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Bibliophile!

Bibliophile!

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'Outside a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside a dog,it's too dark to read.' - Groucho Marx

I get the same pleasure from used bookstores that an alcoholic finds in bars. Both places, though public, make room for feverish solitude and both allow unhealthy cravings to be filled to excess - Art Spiegelman in his introduction to Joseph... more »
  • Cochin, India
  • member since December 21, 2007

Reviews

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  • Homer's The Iliad and The Odyssey: A Biography
    • Rated 5 stars

    As you would expect from the author of the masterful *A History Of Reading*, Alberto Manguel's biography of Homer's Illiad & Odyssey is an absorbing read. (A biography of a book! An interesting idea!) According to Raymond Queneau "Every great work of literature is either the Illiad or the Odyssey". Manguel's book shows us why this is so. Using the all pervasive influence of Homer on literature as a pretext he gives us "nothing less than a history of literature itself" (Tom Holland on the book cover). There is so much to savor in this book. Manguel impressed me with his erudition, but at the same time the book is not dense. In fact it is a page turner. How did St Augustine and St Jerome integrate the works of Homer into the dogma of the Church? How did Alexander Pope translate the Iliad without having any Greek? Was Homer an ancient bard? Or was 'Homer' the name given to many poets who refined the text over many centuries? Or is Homer merely a symbol or a concept? What does the works of Homer say about war? These are some of the topics which are covered in this book. This is a book that has to be on the shelf of any self respecting book lover! Heartily recommended.

    Bibliophile! wrote this review Wednesday, October 28, 2009. ( reply | permalink )
  • Headlong
    • Rated 4 stars

    Fantastic! Frayn can write - take my word for it! And to think that i hadn't even heard of him till I came across this book in a second-hand book shop! He deserves to be better known. What prompted me to buy the book was the Bruegel painting on the cover and because it was shortlisted for the 1999 Booker. I am glad that I did. Has some unforgettable characters. Great book.

    Bibliophile! wrote this review Friday, May 30, 2008. ( reply | permalink )