“The reading of all good books is like conversation with the finest men of past centuries.” — René Descartes
The Plague, a novel published by Albert Camus in 1947, was my first introduction to a subset of existentialist thought popularized by Camus known as absurdism. While much of the content of absurdism was covered in the earlier post on The Stranger, I did want to begin this post by familiarizing the reader with a... Continue Reading →
“A Pint of Sweat Will Save a Gallon of Blood.” -General Patton
Michael and David discuss Antony Beevor's book, D-Day: The Battle for Normandy after visiting The National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana together. Description of book: Renowned historian Antony Beevor, author of Stalingrad and The Battle of Arnhem, and the man who "single-handedly transformed the reputation of military history" (The Guardian) presents the first major... Continue Reading →
"The West is a story. It's not a place. It's a story we tell ourselves about where we've been and where we're going." - Ken Burns
"Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege" is a gripping book that offers a detailed and nuanced understanding of one of the most important battles of the 20th century.
"I looked up at the mass of signs and stars in the night sky and laid myself open for the first time to the benign indifference of the world."
Admittedly, I had only read a little of history and war before Michael and I began reading together. My first attempt at reading history “seriously” was Oswald Spengler’s two-volume set, Decline of the West. I mistakenly thought that history could be comprehended like a novel or short story. I was like a young boy who,... Continue Reading →
"When the results of this year's campaign were reported in his dispatches, a thanksgiving of twenty days was celebrated in Rome."
N.B. The first section of Kierkegaard’s 1843 publication, Either/Or, is covered in a prior post titled “A Fragment of Life”, dated 01/20/2023. We move now to the second, and by far more uplifting, portion of Kierkegaard’s first great work. The scene is set to progress from the aesthetic to the ethical stage when our pseudonymous... Continue Reading →
The Passenger / Stella Maris Discussion Michael and David discuss Cormac McCarthy's new books: The Passenger and Stella Maris. This will be the last McCarthy review for the foreseeable future. The Passenger description (from publisher): 1980, PASS CHRISTIAN, MISSISSIPPI: It is three in the morning when Bobby Western zips the jacket of his wet suit... Continue Reading →
