Book Description
The Fatigue Artist is a refreshingly candid story
about life, love, and survival in the contemporary
world. A writer living in New York City, Laura is
overwhelmed by a mysterious lethargy and retreats
to her bed where she reflects on the loves and losses
of her recent past and seeks the cure to her perplexing
tiredness.
Fortified by the Eastern teachings of her Tai Chi
instructor and the nurturing attentions of friends
and a acupuncturist, Laura crawls out of her
somnambulism with intelligent determination in search
of peace and resurrection. The Fatigue Artist is
both a moving chronicle of a woman's search for
meaning and a wry depiction of modern urban life.
Customer Reviews:
Beautiful Writing.......2006-01-20
Lynne Sharon Schwartz is such an accomplished wordsmith that her books are to be savored bit by bit, like eating the finest of chocolate cakes...you just don't want to finish.
Published in 1996, this beautiful novel tells the story of Laura, a quintessential New Yorker and writer, who is stricken with chronic fatigue syndrome after losing her journalist husband to a random senseless crime. As Laura describes her lassitude, wherein her bed calls to her "like a lover," the reader can actually feel the inertia of the body...can actually BECOME Laura as she uses this illness to relive her fortysomething life up to this point.
Often feverish and lightheaded, Laura swims through her memories as any of us would in this situation, somehow presenting us with a cohesive whole--a portrait of a very likeable woman who is, to use a hateful cliche but one that works in this instance, "at a crossroads." In addition to the almost painfully beautiful prose, Schwartz does something unusual by peppering the book in places with actual photographs of the scenes she is describing, particularly a large backyard swimming pool only 1/4 filled with water.
I cannot believe I missed this book when it first came out, but I found it as timely and wonderful as anything written now. It is not dated and its powerful simplicity leaves a lasting impression, as everything Schwartz writes.
The tides of illness.......2005-10-20
I found this book in a used bookstore. The title immediately captured me. I know chronic fatigue, and the effort of turning constant exhaustion into a form of art. So I bought the book and read it in one long gulp, enjoying it thoroughly. I don't know why it ranks so low on Amazon.com. It shouldn't: it's a great book.
Exhaustion permeates the book in a gentle, uninstrusive, *untiring* way that makes you realize the book, itself, is the gorgeous artifact of the fatigue artist/protagonist/narrator. Schwartz links multiple motifs into a narrative tapestry that is remarkably cohesive and effortless. One theme is performance art. This is key, because what artistry is left to the exhausted artist other than performing (for herself, for others?) her malaise? Another theme is Chinese body discipline and body healing, in the forms, respectively, of Tai Chi and acupuncture and herbal medicine. The Tai Chi master is Chinese and never appears without a translator. The acupuncturist is a young Caucasian woman. Translation occupies constantly the mind of the narrator. Does the Tai Chi instructor's interpreter traslate faithfully? What if he didn't? Would the wise and poetic words that come from the master count less? Whose words, really, are they?
Translation is also an issue for those who, like the Caucasian healer, bring foreign healing techniques to Western bodies (even, at some point, to a predictably docile and very cooperative Western dog!). Will they work even if you don't believe in them? Yes, the healer says.
Laura herself deals with translation in trying to bring to life in a novel-within-the-novel the small East Coast town where the family of her dead husband lived. Translation of any kind, we learn, is not an uncomplicated matter. The mind fumbles in its attempts to find words for the alien, the inexplicable -- Chinese parables, medicine that doesn't compute, a disappearing fishing culture, a mysterious illness. Words fail the narrator, yet she retains faith in them, and in the possibility of communication and healing.
Uncomplainingly, Laura subjects herself to the cures of her acupuncturist, even though at first they make her feel worse. She drags herself to Tai Chi in the park (New York has a large, loving presence in this book) whenever she can. When she's forced to lie in bed (bed, her best lover), she does so with pleasure. Her tiredness is not cause for bitterness but for reflection and pause.
She is a woman whom illness and life's sufferings have brought to acceptance of the complications of life: lovers who come and go, husbands who may be less than soul-mates, difficult step-children. Laura takes it all in stride, with humor, with gentleness, with deliberate good temper.
Schwartz metaphorizes these movements towards acceptance in Laura's relation to a dying squirrel that has decided to spend its last months on Laura's windowsill. Laura fights the creature for a while, hoping it'll spare her the effort of taking its stiff body to the trash can downstairs, but at the end she gives in. Life, love, death, illness, are all part of one smooth motion, like the tides of the disappearing fishing town.
There is not an ounce of banality in The Fatigue Artist. Schwartz is a first-rate writer, and her prose is beautifully sharp, poetic, and spare.
Definitely a good read..........2001-04-23
Like others who read this book, I found it to be deliberately slow and paced at times, but I enjoyed this form of writing the story after a time. It is a very intimate novel, so much so it almost makes you want to crawl into bed yourself while reading it! The main character I did find very self-involved, although mostly in a healthy manner. The steps she takes to take care of her illness, such as the Tai Chi class, seem to involve the reader more intimately into the character's spiritual journey. The novel is deliberately oblique as to whether or not the main character will make any resolution in career (finishing her book) or romance (Q). All in all, I found it a rich and satisfying read.
too fragmented.......2000-08-06
I hate to bring down the star value of a book, but I just couldn't give this book more than 3 stars.
Ms. Schwartz can certainly write, that isn't the problem. However, I found that she went off on tangents and the plot became too fragmented.
Brief characters in the beginning come up again only toward the end, forcing the reader to think back and remember who the not very memorable character is. Indeed, none of the characters except the main character and Q., her lover, are fleshed out at all. Sadly, the husband is an enigma. Overall, all the minor characters are spokes in a wheel with the main hub being "the fatigue artist," herself.
Very few characters have any dialogue at all, so we don't hear their "voice." Most of the book is interior monologue.
Maybe the main character was just too tired.
Beloved book.......2000-03-14
This brilliant book is one of my favorite novels of all time. Illness, grief, growth, recovery, not to mention Tai Chi, photographs, performance art, the most intimate appreciation for Manhattan, and meditations on the act of writing itself...no one but Schwartz could craft this combination of wisdom, knowledge, experiments in form, gorgeous language, and thoroughly engaging characters and plot.
Average customer rating:
- One of the greatest
- I'VE MET JEFF SMITH TWICE! ^_^
- Bone: An Heroic Epic in Comic Form
- Check it out
- It's amazing to think how many people won't read this...
|
Bone: One Volume Edition
Jeff Smith
Manufacturer: Cartoon Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 General | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books
General | Graphic Novels | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books
Fantasy | Graphic Novels | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books
General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books | Classics | Comic | Contemporary | Literary
General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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Bone Volume 1: Out From Boneville
ASIN: 188896314X |
Book Description
An American graphic novel first! The complete 1300-page epic adventure from start to finish in one deluxe trade paperback. Three modern cartoon cousins get lost in a pre-technological valley, speanding a year there making new friends and out-running dangerous enemies. Their many adventures include crossing the local people in The Great Cow Race, and meeting a giant mountain lion called RockJaw: Master of the Eastern Border. They learn about sacrifice and hardship in The Ghost Circles and finally discover their own true natures in the climatic journey to The Crown of Horns.
Customer Reviews:
One of the greatest.......2007-10-10
I've been reading a lot of comics and graphic novels lately. None of the others has compared to Bone. This is a seminal work in comics. The illustrations are beautiful, the writing is heartfelt and well done. I highly recommend this to anyone who loves art or prose, or anyone who doesn't think comics are a serious medium for art.
I'VE MET JEFF SMITH TWICE! ^_^.......2007-10-05
I first started reading bone when I was 8 years old; this was also the first comic I really started reading. My brother bought me a copy, even though it wasn't the first issue I still loved it. From the unigue artwork and the epic storytelling, I was hooked. I collected every single issue, along with various specials and spinoffs. Even with the single volume edition out I'm getting the new colored versions of the 9 books. I first met Jeff Smith when I was 14, and again when I was 16, so I've had a good deal of things autographed. If you're wondering, the answer is yes, he's a real nice guy. It took me a good while to read this massive book, 1300 pages isn't a cake walk, not to mention carrying it around. Any chance I got I'd read it, even at school. Took me almost a month maybe to finish, but it was worth it. This is a great series for people of all ages. I'd love to see more done with it. There was once supposed to be an animated movie, now that would be awesome.
Bone: An Heroic Epic in Comic Form.......2007-10-01
Bone is a comic for any who love style similar to Walt Kelly or want Tolkien's Lord of the Rings with irreverent wit and humor strewn throughout. A work of great comic book art (the pictures tell a thousand words) with snappy jokes and an amazingly well-crafted tale of epic proportions, this one-volume collection delivers time and time again. I found myself reading this (instead of my homework readings) in between classes, the moment I got home from school, and every free chance I got. Well worth purchasing if you like an intriguing tale of good vs. evil, humor, or comics in general.
Check it out.......2007-09-09
I dig this series. Comparing this to Lord of the Rings is an accurate portrayal. There is more humor to this than the Tolkien series. All the other reviews making these comments are accurate.
What I didn't see was a recommendation for children. I don't think this story is just for kids, but I think it would be something a parent could read with a child. Boys and girls can relate to the story; there are strong female characters, action, animals and cartoons interacting with people.Parents will like this story as well. Its good, clean fun.
I got the feeling this series would have worked out well in the comic section of the Sunday paper. It has a classic feel to it. The humor is almost on par with Calvin and Hobbes. In summation, check it out. It's worth your time and you'll be happy you did.
It's amazing to think how many people won't read this..........2007-09-04
Simply because it is a "comic book." I had seen parts of this book years ago when it was in monthly issues of Disney Adventures. I remember it being funny, and also a little freaky. So I grew up knowing what Bone was, but I never saw how the story ended.
So zip ahead years later. I'm at Borders looking at some graphic novels when I saw this huge book, and saw it was the Bone one Volume Graphic Novel. I looked at it, and I put it on the top of my list.
So I bought this book with my birthday money, and started reading it once I got it in the mail.
This is by far one of the best books I have ever read. I was surprised at how dark it got in the middle, but still engaged in the story.
Anyone watching me reading this book would either see me laughing, or wide eyed staring at the pages anticipating what will happen next. I told my brother he should read it, and he's going through it a second time.
Be warned though, the book takes a dark turn in the middle, and it keeps that tone for a great portion of the book. But nevertheless, it is amazing.
I hope some people will look past the fact that this is a comic, and pick it up. The story both broke and warmed my heart. BUY THIS BOOK!
Book Description
Fafhrd and Gray Mouser visit the Witch's Tent to consult a sorceress who holds the secret to their escape-but when would they ever need to escape? Their luck has been good so far; one way out should work. Their luck continues as thieves. They are the best thieves in Lankhmar until better positions arise: The Lords of Quarmall. Gray Mouser and Fafhrd steal a kingdom within a hill and declare themselves Lords.
Customer Reviews:
More than it appears to be.......2007-08-17
I just received this edition and was pleasantly surprised to find that it includes Book 4 "Swords against Wizardry." As for content, the Fafhrd/Gray Mouser series is fantasy at its best.
swordsin the mist review.......2007-01-05
Great, just like all other Leiber's books of Lankhmar. I recommend it for fans of heroic fiction novels.
Great Fafhrd & The Gray Mouser Stories.......2001-02-20
Leiber's sword books stand alone in heroic fantasy for their gallows humor, perverse plots, and decadent settings. He treats his heroes with a respect, compassion, and maturity not common in fantasy or horror writing.
This books of stories includes material written in the 1940's to 1960's. In addition to the famous "Lean Times in Lankhmar" - the story of Issek of the Jug's rise on the Street of the Gods - and "Adept's Gambit" - where the heroes come to the Macedonian empire on our Earth, the book includes "The Cloud of Hate", "When the Sea-King's Away", and a pair of short-shorts written as segueways between the previously published stories.
Good reading.......1999-11-30
It's a shame that these Leiber books are out of print. They're well-written and exciting. Reading these I felt the same excitement I had reading Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories in that once you're done with a story..you get to start another one all over again.
Book Description
Lean times in Lankhmar force brothers-in-arms Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser to part ways. Only after a joust of wits and swords do the friends join together again, stealing the ship the Black Treasurer and sailing round and through The Claws. Fighting sea kings, curses and seven-eyed wizards, the pair set out on their heroic wanderings through the wilds of Nehwon.
Customer Reviews:
Fine Fantasy.......2005-10-18
These were some of the first fantasy stories I read as a kid and I never get tired of rereading them. This author has created a world that, while somewhat old fashioned in its approach to womens roles, is addictive and fun. When I went back and reread these stories a few years ago I was surprised to find that I still loved them and had trouble putting them down. I recommend these stories to anyone wanting a break from the real world and some fun time with old fashioned heros.
Customer Reviews:
Smooth sailing adventure about perilous sailing!.......2002-11-20
This is the fifth book in a superior fantasy series called "The Swords of Raemllyn" but it can probably be enjoyed alone. This is a very fast-moving adventure story focusing on Davin Anane and Goran One-Eye, and thus (in contrast to book 4 of the series, "Death's Acolyte") tends toward the comical and lighthearted side of the genre. This book is a real page-turner! It is primarily a sea adventure, with our two heroic adventurers facing a variety of challenges as they attempt to journey across the land of Raemllyn for purposes of their ongoing quests. It is one of the most entertaining entries in this superior fantasy series. 6.5hrs.
Amazon.com's Best of 2001
Rabbi Marc Gafni is a Kabbalist, someone who studies the mystical interpretations of biblical books, handed down over many generations. Through his studies Gafni became fascinated with the power of biblical myths to awaken the soul while also helping us understand our earthly purpose. The more he delved into the Kabbalah, the more he became interested in the individual blueprint of the soul--how each person seemed born to a different soul-driven destiny.
"Your soul print is your personal signature," explains Gafni. "It is the contour and content of your soul--it's character.... It is even more singular to you than your genes and chromosomes."
In blending his two passions, "soul prints" and myths, Rabbi Gafni created an ambitious spiritual self-help book filled with sage advice on living in connection with the soul. Don't be squeamish about the self-help mission. Gafni's narrative reads more like a personal counseling session in a rabbi's private office--intelligent, warm (expect lots of chuckles), occasionally tangential, but mostly filled with practical guidance. He also inserts numerous sidebars that offer "Soul Print Practices," such as "Make a list of the seven wonders of your world" or "Take sensual risks. Be creative with your senses in how or what you eat, or make love." --Gail Hudson
Book Description
A charismatic American philosopher living in Jerusalem, Marc Gafni has become an important voice on religion and spirituality through his enormously popular weekly television program; now, his universal message comes to America, fully realized, in his first book.
Marc Gafni follows in the tradition of Rabbi Harold Kushner and Ram Dass, bringing wisdom to everyday experience and using spiritual stories to teach us
how to live happier lives. The secret is to "live your story," and we do this by identifying our unique selves -- our "soul prints." Only then can we connect on a deeper level with the world and with those sharing it alongside us.
Soul Prints speaks to all readers, regardless of religious beliefs or
practices. Using the power of myth -- Biblical and folk -- and drawing on
his own highs and lows, Gafni offers advice on how to overcome the
obstacles of an increasingly disconnected world to form bonds based in
truth and love: connections that begin with our true selves.
Customer Reviews:
No more looking in all the wrong places.......2006-08-22
Nothing will prepare you for the level of search, the journey and the discoveries you will make, guided by Mark Gafni. It is mystical without being partial. Be prepared t source the real you.
Four stars: The fifth star of this book is you.
Understand yourself through myth.......2006-02-11
Although no of the Jewish faith, I thoroughly enjoyed discovering myself through these stories of biblical and folk myths. The "Soul Print Practice" exercises were also illuminating. Much more than a "self help" book and students of Kabbalah will probably be particularly drawn to it.
I couldn't believe how nice this was!.......2005-08-04
This book arrived and it was in perfect condition. I surely could not tell it was used. It looked brand new. I would order again and again like this. I am extremely pleased with my purchase and the timeliness of it's arrival!
A work to inspire your interest in traditional Jewish texts .......2005-02-08
Rabbi Gafni is a brilliant if problematic teacher of traditional Jewish texts. In this work he wants to help his readers escape their loneliness and difficulties in life through finding their own ' soul-print' their own spiritual I.D. In self- help book fashion he preaches that the way to one's true self is the way to a meaningful life. Unfortunately Rabbi Gafni does this while ignoring the more traditional Jewish view that the deepest way to find oneself is through giving to others in one's own family and community, to worshipping not oneself but God. Yet Rabbi Gafni reads Midrashim with startling insight , and it seems to me that there is great benefit in reading this book if only in that it shows the readers(who probably have small knowledge of traditional Jewish texts including Midrashim) how deep and powerful the Jewish tradition is.
Pop Psychology.......2004-07-17
Marc Gafni's Soul Prints is a postitive book, however its basically just pop psychology mixed with Kabalistic overtones to give the pop psych a different flavor. There are alot of people out there that mix pop psychology with cultural overtones selling books and making a living lecturing, i dont think ther is anything wrong with it. However its kind of like going to the super market and seeing 30 different brands of detergent; they all basically do the same thing. Basically what i'm saying is if you already read a self help book then dont waste your time with this one.
Books:
- For America: Simple Things Each of Us Can Do to Make Our Country Better
- Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- I Should Be Extremely Happy in Your Company: A Novel of Lewis and Clark
- In Another Place, Not Here
- In Defiance of Painting: Cubism, Futurism, and the Invention of Collage (Yale Publications in the History of Art)
- Indulekha
- Jane Austen's Charlotte: Her Fragment of a Last Novel
- L'Immoraliste (Folio)
- Le Pere Goriot
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Let Go to Grow: Escaping the Commodity Trap, First Edition
- Doctor Maisy
- Three Essays on Style
- Your Life Is Worth Mine: How Polish Nuns Saved Hundreds of Jewish Children in German-Occupied Poland
- AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors
- Hamlet
- Biosphere Reserves -- Myth or Reality
- 7001 Resumes
- Why Firms Succeed
- Hawaii Business-To-Business Marketing Directory 2002
In the Family Way: An Urban Comedy
The Writing On The Wall
Referred Pain: And Other Stories
Disturbances in the Field: A Novel
Rough Strife (Perennial Fiction Library)
