to meet my self-admittedly need for a clearer, more linear story and engaging characters.
lacks nuance.......2001-08-05
This book gave me the same desire I sometimes have at an art gallery, to touch up someone else's painting; not that it's not a good painting, but if I were painting it...Anyway, this work will amuse those deep in the belly of the academic beast, but knowing that they would be her audience, why did the author spend so much time explaining the minutiae of life at a small college? A reference here and there would have been sharper. If you haven't yet read Kingsley Amis's _Lucky Jim_, start there, and leave this for later.
Average customer rating:
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Campus Architecture: Building in the Groves of Academe
Richard P. Dober
Manufacturer: Mcgraw-Hill (Tx)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 General
| Architecture
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Building Types & Styles
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ASIN: 0070171858 |
Book Description
Integrate campus architecture with sites and landscape. Discover the secrets of campus building and landscape planning with Richard P. Dober's Campus Atchitectulrde. Whether you're called upon to update and revitalize the existing architectural heritage of a campus, or design innovative new buildings that meet its present and future academic needs, this is the only guide you'll need. You'll find: how to incorporate computerized libraries, changing physical education and recreational needs, and new alternative campus housing designs; fully illustrated case studies of the best designs and redesigns; techniques for campus rehabilitation, repair, and renovation; how to meet environmental, conservation, and aesthetic considerations within the same project; how to provide long-term durability and operating economy within budget; and much m ore.
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The Groves of Academe
Manufacturer: Signet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000F2XYAG |
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Academe
Paul Groves
Manufacturer: Seren Books/Poetry Wales Pr Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
20th Century
| Poetry
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ASIN: 0907476988 |
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FEMINIST SCHOLARSHIP: Kindling in the Groves of Academe
Ellen Carol Dubois
Manufacturer: University of Illinois Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
History & Criticism
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ASIN: 0252014642 |
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Groves of Academe
Mary McCarthy
Manufacturer: HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OKD22Y |
Customer Reviews:
Very enjoyable regency romance.......2006-09-13
From the back cover:
To catch a thief...
The dashing Mr. Hugo Devenish had come to London on an important mission: to prevent his innocent nephew from marrying an unsuitable young heiress. He'd never expected to be trounced upon by the most infamous thief in town!
All society was agog at the rash of burglaries being committed by the mysterious Chinaman, but Hugo's attention was diverted once he was introduced to his nephew's heiress, the intriguing Miss Kit Singleton. Hugo found himself utterly enchanted. But her dubious background gave rise to the suspicion that Miss Singleton was somehow connected to the notorious thief. And Hugo could only hope to uncover Kit's many secrets, before the winsome beauty managed to steal his heart!
And my review:
Anne Gracie is one of Harlequin's best authors. She's so good, in fact, that she's now moved into full-length historical romance, and AN HONORABLE THIEF is an excellent example of why she belongs there.
Her characters are delightful, and always well-rounded, until they are real people that you feel you know. And not just the hero and heroine, either. The secondary characters (like Maggie, Kit's maid, or Kit's aunt Rose) will also steal your heart. I especially loved Kit, the heroine. She was wonderfully spirited without being shrewish. I loved how she put a stop to a lecherous old man's advances by "accidentally" kicking him in the shin and trodding on his toes during a dance. All done with a smile and apologies, of course. I was laughing out loud at that scene.
Even in the confined page count of catagory romance, Gracie has managed to create a complete story that never feels rushed. Often, Harlequin books will be well developed until the last 50 pages, where the author will try to squash the rest of her story in. That wasn't the case here. The pacing of the story was well done and enjoyable throughought the story.
I hardly ever read Harlequin romance anymore, since the majority of these books are so unsatifying. Anne Gracie's books are one of the few exceptions. Her stories are so good that they are always worth the read. I would certainly recommend AN HONORABLE THIEF. I also recommend THE VIRTUOUS WIDOW, a Christmas novella written by the same author, found in Harlequin's GIFTS OF THE SEASON anthology.
I just don't get it!.......2004-04-23
This book was purchased mostly because of very good reveiews at other sites as well as this one. I just don't get it! The story is so beyond belief and more than a little dramatic regarding the upbringing of the heroine by a father who is useless and over the top when it comes to his daughter's well being. The tale of the h/h first meeting is outright silly and the sudden reality of a love for all time is outlandish.
To say this author was a disappointment is understated. Unreal is the only thing that comes to mind.
Unexpected story from a great writer.......2002-09-02
The thing I like most about Anne Gracie as an author is that she takes the romance genre by the neck and manages to shake out a great story that conforms to all the things I love about romances - but does it in a marvellously unexpected way. This is a satisfying and romantic story but just when you think you have sussed it all out, there is a quite unexpected twist - this happens more than once during the story -
We meet Kit Singleton, newly arrived in London for the season in 1816 - an heiress of some standing. At the same time there is a burglar sneaking into the houses of the wealthy - and Hugo Devenish meets this burglar unexpectedly. Unexpected on both sides when he is knocked down by this slight fellow - who sounded perculiarly Chinese.
Hugo suspects Miss Singleton is the key to the mystery and can't explain why. Miss Singleton isn't helping him, she has a sacred pact - vengeance she has sworn in her father's honour on his death-bed. There are no easy resolutions in this book but the action never seems contrived simply as plot devices.
The only quibble I have with Gracie's latest work is that the slang doesn't feel as Regency as it ought to and there are characters that seem more Victorian than Georgian - such as Sir William Marsden. I would have given this book 5 stars if it had been set in a Victorian setting for that reason. However one thing Gracie doesn't let us down on is a great story and that is definitely the most important thing!
Keeper for Regency fans!.......2002-07-04
London has two sensations in the season of 1816: A Chinese burglar and a diamond heiress, both new in town, neither of who want to be caught. The heiress is a spirited young woman who returns to England to restore her family's honour. Playing the social game, Kit Singleton, with her unconventional ideas and manners befriends and rescues damsels in distress and sparks the interest of one Hugo Devenish. He's a strong, tall and dark man, a man that a woman could easily fall in love with - but he's also a man looking for the thief.
I love romance novels with thieves and mistaken identities and I love my heroines daring, unique and on the wild side. Add to that some costly artefacts, jewels and a hero that is brooding, rich and unpretentious with no regard for society's strictures and you have a mix that I find irresistible.
The story is more complex than expected, surprising me with twists and turns without ever getting lost in them. I immensely enjoyed Ms. Gracie's style, not just for a story well told but for her choice of words that had me re-reading whole scenes just for the pleasure of it. It's never cute but witty, never pretentious but always vivid.
This is a true find and definitely a keeper especially for regency fans.
Fun and well-crafted.......2002-06-29
I read this book after having read Tallie’s Knight and Gallant Waif and found this as delightful as the others.
Kit Singleton arrives in London after a life spent in foreign parts with her father. She is charged with a mission to fulfill a deathbed promise she made to him. At the same time Hugo Devenish meets her and becomes curious about her past.
Anne Gracie skilfully weaves a quite complex story against the background of life amongst the ton of London. Kit and Hugo are unusual characters in this setting; both loners without normal family relationships who seem to swan in and out of society functions without really belonging. They are drawn together and I love the way Hugo is captivated by Kit without consciously recognising it. In my opinion an almost perfect hero. The side characters are well-drawn with lives of their own that add depth to the story.
Gracie’s writing style helps make her work so appealing to me. She uses unusually short sentences, a kind of mental shorthand, when she is depicting Hugo’s point of view, for example. Humour lurks in the background of every scene. I love her descriptive use of words - "watchdoggery" and "Sir Primrose", for example.
All in all a treat which I have already read twice.
Customer Reviews:
It Was Just One Of Those Days..........2003-01-08
Honor's day had gone from bad to worse. It was one thing to be fired from one's post as a governess, sent from the house in shame, and made to walk to the nearest village (not nearly near enough) in deep snow. And all this because her employer's nephew assaulted HER! It was another thing to come across an unconscious man, lying amid a wrecked carriage, and, out of sheer desperation, steal enough money to hire a ride.
And now Honor, who was, of course, caught red handed by the world's most obnoxious postboy, must claim to be the unconscious gentleman's wife to avoid severe punishment.
But that is only the beginning. When the gentleman awakens and apparently believes Honor's ruse, Honor finds herself in the world's biggest tangle...especially when the gentleman unknowingly begins to steal his "wife's" heart.
Delightful and funny! Another gem by Martha Kirkland...don't miss it.
A book that will steal your heart.......2000-12-06
This was one of the first regency romances I ever read, and then I was hooked. The plot is Honoria Danforth has been dismissed from her postition as governess. She is walking to the villiage to catch a coach to London when she comes upon an overturned coach. The man inside is unconsious. Circumstances then force her to pose as the man's wife. Edmond Lawrence takes her to his newly inherited estate so that he won't be trapped into marrying the young lady at the estate. Needless to say things beome more complex as the story goes on. Not only are there delightfully likeable characters, there is humor, and some mystery and suspense as well. I highly recommend this book. It will be an enjoyable reading experience.
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An Honorable Thief
Andrew J. Forkes ,
Rew Forkes , and
Jascha Kessler
Manufacturer: Xlibris Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Criminals | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0738807605 |
Book Description
Andrew J. Forkes, a safecracker during the mob-dominated gangster era of the 30s through the 50s, chronicles his compelling autobiography with descriptive photos--spanning nearly a century--starting at age five with his arrival in America from Hungary. Prison-school educated, Andy takes us from middle America to Hollywood via Las Vegas and back--recalling a life of danger, and deceit, lightened with humor, romance and friendship. He convinces us that there can be honor among some thieves, but has a message for any would-be thief. Don't do it, get a lunch pail.
Book Description
Developed for both spiritual students and mainstream seekers by Eckhart Tolle, world-renowned spiritual teacher, this handsome collection of four-color cards makes a thoughtful present that provides insights into living with grace and ease. It is both intensely inspirational and practical. Excerpted from Tolle's powerful lessons in Stillness Speaks, the deck divides into topics such as "Beyond The Thinking Mind" and "Suffering the End of Suffering" and features key topics on the front and short quotations on the back. Guidance to living in the now has never been more accessible.
Customer Reviews:
Find the Place of Stillness.......2005-08-26
"Unhappiness ultimately arises not from the circumstances of your life but from the conditioning of your mind." - Eckhart Tolle
Through his book Stillness Speaks, author Eckhart Tolle shows us how to find tranquility and our own true nature in stillness. According to Tolle, when we connect to the stillness within, we move beyond our active minds and tumultuous emotions to discover great depths of lasting peace, contentment, and serenity.
The Stillness Speaks cards features 50 quotations from the book. The deck comes in an attractive, sturdy flip-top box with a magnetic lid. The top of the box doubles as a frame which can be propped open to display your favorite inspiration cards for ongoing reflection. Beautiful shades of purple grace both the box and the cards themselves.
One side of the card is printed with a quotation from Stillness Speaks, while the other depicts one of nine themes:
* Acceptance and Surrender
* Freedom from the Egoic Self
* Who You Truly Are
* Silence and Stillness
* The Stillness of Nature
* Relationships and Stillness
* Beyond the Thinking Mind
* The End of Suffering
* The Stillness of Eternity
Some of the quotes you'll find in the Stillness Speaks deck include:
"Suffering begins when you mentally label a situation as bad. That causes an emotional contraction. When you let it be, without naming it, enormous power is available to you. The contraction cuts you off from that power, the power of life itself."
"Sometimes surrender means giving up trying to understand and being comfortable with not knowing."
"When you live through the ego, you reduce the present moment to a means to an end. You live for the future, and when you achieve your goals, they don't satisfy you, at least, not for long."
"Bring awareness to the many subtle sounds of nature, the rustling of leaves in the wind, the falling of raindrops, the humming of an insect, the first birdsong at dawn. Give yourself completely to the act of listening. Beyond the sounds there is something greater: a sacredness that cannot be understood through thought."
"Envy is a by-product of the ego, which feels diminished if something good happens to someone or if someone has more or knows more than you. The ego's identity depends on comparison and feeds on *more*. It will grasp at anything."
"If you can learn to accept and even welcome the endings in your life, you may find that the feeling of emptiness that initially felt uncomfortable turns into a sense of inner spaciousness that is deeply peaceful."
If you enjoy the book Stillness Speaks, you'll appreciate having these inspirational quotes in a handy format. The attractive box with built-in frame is a nice touch and would make a lovely gift for those who enjoy contemplative and meditative quotes. For those unfamiliar with the book, you needn't have read it to benefit from the Stillness Speaks Inspiration Cards. Personally, I enjoy the Power of Now Cards more than the Stillness Speaks deck (even though the latter is prettier), but even so, there is great wisdom about stillness and surrender contained in these cards.
(To see 3 images from this deck, visit the Reviews--Decks section at www.JanetBoyer.com )
Books:
- The Hiding Place: A Novel
- The Hinterlands: A Mountain Tale in Three Parts
- The Iceweaver: A Novel
- The Irwin Allen Scrapbook Volume 2: Lost in Space, Land of the Giants
- The Lost Legends of New Jersey
- The Man Who Planted Trees, 20th Anniversary
- The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals
- The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque: A Novel
- The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, The Girls of Slender Means, The Driver's Seat, The Only Problem (Everyman's Library Classics & Contemporary Classics)
- The Purse-driven Life: It Really Is All About Me
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