Gravier House http://www.gravierhouse.com/ Gravier House en-us Winter's Tale http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost113__Winters_Tale.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost113__Winters_Tale.html Fri, 23 Nov 2007 18:03:33 PST Mark Helprin’s Winter’s Tale was about, I don’t think I would have read it.

Written in 1983, the plot is three parts Gangs of New York, two parts Age of Innocence, with a dash of Dickens and a pinch of Lord of the Rings.

A turn-of-century “period piece” set in and around the city of New York, with swash-buckling swamp dwellers and flying horses.

Two strikes.

But Peter Lake is such a compelling character, who finds himself in such classical literary circumstance... ]]> The Recognitions http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost112_The_Recognitions.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost112_The_Recognitions.html Fri, 23 Nov 2007 17:53:06 PST William Gaddis.

As a would-be writer, Gaddis has had no direct influence on me. And yet, pretty much everything I have done, or planned to do, or started to do, as a writer, which I genuinely thought to be fresh or innovative, I have come to discover has pretty much already been done by Gaddis. The invasion or interruption of action or speech with sounds, voices, lyrics, television programs, or signs (J.R.), the depiction of dialogue which is more competition than cooperation, (J.R.... ]]> The Unbearable Lightness of Being http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost111_The_Unbearable_Lightness_of_Being.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost111_The_Unbearable_Lightness_of_Being.html Fri, 23 Nov 2007 17:49:08 PST Milan Kundera begins with a somewhat abstract and philosophical exposition on the unbearable lightness, or weight, of being. It is pretty much all tell, and no show. And yet I loved it. I thought it was pure genius.
Putting it negatively, the myth of eternal return states that a life which disappears once and for all, which does not return, is like a shadow, without weight, dead in advance, and whether it was horrible, beautiful, or sublime, its horror, sublimity, and beauty mean nothing....
]]> A Frolic of His Own http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost110_A_Frolic_of_His_Own.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost110_A_Frolic_of_His_Own.html Fri, 23 Nov 2007 17:41:50 PST A Frolic of His Own has some of the funniest passages I have ever read.

I’m not sure whether, if I were not a practicing attorney, I would have appreciated them less, or even more.

But the formal pleadings and deposition colloquies, for example, were exaggerated enough to bring out the comedy, yet genuine enough so as not to be absurd.

As in JR, I found the legal aspects of the novel very authentic, both in substance and in form. It is surprising that Gaddis did not go to law school, at t... ]]> Greatest Hits http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost109_Greatest_Hits.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost109_Greatest_Hits.html Fri, 23 Nov 2007 17:07:22 PST Dylan greatest hits type collection which seemed to be mostly a compilation of eighteen songs from the Greatest Hits and Greatest Hits Vol. 2 records, along with a few more recent tracks like Hurricane.

For some artists, the Greatest Hits are pretty much the only songs you would ever want to listen to. In fact, for many bands, even the Greatest Hits would only “hit” your turntable, or i-Pod, around 2 or 3 times out of 10.

But for our favorite arti... ]]> The Road http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost108_The_Road.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost108_The_Road.html Fri, 23 Nov 2007 17:04:13 PST
At the beginning, McCarthy pretty much tells you, flat out, what the dilemma is. (Will the father be strong enough to do what’s necessary, when the time comes?) Which, at the time, I thought was fairly “on the nose” and unnecessary.

Yet I wonder whether, absent the explicit set-up, the rest of the narrative would have held its dramatic tension. It might have just fe... ]]> The Enigma of Clarence Thomas http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost107_The_Enigma_of_Clarence_Thomas.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost107_The_Enigma_of_Clarence_Thomas.html Fri, 23 Nov 2007 16:59:23 PST My Grandfather’s Son, the recent memoir by Supreme Court Justice, Clarence Thomas, he points to the oft-cited ingratitude or hypocrisy of Justice Thomas’ oft-expressed scorn for the affirmative action efforts which presumably played an important part of the success he has enjoyed since his admission to Holy Cross College.

As often referenced in the press since the memoir’s publication, Thomas apparently put a fifteen cent sticker on his Yale law degree, with a c... ]]> The Hole That He's In http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost105_The_Hole_That_Hes_In.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost105_The_Hole_That_Hes_In.html Sun, 04 Nov 2007 19:40:12 PST
“Should global warming really be our priority?"

Followed by:

"Money spent to reduce carbon emissions would save far more lives is used to fight malaria, malnutrition, water pollution, and HIV. And while helping Third World nations develop their economies and infrastructures may result in higher emissions, it will also help these societies deal much better with future problems, including global warming.”

Okay.

Where is your money to fig... ]]> Herzog http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost104_Herzog.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost104_Herzog.html Tue, 12 Jun 2007 11:15:02 PST Herzog more had I read it a long time ago.

I read Philip Roth’s introduction, and noted his comment that Herzog was like an American Leopold Bloom, except that “in Ulysses, the encyclopedic mind of the author is transmuted into the linguistic flesh of the novel, and Joyce never cedes to Bloom his own great erudition, intellect, and breadth of rhetoric, whereas in Herzog Bellow endows his hero with all of that.”

My “criticism” of the book, ... ]]> ConsumerFreedom.com http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost103_ConsumerFreedomcom.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost103_ConsumerFreedomcom.html Sun, 17 Dec 2006 11:45:50 PST
The Center ran a full-page ad with one hippo saying to another hippo: "Fred, your butt is getting huge." Then presumably Fred says "Who can we sue?"

The ad continues: "It's no joke. Trial lawyers are suing restaurants and food companies because th... ]]> B.S. or BCS? http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost102_BS_or_BCS_.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost102_BS_or_BCS_.html Sun, 17 Dec 2006 11:09:51 PST
But there seem to be several reasons, aside from money and tradition, to favor it over a play-off system.

First of all, it’s generally pretty clear who the National Champion is. There is sometimes a lot of debate about who should get to play for the title in the No. 2 spot, but usually, things shake out and you have a clear No. 1 team.

(Parenthetically, let’s note that LS... ]]> Richard Pryor and Borat http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost101_Richard_Pryor_and_Borat.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost101_Richard_Pryor_and_Borat.html Sun, 17 Dec 2006 11:06:37 PST
I obviously don’t know what it was like in the... ]]> Don't Apologize http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost100_Dont_Apologize.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost100_Dont_Apologize.html Sun, 17 Dec 2006 11:00:28 PST A Taste of Reality on "Top Chef" http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost99_A_Taste_of_Reality_on_Top_Chef_.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost99_A_Taste_of_Reality_on_Top_Chef_.html Sun, 17 Dec 2006 10:52:20 PST What Do the Democrats Do Now? http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost98_What_Do_the_Democrats_Do_Now_.html http://www.gravierhouse.com/blogpost98_What_Do_the_Democrats_Do_Now_.html Fri, 15 Dec 2006 20:25:55 PST
First of all, don’t waste time trying to go back and prove that Bush and Cheney “lied us into war”. No one wants to hear about that. If something new comes up, or comes out, act responsibly. But people want to move on. They don't want to waste time bickering about the past.

Going forward, I don’t know what to do about Iraq. And frankly, most of people offering opinions probably don’t either, including, likely, most of the people in Co... ]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2006 20:25:55 PST