The One with Salvador Dalí

98. Title & Author: Salvador Dalí by Gilles Néret (93 pages)

Genre: Nonfiction--Art History

Completed: 16 June 2009

Summary & Review:

This book provides a look at the extensive career of Salvador Dalí, mainly following a chronological parth along the artist's life and work with numerous color reproductions of his paintings.

Many people don't know a lot about Dalí other than that he painted weird melting watches and was a surrealist, so this book gives a decent basic introduction to him and his...unique...work. I thought the book was well written and I really apppreciated all the color images, but in all honesty, Dalí is just not one of my favorite artists. I think he was a pioneer, and if he had only shied away from the excessive erotic, obscene, and scatological themes I could appreciate his art more because at times he has incredibly innovative and intriguing compositions like The Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus (The Dream of Christopher Columbus) of 1958-9 (below).

Rating: 5.0

The One with Asian Art

97. Title & Author: Asian Art by John D. La Plante (278 pages)

Genre: Nonfiction--Art History

Completed: 10 June 2009

Summary & Review:

Three major cultures of Asia, i.e. India, China, and Japan, and their visual arts are examined beginning with prehistoric periods and ending with short overviews of their modern movements.

This was one of the poorest art history survey texts I've read. I understand that it is difficult to even lightly cover three major civilizations over thousands of years, but La Plante seemed more intent on explaining the sociopolitical landscape than the artistic movements. He would spend most of the chapter about a specific period, e.g. the Heian period of Japan, on the historical setting and political happenings and then he would barely touch on the art. When he did finally manange to mention artworks, he gave "Twitter-esque" blurbs that hardly explained anything. Also, the vast majority of the images were black and white which is just not up to par anymore for a good art history text.

Rating: 3.5

The One with The Te of Piglet

96. Title & Author: The Te of Piglet by Benjamin Hoff (257 pages)

Genre: Nonfiction--Philosophy

Completed: 8 June 2009

Summary & Review:

Author Benjamin Hoff once again uses the characters of Winnie-the-Pooh, this time focusing on Piglet, to explain Taoist concepts, specifically that of Te, or virtue.

While I enjoyed Hoff's first book, The Tao of Pooh (#93), I didn't like this one. It seemed like Tao was a sincere attempt to explain Taoist concepts and how they can be applied in everyday life, but this book was more of an excuse for Hoff to rant against the West and praise the virtues of the East. I found it ironic, though, that Hoff would so often refer to China as such an idyllic place and tear down America and other Western cultures when China is a country full of human rights abuses that consistently causes massive environmental damage and severly restricts the freedoms of its people who live under a totalitarian regime. It seems like China is guilter than the West of not following these Taoist principles. But, as Stephen Covey said, people don't see the world as it is, but as they are. 

Rating: 3.0

The One with A Passage to India

95. Title & Author: A Passage to India by E.M. Forster (322 pages)

Genre: Fiction--English Literature

Completed: 3 June 2009

Summary & Review:

India under the British Raj is a country filled with racial tensions. The English colonizers despise all Indians as a whole, while within the native population the Muslims and Hindus hate each other in addition to hating the English. These struggles and tensions set the backdrop for E.M. Forster's examination of 1920's India. Dr. Aziz, a young Muslim doctor, tries hard to befriend a fresh group of English visitors to the city of Chandrapore by taking them on a tour the local caves. During the expedition, one of the young Englishwomen is accosted and nearly raped but escapes and accuses Aziz of being her assailant. Although she absolves him of any guilt at the beginning of his trial, this shocking case brings the racial prejudices of India to the fore and threatens to undo the unique Indian-Englishman friendship between Aziz and Cyril Fielding.

It was interesting to read two books in a row that were basically examining the same subject, i.e. European colonization of Asian countries. Rizal, of course, wrote his from the perspective of a native living under foreign rule, while Forster wrote his as a citizen of the ruling country. Both, however, effectively pointed out obstacles that each situation faced despite the different lens through which they looked. 

I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading another novel by Forster. 

Rating: 7.5