An invitingly strange meditation on the mind.
Debut author Wells delivers a philosophical investigation of the inner workings of the human mind.
At the outset of this extensive work, the author describes the human mind as a series of TV monitors. According to the author, the mind is largely concerned with communication and images, so it’s natural that humans process thoughts through television screens. The most important one, he asserts, is a flat, tablelike monitor, on which the mind places “every person and object important to us in our lives, and if the image is altered, it brings happiness or distress.” Wells goes on to address many other topics, ranging from the golden rule to the importance of working with one’s hands. All of these subjects, however, relate back to the central conceit of the mind and its monitors, and how happiness is generated when “all the information on the monitor is seen to be complete.” If it all sounds slightly perplexing, that’s because it is. As the author admits, “Describing the mind is not a quick and easy task,” and a number of his tangents tend to distract from the main argument. However, they also provide insight into the author behind it all. Bits and pieces of his life are sprinkled throughout the material, as when he describes his desire to paint portraits, or his admiration for craftsman Von Dutch, or the fact that he once swallowed a chicken bone and was ill for four years as a result. Taken as a whole, the material is unapologetically dense and repetitive—the word “monitor” appears so much that it tends to lose meaning, for example. However, it’s also heartfelt and full of intriguing imagery, as when readers are asked to imagine “a million people mowing grass at the same time.” Likewise, the author’s positive tone helps personalize the work; he encourages the reader more than once to “Enjoy your life,” which finally comes across as one of the main messages of the book.
An invitingly strange meditation on the mind.Pub Date: March 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5320-1671-4
Page Count: 566
Publisher: iUniverse
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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