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A BYZANTINE JOURNEY

Name: A BYZANTINE JOURNEY
Author: John Ash
ISBN: 0-679-40934-3

by John Ash ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 1995

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The vestigial glories of Byzantium and its world return to life in this superbly written travelogue by poet Ash (The Burnt Pages, not reviewed). In recent decades, Byzantine studies have come into their own and the empire in which Greco-Roman culture flourished for a thousand years after the fall of Rome is no longer considered as a synonym for decadence and intrigue. Ash makes no claim to be a professional Byzantinist, but his familiarity with the literature is apparent on every page as he takes us from Istanbul (once Constantinople) through dusty and dilapidated towns of Asiatic Turkey, such as Nicaea and Amorion, which were once splendid cities. Ash's text is divided into brief chapters that are replete with absorbing historical detail and anecdote as well as with his own consummate aesthetic sense and unrelenting curiosity. He describes his encounters with Turkish tourist officials and the caretakers of forsaken mosques and churches that eventually reveal their treasures to his keen eye. We hear of the eccentricities of caliphs and emperors, of how 13th-century Christians and Muslims united at the funeral of their beloved poet Rumi, and of the relentless destruction at the hands of the Crusaders, the Ottomans, and not least, the Turks in 1922 after defeating the Greek invaders at the Battle of Dumlupinar. Ash is most at home describing works of art, such as the frescoed cave churches of Cappadocia, and the vagaries of human beings, but he neglects the profound influence of religion on Byzantine culture and politics. A master of prose, he artfully combines richness of metaphor with an unpretentious and attractive immediacy. A joy for lovers of Byzantium, travel, and the English language. (8 pages b&w photos, not seen)

Pub Date: June 1, 1995

ISBN: 0-679-40934-3

Page Count: 320

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1995

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.