The Luminaries (Eleanor Catton, 2013)

Upon its release, The Luminaries was the subject of praise so effusive and hyperbolic that I wondered at first whether it would be the kind of book so impenetrable, conceptual, or self-serious that only a critic could recommend it. That is not, thankfully, the case, but I think that in their rush to congratulate an incredibly talented young author on a serious literary accomplishment, these critics decided to kindly play down the book’s weaknesses while expanding upon its (considerable) strengths. Ultimately the contrivance that lends the book such grandeur causes the narrative to implode – but it sure looks good doing it.

Traditional honey-hunting by Gurung tribesman in Nepal (photo: Andrew Newey)

Johannes Janson – A Formal Garden (1766)

Vocabulary: Hadrian’s Hoard Edition

mandrel: the bar or cylinder on which a spinning tool or workpiece (e.g. a millstone) is mounted
gabion: wicker baskets or steel drums filled with rocks and used in fortification or construction
palingenesis: rebirth or baptism; in biology, embryonic forms revisiting evolutionary history
maquis: a scrubby Mediterranean plant; also, a French resistance group in World War II
ergastulum: a subterranean prison or dungeon in which dangerous slaves were kept
fytte: archaic spelling of fit, in this case meaning a section of a poem or ballad
prorogue: to defer or postpone, especially in legislative bodies
encaustic: art formed or fixed by a burning or heating process
swivet: a state of nervous excitement, confusion, or anxiety
haruspex: one who divines the future by observing entrails
brontoscopy: divination through the sound of thunder
febrifuge: a drug or drink for reducing fever
dubitation: archaic term for doubt
ferine: alternative spelling of feral
kyst: a chest or container

Opening shot of “Zatoichi’s Flashing Sword” (1964)

The Drones – “I See Seaweed”
I See Seaweed

The truth is I can’t stand the way this guy sings, but he is one of the rare songwriters out there who can make up for a mouthful of marbles with the quality of his writing. Wait Long By The River… had surprising lyrical depth, and I See Seaweed, the title track in particular, does as well — juxtaposing rising sea levels with more personal human iniquities. It’s not happy music, however, so if you’re looking for something to drag you out of the ditch, this ain’t it. (buy at band website)

An enormous flare maxing out the Solar Dynamics Observatory’s sensors, above, and split into different wavelengths, below

15-year-old Jane Austen’s parodical history of England

“During his reign, Lord Cobham was burnt alive, but I forget what for.”

“It was in this reign that Joan of Arc lived & made such a row among the English. They should not have burnt her – but they did.”

Vyacheslav Ivanov – Snowtime

(Source: https://player.vimeo.com/)

Wylder’s Hand (J. Sheridan Le Fanu, 1864)

This pastoral mystery is one of the less-read works of the prolific and (then) popular Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu. In the true Le Fanu style, there is an abundance of natural beauty, a pervasive sense of foreboding, and a deep mystery with an air of the supernatural.

Charles de Cresseron, our narrator, is visiting the town in which he grew up to advise on the estate issues of an old acquaintance, and shortly becomes peripherally involved with mysterious happenings surrounding the intertwined and feuding families of the Lakes, the Wylders, and the Brandons. It’s a fun and interesting book, yet with much to criticize.