A further curiosity is that the bibliomaniac invariably must then set out on another quest for a great book as soon as his anxiety returns. The quality of the boasting, the constant search for new conquests, and the delight in recounting the tales of acquisition and success bring to mind the activities of the hypersexual male hysteric who must constantly reassure himself that he has not been castrated. It seems germane to this point that Casanova, after his many amatory adventures, settled down as a librarian in the castle of Count Waldstein at Dux, in Bohemia.
—Nicholas Basbanes
—from A Gentle Madness: Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books
malison /mal-i-zən/. noun. A curse. A malediction. The opposite of a benison. From Old French maleiçon (curse, to speak ill).
“What think you of it, Florian? do I chase
The substance or the shadow? will it hold?
I have no sorcerer’s malison on me…”
(Alfred Lord Tennyson)‘That sort of stuff is useless,’ the photographer ventured—reasonably, lest one of Maitland’s deep Latin malisons extend the curse to his exposure-meter. (Thomas Keneally)
“Woe upon woe; from days of old some god
Laid on the race a malison, and his rod
Scourges each age with sorrows never ending.”
(Sophocles, trans. by Francis Storr)
The harrowing, moving story of the not-so-forgotten “Falling Man” of 9/11.
An amazing 35-minute “paraphrase” of Blade Runner composed of 12,597 aquarelle (water colored) frames.
Some of Rolling Stone’s 20 Great Hip-Hop One-Liners really are rather clever.
From Reader C. comes news (and a review) of a “choose your adventure” app that riffs on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. » A Midsummer Night’s Choice. Side note: I own paper copies of the two Ryan North “choose your adventure” versions of Shakespeare mentioned at the head of the review: Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet. I haven’t used the versions yet, but I highly recommend the books.
This makes me a little queasy. → Beer to be made from yeast swabbed from Roald Dahl’s writing chair
“…a documentary portrait of artists, writers, and collectors who remain steadfastly loyal to the typewriter as a tool and muse […] movingly documents the struggles of California Typewriter, one of the last standing repair shops in America dedicated to keeping the aging machines clicking […] a thought-provoking meditation on the changing dynamic between humans and machines, and encourages us to consider our own relationship with technology, old and new, as the digital age’s emphasis on speed and convenience redefines who’s serving whom, human or machine?” → California Typewriter
How to Keep a Zibaldone, the 14th Century’s Answer to Tumblr
Choose your tagline: “I’ll take one with extra cheese and norovirus” or “Burrito Drone is the name of my new band.” → Alphabet and Chipotle Are Bringing Burrito Delivery Drones to Campus
Today in 1792, in the early days of the French Revolution, the 45.5 carat Hope Diamond—one of the most famous jewels in the world—is stolen while King Louis XVI and his family are in prison. The Hope Diamond, which was cut from a much larger stone called The French Blue that was among those worn by Marie Antoinette, would reappear in the early 1800s; King Louis XVI didn’t fare as well…he was brought to the guillotine just a few months after the diamond disappeared. The blue/violet color of the diamond is due to trace amounts of boron. Though supposedly cursed—and there have been quite a number of brutal murders, suicides and other deep misfortunes among the various owners of the gem—Harry Winston, the diamond’s final owner, mailed it to the Smithsonian in a brown paper bag for $2.44 in postage and later died peacefully of old age.
Detail from Annie Vought’s hand-cut paper art and typography piece “I am Crossing an Ocean, With 2 Others On a Piece Of Paper.” Browse more in Annie’s Cut Paper gallery.
Reader B. on whether listening to audiobooks is a kind of cheating: “No! […] As the author states ‘For difficult-to-understand texts, prosody can be a real aid to understanding.’ It was true for me. After many years of false starts, I was unable to get through Joyce’s Ulysses. Then I listened to it unabridged on CD, a splendid experience.”
Also from Reader B.: “With regards to the Handwriting Just Doesn’t Matter article, Ms Trubek is talking about the end of the holograph and all the subtle significance handwriting carries. We will lose the ephemeral expressions of the writer that makes original artwork, like that of the painter, distinct and unique.”
Reader A. on 100 years of stop-motion in three minutes: “I was almost ready to protest a lack of Wallace and Gromit, but did get a thin cheese slice (no Gromit, tho).”
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