by Saeed Malik ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A
Eye-opening in terms of the parity between the Abrahamic faiths, this fine model of scriptural analysis merits study by...
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A thorough examination of Chapter 18 of the Quran exemplifies allegorical interpretation and reconciles common dichotomies like heart and mind, science and religion.
“Having lived a life immersed in physical sciences, I now find myself drawn by an irresistible appeal to the mystical shorelines of the hidden sea,” Malik (A Perspective on the Signs of Al-Quran, 2010) writes. Such watery metaphors pervade the author’s language as he expounds on various parables in the Surah Kahf. A central story has Moses—the Quran’s most-mentioned prophet—setting out to find the meeting place of two seas. While this might be a real place, this is also a mystical journey to the union of heart and mind. Moses’ companion on the quest for knowledge, Khidr, impairs a boat, kills a boy, and then—in a sudden merciful turn—repairs a crumbling wall. For Moses, it’s a lesson in unquestioning obedience, even when God’s will doesn’t make sense. As Malik observes, this is like the journey of faith: the big picture is usually hidden from mortals. Another key parable concerns some young men who take refuge inside a cave and, Rip Van Winkle–like, emerge to find that centuries have passed. Malik cleverly links this example of “time dilation” to quantum physics’ concepts of time and space while also invoking metaphors of resurrection. Bypassing the usual quagmire that results when religion tries to disprove science, he instead imagines the two coexisting. Indeed, his modus operandi throughout this learned guide is to seek intersections between two ideas: empirical and subjective; free will and predestination. “To those who have made the plunge” of faith, Malik insists, those seemingly contradictory pairs become a nonissue. The book, written in an inviting first-person plural, makes scholarly comparisons between different translations of the Quran (in italics, with footnote references), accompanied by Arabic script and color images. Erratic hyphenation is a rare stylistic flaw in an otherwise fluid text. Dense with details, this impressive volume rewards a slow, meditative reading.
Eye-opening in terms of the parity between the Abrahamic faiths, this fine model of scriptural analysis merits study by mystics of any faith.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-0-692-46018-4
Page Count: -
Publisher: Dog Ear Publisher
Review Posted Online: Jan. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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by Saeed Malik
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996
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
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by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson
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by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis
by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955
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.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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developed by Ludwig Bemelmans ; illustrated by Steven Salerno
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by Ludwig Bemelmans ; illustrated by Steven Salerno
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