Books and Ideas (13)

I read for ideas. Here are some of the ideas I have found in books.

On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. Second Edition. William Zinsser.
Why read it? A helpful book on all aspects of writing nonfiction, including articles and business communications. Zinsser is especially critical of “clutter” in American writing. He discusses audience, the size of paragraphs and usage. Everyone can learn something about how to write better from reading this book. I guarantee it.

Civilization: A Personal View. Kenneth Clark.
Why read it? History of Western civilization. A personal study of the nature of civilization, which needs confidence to construct and is easily destroyed.

Deephaven. Sarah Orne Jewett.
Novel. Why read it? Two young women spend an idyllic summer vacation in Deephaven, once a thriving Maine seaport town. Will remind readers of their own idyllic summer vacations.

Fox at the Wood’s Edge. Loren Eiseley. Gale Christianson.
Why read it? Biography of a scientist, a paleontologist and poet who wrote essays on nature and the meaning of evolution. Some of his essays are unforgettable. He conveys a melancholy, yet joyous, view of life. The miracles he discovers are found in everyday existence.

The Immense Journey. Loren Eiseley.
Why read it? Series of essays concerned with the meaning of evolution. Eiseley views evolution as a continuing process, changing to become—who knows what? Men and women as they are now will not be the men and women of the far future. We are working out what we are going to be.

Medea. Euripides.
Why read it? The ultimate revenge. This play is the story of a woman scorned, who took vicious revenge on her lover, Jason.

A Random Walk in Science: An Anthology. Compiled by RL Weber. Ed. E Mendoza. Foreword by William Cooper.
Why read it? Before you take science too seriously, you need to read this anthology. Parts of it are very, very funny. 133 selections record anecdotes about noted scientists, items of historical interest and articles showing the often bizarre ways in which scientific theories and achievements are brought into existence.

The Red Badge of Courage. Stephen Crane.
Novel. Why read it? A realistic, impressionistic description of confusion and fear and death in the American Civil War, written by an author who had never seen a real battle, but describes the scenes so vividly that “you are there.” War is all about irony. The irony of Henry Fleming’s illusion that he will be a hero when engaging in combat, but when faced with the reality of the conflict, he turns and runs. And justifies his cowardice to himself. The irony of being struck accidentally on the head by a fellow soldier’s rifle, giving Henry his “red badge of courage,” the sign to others that he had actually fought and been wounded during the battle. In turn, he feels courageous because of his “red badge.” In the end, Henry Fleming forgets himself, forgets his doubts, joins in the shooting, becomes one with the other men on the lines.

The Road Ahead. William H. Gates, III.
Why read it? Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, predicts the changes in the world that will happen because of the computer and the Internet. He is not far off. “There will be a day, not far distant, when you will be able to conduct business, study, explore the world and its cultures, call up any great entertainment, make friends, attend neighborhood markets and show pictures to distant relatives—without leaving your desk or armchair.”