Did you take on the challenge of reading a book of non-fiction essays? (Actually, it's very hard to even find a book of fictional essays, so as challenges go this wasn't as challenging as it could have been).
Essays get a bad wrap - probably because generations of people are forced to write them from high school right through university, and after a good decade or so of writing essays without really knowing what they're good for, nobody thinks they can possibly be any good.
But essays aren't just horrible things you're forced to write for an assignment. The essay is to a non-fiction book what a short story is to a novel. It gives you an explanation and exploration of a topic without going on and on about it for chapters on end. The best essays are punchy, witty, well written and very interesting. A collection of essays can take you around the world and cover a wide spread of topics while it's doing it.
If you decided that this week's challenge wasn't for you, we sincerely hope you consider changing your mind.
Sharon Bryan read Bully for Brontosaurus: Reflections in Natural History, by Stephen Jay Gould.
Stephen Jay Gould (a palaeontologist and evolutionary biologist by trade) was once one of the founding fathers of popular science writing as a genre, which is why I think it's very interesting that his preface at the beginning of this book (published in 1991) begins by saying what a shame it is that popular science has such a bad wrap in America. Considering it's now one of the most successful genres (from a publishing point of view) it's strange to see this echo from the past and remember there was once a certain amount of snobbery regarding the "dumbing down" of science for a popular audience.
It's also interesting to note through reading his essays, how much of a snob Gould was himself. To wit, this quote from "The Dinosaur Rip-off" (an essay written in the late 80s, in which he explores the question, "what's with all the dinosaur crap all of a sudden?"):
Essays in this collection cover topics related to evolutionary biology, looking at a wide range of concepts within this field. Among several things I learned: Apatosaurus is merely an earlier name for Brontosaurus (and has nothing to do with the head being wrong - although the head was genuinely wrong), kiwis can lay more than one egg (given the size of those eggs, I wouldn't have thought it), and male mammals have nipples not because they ever used them, but because females need them (within our species, we start out identically - with all the same kit - as embryos, and then make customisations that may put things to different uses).
You can find it at 508 GOU.
Essays get a bad wrap - probably because generations of people are forced to write them from high school right through university, and after a good decade or so of writing essays without really knowing what they're good for, nobody thinks they can possibly be any good.
But essays aren't just horrible things you're forced to write for an assignment. The essay is to a non-fiction book what a short story is to a novel. It gives you an explanation and exploration of a topic without going on and on about it for chapters on end. The best essays are punchy, witty, well written and very interesting. A collection of essays can take you around the world and cover a wide spread of topics while it's doing it.
If you decided that this week's challenge wasn't for you, we sincerely hope you consider changing your mind.
Brenda Carter read The
Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters of George Orwell: Volume IV In Front
of Your Nose, 1945-1950
George Orwell wrote Animal Farm in 1945 and Nineteen Eighty-Four in 1949. As a fan of both novels, I was
interested to read some of The Collected Essays, Journalism and
Letters of George Orwell (820 ORW 1B COL T2), which were written
during the same time period and the last five years of his life. Even while
grieving for his first wife, caring for his adopted toddler son and bedridden
by the lung ailments that ended his life early in 1950, Orwell was at the
height of his writing and was still regularly producing four pieces every week.
The essays in this collection include "Such, Such Were
the Joys," a long, harrowing memoir of Orwell's days at a British prep
school; "Politics and the English Language," which examines the
connection between what it is possible to say in words and what it is possible
to think; "How the Poor Die," a chilling piece of social reporting;
and "Good Bad Books," in which he argues, "The fact that one can
be amused or excited or even moved by a book that one's intellect simply
refuses to take seriously is a reminder that art is not the same thing as
cerebration."
The essays are short and the letters are a delightful way to
eavesdrop on Orwell’s passions, concerns and relationships. If you enjoy
reading biographies, this collection takes you one step closer to understanding
the man behind the literature, as well as offering an insight into the hot
socio-political topics of the 1940s and ‘50s.
As Vonnegut explains in the introduction, the title of this
book is composed of three words he made up from another of his books, Cat’s
Cradle (the word opinions was
already in use in the 1960s, when he began writing these essays). In this
collection of essays, there are all manner of topics covered, all of which have
some kind of relation to the author. They are assembled in a chronological
order but we are warned in the introduction that the essays do not get
progressively better (with time).
In Wampeters, Foma and
Granfalloons: Opinions (810 VON 1B WAM), Vonnegut does not follow the rules
of academic writing as we might expect to see from a student or academic. He
includes himself in the story, he let’s us know how he feels about things, and
generally has a lot of fun (don’t take that the wrong way). His humour and
humanity are there to see in the works presented in this collection.
Vonnegut begins with an essay on the science fiction genre
of writing and how he has been placed within it. He points out that any writer
who includes technology in their story, tends to be labelled a science fiction
writer, regardless of their style of writing. It is interesting that the only
piece of fiction in this book, a short play called “Fortitude”, is essentially
a science fiction story (it is a great thought piece about our lust for life –
although not in an Iggy Pop kind of way).
I am a fan of Vonnegut’s writing. He makes me laugh, has
something to say, and has a unique voice. These essays are not as free and
fictionalised as his fiction (go figure!) but they are an enjoyable read for
fans and newcomers alike.
Sharon Bryan read Bully for Brontosaurus: Reflections in Natural History, by Stephen Jay Gould.
It's also interesting to note through reading his essays, how much of a snob Gould was himself. To wit, this quote from "The Dinosaur Rip-off" (an essay written in the late 80s, in which he explores the question, "what's with all the dinosaur crap all of a sudden?"):
We live in a profoundly nonintellectual culture, made all the worse by a passive hedonism abetted by ... countless electronic devices that impart the latest in entertainment and supposed information - all in short (and loud) doses of "easy listening". The kiddie culture, or playground, version of this nonintellectualism can be even more strident and more one-dimensional. (Gould, 1991, p. 100)And this was to illustrate an argument that dinosaur toys are okay as long as they can be followed up with encouraging kids to take an interest in "real" science. Quite a number of Gould's essays veer into a "what is this world coming to?" moment. It's probably just as well he died in 2002, because he would have really hated the post FaceBook world.
Essays in this collection cover topics related to evolutionary biology, looking at a wide range of concepts within this field. Among several things I learned: Apatosaurus is merely an earlier name for Brontosaurus (and has nothing to do with the head being wrong - although the head was genuinely wrong), kiwis can lay more than one egg (given the size of those eggs, I wouldn't have thought it), and male mammals have nipples not because they ever used them, but because females need them (within our species, we start out identically - with all the same kit - as embryos, and then make customisations that may put things to different uses).
You can find it at 508 GOU.
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