Rafael Sabatini — Entertaining, Intelligent Swashbuckling

I just reread Scaramouche for an upcoming podcast discussion. I wanted to remind everyone of what a wonderful author Rafael Sabatini is so I'm rerunning this post from 2018.

I discovered Rafael Sabatini through the audio of his two most popular books, Scaramouche and Captain Blood. I didn't realize for some time that these were just a small sampling of Sabatini's work.

He wrote 31 novels, not to mention numerous short stories and other works. As if that weren't impressive enough, he spoke seven languages and then learned English specifically for writing because, he said, "all the best stories are written in English." He had to write for 25 years before achieving fame with Scaramouche  (After which the publishers said, "Wait, look at all these other great books he's written!" and rushed them into print.) Sabatini just kept on writing even more great books.

I love knowing that there are so many of his books out there to read. They are all adventure and romance novels with clever dialogue and elaborate plots. Heroes, swordfights, and chivalry abound though often with characters that go against our expectations, which just adds to the enjoyment. Almost all of them have historical backdrops and characters which are accurate, while being part of an exciting story.

Think of Sabatini as the Georgette Heyer of adventure. He's tops for a real page turner that doesn't dumb it down while simultaneously not needing to be deep to keep your attention.

Most are available from the usual places, public domain books can be found on Project Gutenberg or ... your local library probably has a ton of them. They were very popular once upon a time.

THE SEA-HAWK
My exploration of Rafael Sabatini's books began with noticing this title which is the name of my favorite Errol Flynn movie. Turns out the title is about all they took from the book, if indeed the book was at all involved.

This is the tale of a family feud, betrayed brotherhood, and love gone awry which results in galley slavery, more than a flirtation with Islam, and every exotic story device that can be imagined. It all works. It's a bit over-the-top sort, but I was hanging on every chapter, reading breathlessly to see what happened next.

What makes the story even better is that Sabatini evidently was scrupulous in being historically exact. Yes, Lord Oliver existed and did those things. Now, that didn't keep Sabatini from inventing and exaggerating to give us this swashbuckler. And I'm ok with that. I'm not reading these for the history, though that doesn't hurt it a bit.

ST. MARTIN'S SUMMER
Garnache is a wily and accomplished swordsman sent by the Queen to rescue an heiress who is being held prisoner by a mother and son so they can take her estate. A lot of my enjoyment of this book is due to Garnache's unbridled temper, which has been the bane of his career. Watching him struggle to overcome it and the result of his ill-timed explosions is a lot of fun because we can sympathize with his frustration.

He despises the fairer sex, "Let me tell you that this is the first time in my life that I have been concerned in anything that had to do with women." This makes it more ironic when the main players in the story are all women: the Queen of France, the girl he must rescue, and the wicked Marquise de Condillac who foils his attempts repeatedly. Poor Garnache does nothing but deal with women, except when he's sword fighting, of course.

THE BLACK SWAN
This hit the spot for swashbuckling adventure. Wanting a break from thinking and chaos and the real world, I borrowed the movie from the library and we were delighted with the old pirate adventure featuring Tyrone Power and Maureen O'Hara. Sparks flew. Swashbuckling and preening. And so forth. Naturally I had to get the book. Which was tons better. Tons.

Priscilla Harradine is sailing to England, accompanied by Major Sands who is at least twice her age and, unbeknownst to her, hoping to marry her. Also on board is Charles de Bernis. And that's lucky because when their ship is boarded by the infamous pirate, Tom Leach (sailing the Black Swan) Charles is able to save them all from certain death (and worse!).

The interest lies in watching Monsieur de Bargis nimbly navigate minefields in dealing with pirates, officious boors (Major Sands, of course), and everyone who keeps threatening bodily injury and death to the small group of people he is trying to save under very trying circumstances. One of which is the aforementioned boor who we love to hate. Of course, there is a love interest but it is handled in the most delicate way which was most enjoyable to watch unfold.

SCARAMOUCHE
Lawyer Andre-Louis Moreau has never believed strongly in any philosophical point of view. When his best friend goes to face the arrogant Marquis de la Tour d' Azyr for slaying a poacher, everything goes wrong. Andre-Louis finds himself on the run, eventually joining an acting company, but with a sense that he must speak up for his friend's beliefs, even if he doesn't really believe them. Andre-Louis's natural gift for rhetoric and logical argument are used for both humorous and dramatic effect.

This book pulls us into the arguments for and against revolution, while enjoying romance, revenge, betrayal, treason, and, of course, sword fighting. I love watching Andre-Louis become what he pretends to be.

It's extremely enjoyable swashbuckling on the eve of the French Revolution. This might be the perfect companion volume to A Tale of Two Cities, though it also had strong echoes of Nicholas Nickleby because of the theater connection.

THE SNARE
There are multiple snares in this swashbuckler by Rafael Sabatini. Set in Portugal, under Wellington's command as he forms a clever trap for Napoleon, this is a tale of jealousy, love, betrayal, and friendship ... all set into motion by one stupid, selfish brother. Atypically, this is no swashbuckler with most of the story taken up by a legal trial.

I really enjoyed it although the trial toward the end was a bit lengthy for my taste. I didn't expect military strategy to form such a big part of the plot but was fascinated by this look at the Napoleonic wars.

CAPTAIN BLOOD
Dr. Peter Blood is sentenced to slavery and exile in the islands after his arrest for treating wounded rebels. When he escapes, no ship sailing the Spanish Main is safe from his natural talent for piracy. He does, however, have an Achilles heel — his love for Miss Arabella Bishop who was the only kind person during his slave days. Rescuing her and redeeming his reputation will take all his skill.

This is the best known of Rafael Sabatini's books. It is just a touch less over the top and a bit more complete in characterizations. I did get tired of all the sailing maneuvers toward the end but that's just me. I listened to B.J. Harrison's fine narration of the novel. It made perfect listening while working on a long project.

BELLARION
Bellarion is a naive, monastery educated orphan who gets sidetracked on his way to finish his classical education in the big city. Faced with a series of emergencies, his native intelligence leads to an unsuspected ability to solve problems and strategize. His unexpected rise into a responsible position leads to intricate political intrigue and warfare.

Unfortunately, the story often ground to a halt because of the numerous battles and sieges recounted. I understand it is based on real history and people (except for Bellarion) but I feel good storytelling should have been able to communicate a lot of these events without taking me through it blow by blow. However, it is a good story overall and with my battle-skimming abilities I enjoyed it well enough.

THE HOUNDS OF GOD
Margaret Trevanion has been raised with an unusual amount independence and self-reliance which leads to her spurning the neighbor we suspect she loves and taking a survivor of the Spanish Armada as her prisoner. Who we do not trust, though that distrust is based on very little. (Heavens, I might as well be Elizabethan with that attitude!)

Others have commented on how different the second half of the book is from the first. The Spanish Inquisition and royal rulers are a large part of that difference. I actually really enjoyed both parts. Elizabeth I's note to King Philip made me laugh out loud and these two self-centered rulers are perfect foils. Likewise, we are shown several contrasts within the Inquisition and these are both entertaining and give food for thought about motivations and the result of lying to oneself (Brother Luis, I'm lookin' at you!).

The Hours of Jeanne d'Evreux

Matins :  Arrest of Christ - The Annunciation, Jean Pucelle, 1324-1328

I'm always fascinated by these sorts of books and wish something like them were readily available today. They combine the best of words and images to help draw you out of yourself and into an encounter with God. There is also usually a playful element that I really love, as witness from this closeup.

Sunflowers on the Banks of the Seine

Gustave Caillebotte, Sunflowers on the Banks of the Seine, c. 1885-1886

Somehow I always think of sunflowers on the plains, being from Kansas. Not in France on the banks of the Seine!

A Movie You Might Have Missed #87: Manhattan Murder Mystery

It's been 12 years since I began this series highlighting movies I wished more people knew about. I'm rerunning it from the beginning because I still think these are movies you might have missed.

The man in the apartment down the hallway is so awfully nice. He has one of those deep, expansive voices, and a face that breaks naturally into a smile, and the kind of big, disorganized body that's somehow reassuring. Therefore, obviously, he must be hiding something. And when his wife dies of a heart attack, it cannot be as simple as that. There must be more to it. Something deep, dark and ominous.

This is the way Carol's mind works. She can't help it; she was probably raised on Nancy Drew. She drives her husband nuts. He wants her to shut up and go to sleep, but all night and all day her mind is at work, threading together facts and possibilities into an obsessive theory: This nice guy has killed his wife, and unless she does something about it, he'll get away with murder.

Roger Ebert

What follows is a screwball murder mystery investigation, Woody Allen style. It stars Allen and Diane Keaton which tells you a lot about their dynamic if you ever saw Annie Hall. They work very well as a married couple.

I haven't seen this for about 10 or 15 years. It really holds up both as a tightly-plotted mystery and an examination of comfortable, middle aged marriage. I've always liked it but this time I was laughing out loud. In fact, I laughed out loud so many times that it got kind of embarrassing.

My mother hadn't ever seen a Woody Allen film. She liked this one a lot, which led to a minor Woody Allen festival of our favorites — most of which, it turns out, are movies practically everyone missed. I have featured many of them in the Movies You Might Have Missed series already right here.

Summer

Alphonse Mucha, Summer, 1896
via WikiArt

I love this Art Deco style and the depiction works, right down to the sultry, languid expression.

Lagniappe: Faithful in their infidelity

The charming Genovese, Florentine, and Neapolitan countesses had chosen to stick, not with their husbands, but with their lovers, and Albert had come to the painful conclusion that Italian women at least have this over their French sisters — that they are faithful in their infidelity.

Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo

You expect adventure, swashbuckling, and revenge. You don't expect the humor. Or, at least I don't.

Love Basics for Catholics by John Bergsma

When you begin to see the Bible as a book of love, it will change the way you view love, sex, marriage, family, and your personal relationship with God.

Bergsma focuses on what nine biblical marriages tell us about God’s relationship with us, including: 

• Adam and Eve—who show us that marriage is the culmination of all creation and that marriage can be an image of the Trinity 
• Ruth and Boaz—who display the tenderness and virtue of a marriage;
• Solomon and his bride in the Song of Songs—who illustrate a positive, healthy view of the body and physical beauty
• Jesus as Bridegroom of his people, the Church.

He also provides insight into Church teachings on marriage and relationships—such as monogamy, the single life, the Sacrament of Matrimony, and Jesus’s words about divorce—to show how these teachings come from the love God shares with his people through the covenants in scripture.

As with John Bergsma's other Bible Basics for Catholics books this is an excellent basic coverage, in this case how the Bible is the story of how marriage in the Bible shows us God's love for his people. 

I really enjoyed the gradual development of complexity as we followed the marriages featured in salvation history. I hadn't thought of them in a linear fashion as being an "evolutionary story" of how marriage would be understood, but it's all right there, as John Bergsma shows us. So we get both an in-depth look at marriage and God's love for his people in one handy-dandy, easy to understand book.

As with the Bible Basics book, Bergsma uses the trick of simple stick pictures to help make the main points memorable and I was happy to see them. They really are wonderful memory aids.

Clinique Cheron

Clinique Cheron, Theophile-Alexandre Steinlen
via J.R.'s Art Place

This just makes me happy. I love the idea of this vet wanting an ad. I love the profusion of loving animals. And I love the artistic style.

Story of an Egg (Ondu Motteya Kathe)

Janardhan is a Kannada language teacher who's 28 and eager to marry. But every time his parents arrange a marriage, the bride turns him down because he's an "egghead*" which is to say that he's bald.

He seeks advice from two sources. One is a friend at work who is also balding but has been happily married 4 years and has quiet, wise advice. The other is his favorite actor Rajkumar, who is not only a Kannada legend but an Indian cinema legend. Janardhan channels his hero's words of wisdom through Rajkumar's photo benignly smiling down on him and memories of movies and songs. Between the two, he gains courage to approach women.

As he goes along, we recognize how different relationships will work out. These familiar beats allow for both comedy and empathy. When Janardhan finally meets a woman who would be a good match, he doesn't recognize it and winds up having to work through some of the very issues that he himself was a victim of.

We really enjoyed this this sweet, charming film which felt a lot like an American indie movie. I knew how it would turn out, after a certain point, but felt genuine anxiety toward the end where I wanted to urge Janardhan to go get his woman! This is a real tribute to Raj B. Shetty who wrote, directed, and starred in the film. 

The Times of India commented: "The film is probably the best tribute to Dr Rajkumar made on Kannada screen till date and the subtle references to the late matinee idol and his films are a delight to any film buff." That's something we weren't in any position to appreciate, but it is clear that Shetty did a first class job on several levels.

Rating — Introduction to Bollywood (come on in, the water's fine!)

*It's funny to think about slang because in America an egghead is a super-intellectual, often impractical, scientist-type.

A Chance of Thunderstorms

A Chance of Thunderstorms
taken by Brian at the blue hour

I really struggled with which photo to share from this post. Do click through on the link and go enjoy all of them. Simply wonderful.

6:30 in the Morning

6:30 in the Morning, Edward B. Gordon

From the painter:

6:30 in the morning at the Spree in Oberschöneweide. The river has almost no current. Smooth as a mirror. Occasionally one sees dogs on the bank, pulling their still tired people on the leash after them. The ducks are sunbathing and the boats are still rocking softly in their sleep. From far away you can hear the wheels of the S-Bahn, clack clack, clack clack, clack clack, always in the same rhythm, short long, short long, short long. The beginning of a beautiful summer day.

Barbie is a mixed bag of entertainment.

Here's an excellent, insightful review of Barbie from Mrs. Darwin who gives not only her and Darwin's take, but also that of their four daughters, aged 13-21. Here's a bit that made me laugh, talking about how this will be viewed in the future at sleepovers. Then go read it all for yourself at Darwin Catholic.

In the end, the movie's frenetic pace grinds to a halt as Barbie is encouraged to actualize herself into being human by the ghost of her original American promoter, Ruth Handler (whose historical significance in Barbie's propagation consisted of manipulating markets by bypassing parental gatekeeping and selling a German sex doll directly to children through the medium of commercials on the Mickey Mouse Club). This is the lull where, in sleepovers yet to come, the girls (who mainly want to watch fun Barbieland antics and the Kens' farcical yet satisfying dance-off) wander off to have cake or open presents or check memes together. No one wants to watch Barbie being human in a movie which doesn't have a firm grasp on what it means to be human. It succeeds at moments because Gerwig, who is a talented procedural filmmaker, gives Barbie flashes of real insight. (A moment of wonder, where a stunned, luminous Barbie realizes the individuality of each person at a park, touches transcendence.) But she can't extend that humanity to every character. As a result, where the movie is absurd fun (and that's most of it), it works, and where it tries to be deep -- well, what better time to engage in real-world interactions like cake and sharing memes? Not every movie is so considerate as to telegraph where you can stop paying attention to it.

In Praise of Shadows

In Praise of Shadows, Calligraphy and View

There are shadows to the same extent as light. Humans may only see the light side.

Japanese culture and traditions have valued shadows.

But it can be hard to feel.

Maybe you know little of the shadow side. It can't be helped.

There are a number of gorgeous photo of light and shadow and how they are used in Japanese esthetics of everyday living. At the end is a link to the documentary, In Praise of Shadows. I will definitely be watching it. Click through and check it all out.

The Angel of Terror

This can't really match the description of the cover of the book that Freddy was reading. However, it is one of my favorite Edgar Wallace books. 

Here's another cover which is much closer to the description of Freddy's book. It also is a favorite of mine, which tells you something about my taste in light reading.

The cover of the book Freddy was reading

The book the Honorable Freddie was reading was a small paper-covered book. Its cover was decorated with a color scheme in red, black and yellow, depicting a tense moment in the lives of a man with a black beard, a man with a yellow beard, a man without any beard at all, and a young woman who, at first sight, appeared to be all eyes and hair. The man with the black beard, to gain some private end, had tied this young woman with ropes to a complicated system of machinery, mostly wheels and pulleys. The man with the yellow beard was in the act of pushing or pulling a lever. The beardless man, protruding through a trapdoor in the floor, was pointing a large revolver at the parties of the second part.

Beneath this picture were the words: "Hands up, you scoundrels!"

P.G. Wodehouse, Something Fresh

Oh, how many books I've enjoyed which were decorated in similar style. Actually, I have it on fairly good authority (from somewhere I now can't recall) that this was talking about Edgar Wallace's novels. Which I love. Really, really love. 

So here we have the double whammy for hedonistic reading — Wodehouse and Wallace.

Mademoiselle Vaughan

Paul Helleu, Mademoiselle Vaughan, 1905
via French Painters

Sometimes we need a dose of chic around here and no one embodies that better than Mademoiselle Vaughan.

Unless it was my friend June who was an original member of our movie group at Caruth Haven retirement community. She died almost 10 years ago but I still think fondly of her. She often surprised me with her movie suggestions. It is thanks to her that I saw Bernie. She was always turned out to a T and I miss her elegant manners, her sense of humor, her chic (of course) and, most of all, her sparkling self.

What ho!

“What ho!" I said.

"What ho!" said Motty.

"What ho! What ho!"

"What ho! What ho! What ho!"

After that it seemed rather difficult to go on with the conversation.”

P.G. Wodehouse, My Man Jeeves

For pure hedonism and sinking into novelistic inanity — hilarious, but inane — there is none better than Bertie Wooster.

Schönschreibmeister Sample

Schönschreibmeister Sample
via BibliOdyssey

I'm a sucker for typography and calligraphy. This is like the best of both. Do go over to BibliOdyssey to see all the samples. They are exquisite.

Jeeves and Nietzsche

“You would not enjoy Nietzsche, sir. He is fundamentally unsound.”

P.G. Wodehouse, Carry on, Jeeves

Still sinking as a hedonist into Wodehouse quotes. There is none better than Jeeves.

How to Defend the Faith Without Raising Your Voice by Austen Ivereigh (UPDATED)

I recently had occasion to quote one of Catholic Voices' ten principles of civil communication: "Shed light, not heat." Naturally, the principles and examples are oriented toward discussions of faith and belief. However, I have found the general principles help with any sort of contentious discussion.

Perhaps those of us who think we're always polite could benefit from a refresher course in civil conversation. I'm going to reread it and am rerunning this review in case anyone else is interested in the book.

I reviewed the original edition in 2013, but neglected to update it when I read the new edition which is equally fantastic. Both reviews are below, with the update coming first.

How to Defend the Faith Without Raising Your Voice: Civil Responses to Catholic Hot Button Issues by Austen Ivereigh

As I mentioned in my review of the first edition below, this is a book every Catholic should read.

I'll take this space to say why the revised edition is necessary. In three short years, debate in the public square has shifted in a way that has often bewildered me. How to Defend the Faith explains that whereas questioners and critics used to be those outside of Christian faith, they are now often secularized Christians. They hold to basic principles that originated with Christian teachings but are so divorced from those teachings that they can't see the connection any more. That leaves a Catholic on shifting ground if one tries to anchor explanations of hot button issues in a Christian understanding. We're having discussions with people who aren't interpreting things with a common framework.

How to Defend the Faith helps understand the shifted frame from which critiques originate and how to reframe our responses so that we are all on the same page. Your questioner may not agree with you (and winning isn't the point - explanation is), but they will at least have a better understanding of the Church's attitudes toward contentious issues in the public square.

ORIGINAL EDITION REVIEW

This is a book that every Catholic should read.

The reason I say that becomes abundantly apparent in the subhead: Civil Responses to Catholic Hot-Button Issues.

We know how it feels, finding yourself suddenly appointed the spokesman for the Catholic Church while you're standing at a photocopier, swigging a drink at the bar, or when a group of folks suddenly freezes, and all eyes fix on you.

"You're a Catholic, aren't you?" someone says.

"Um, yes," you confess, looking nervously at what now seems to resemble a lynch mob.

The pope has been reported as saying something totally outrageous. Or the issue of AIDS and condoms has come up. Or the discussion has urned to gay marriage. And here you are, called on to defend the Catholic Church by virtue of your baptism, feeling as equipped for that task as Daniel in the den of lions.

Yes, we've all been there.

Or perhaps you are a Catholic who does not feel called to defend the faith but is one of the crowd waiting, wanting, a good explanation for whatever issue has been raised.

Either way, this book is here to help.

The introduction lays out the vital need for good, civil communication that sheds light but not heat. This is followed by nine chapters that discuss challenging questions which seem to get on everyone's nerves, such as the Church speaking up about politics, assisted suicide, clerical sex abuse, or defending the unborn. Austen Ivereigh discusses the overall context for each issue, the positive intention behind challenging questions, the Church's historical and current positions, and more. This is all with the goal of helping us be more knowledgable and know how to reframe issues so that there is a chance of being a positive voice for the Church.

Why the Church Opposes Euthanasia

In common with a long-standing tradition of western civilization, the Church believes that dying naturally is a vital part of life's journey, in many ways the most meaningful part. Dying can be described as a process of healing. Important things happen on that journey, and suffering and pain are often a part of it. As Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo ... said: "Compassion isn't to say, 'Here's a pill.' It's to show people the ways we can assist you, up until the time the Lord calls you."

Dying, then, is a highly meaningful gradual process of renunciation and surrender. Although some die swifty and painlessly, very often the pattern of dying involves great suffering, because (and this is true of old age in general) it involves letting go of those thing which in our lives we believe make us worthwhile and lovable: our looks, intelligence, abilities, and capabilities. This is what the great Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung called "necessary suffering," the suffering endured by the ego, which protests at having to change and surrender. The idea that this kind of suffering is part of growth is not a uniquely "religious" view, although Christianity -- with the Cross and the Resurrection at its heart -- has perhaps a richer theological understanding than most secular outlooks.

The above excerpt is not the whole argument or rationale by any means. However, it was so well put for what I knew instinctively but had never had to articulate. It is one of the reasons I may wind up reading and rereading this book ... not only to absorb the points for the sake of discussion but for my own soul's sake.

Above all Ivereigh reminds us that where there is no trust, there can be no understanding or true conversation. To that end, he ends with ten points which should frame our mindset. These are the points that have stuck with me the most. I can't tell you the number of times in simply dealing with difficult situations daily that I have remembered to "shed light, not heat" and to "look for the positive intention behind the criticism." This doesn't mean not speaking up for the truth, but it does remind us that the goal is not always "to win."

I mentioned above that I thought every Catholic should read this book. I would go farther and venture to say that if you are curious about how the Church can justify a position you don't agree with, then this book is for you. That is how impressed I was by Ivereigh's even-handed, civil discussion of the positive motives of both sides of conversations on contentious issues. You may not wind up agreeing with the Church, but you will definitely see that there is a reasonable, logical context for her position.

How to Be Blind

Andrew Leland is losing his vision. He writes in The New Yorker about learning to navigate the world sightless at Colorado Center for the Blind. 

This can be rather nerve-wracking to read if you worry about being blind. I don't worry about it exactly but, unsurprisingly, it does make me anxious. If the possibility comes to mind then I quickly move my mind off of it.

In this case, I got rather anxious reading about Andrew Leland's initial trials in becoming independent. As it went, however, I grew very interested in all the things he was able to do. By the end, I felt actually hopeful. If I lost my vision, I'd want to be pushed into being just that independent.

Here's a bit of the piece, which you can read free at The New Yorker. 

I began to appreciate the novel experiences that blindness gave me. The notion that blind people have better hearing than the sighted is a myth, but relying on my ears did change my relationship with sound. Neuroscientists have found that the visual cortices of blind people are activated by such activities as reading Braille, listening to speech, and hearing auditory cues, such as the echo of a cane’s taps. At lunch, one day, Cragar’s wife, Meredith, who was visiting from Houston, came into the room carrying their fifteen-month-old daughter, Poppy. The sounds that she made—cooing, laughing—cut through the room like washes of color. I didn’t quite hallucinate these colors, but I came close. In the coming weeks, I had several mildly psychedelic experiences like this, a kind of blind synesthesia. The same thing happened with touch. I played blackjack with a Braille deck, and, after a few days, began to intuitively read the cards as if I were seeing them. In the art room, a teacher taught me to pull a wire through a mound of wet clay. Later, as I described the experience to Lily and our son, Oscar, on a video call, I had to remind myself that I’d never actually seen this tool or the clay. It was so clear in my mind’s eye.

My sense of space gradually transformed. Walking the carpeted halls of the center’s lower level, I could see a faint black-and-blue virtual-reality environment lit by some unseen light source. Sometimes my cane penetrated one of the velvety walls, and I had to redraw my mental map. When I was out in the city, Charles sometimes informed me that what I thought was Alamo Avenue was actually Prince Street, or that east was actually north, and I had to lift the landscape in my mind, rotate it ninety degrees, and set it back down. I could almost feel my brain trembling under the strain. But it was also kind of fun.

Andrew Leland, How to Be Blind, The New Yorker

Via The Dispatch's Morning Newsletter

From a Trip to St. Augustine, Florida

From a Trip to St. Augustine, Florida; via J.R.'s Art Place

Gorgeous! I loved visiting St. Augustine several years ago. The architecture is really beautiful in a lot of places.

Lagniappe: Egbert and the Civil Service

As from boyhood up [Egbert] had shown no signs of possessing any intelligence whatsoever, he had gravitated naturally to England’s civil service... But though he could drink tea as well as the next man and had a gift for crossword puzzles, he did not really like being in his country’s service, however civil.

P.G. Wodehouse, Another Christmas Carol

Still reading novels in a hedonistic way.

The Waking Bog

Taken by Remo Savisaar, click through the link to see it better

Simply gorgeous. It must be wonderful to live somewhere with views like that.

A Movie You Might Have Missed #86: Tokyo Godfathers

It's been 12 years since I began this series highlighting movies I wished more people knew about. I'm rerunning it from the beginning because I still think these are movies you might have missed.

Here's a Christmas movie that I reviewed way back in 2004 and can practically guarantee you have missed.

This Japanese tribute to John Ford's western "3 Godfathers" is fresh and original in a way that Western animation does not even consider. It centers on three homeless people: a middle aged drag queen, an alcoholic former bicycle racer, and a teenage runaway girl. Their discovery of a baby in a trash dump sends them off to find the baby's parents. They make unlikely guardians, of course, and along the way they grow, chiefly by confronting each other and themselves about the lies they've told each other about the past. Hana, the drag queen, names the abandoned infant Grace and insists that she has been sent by God. Coincidences and miracles happen increasingly throughout and seem surprisingly Christian for a Japanese film.

The juxtaposition of humor and drama are deft and play off each other in unexpected ways. At one point Hana is dramatically describing how he will commit suicide by jumping off a bridge. We have been primed by this time to find Hana's pronouncements quietly comic. Then the viewer realizes that someone in the background is taking the exact measures that Hana describes. Both humor and drama are in play as they also realize it a beat later and rush to stop the person from jumping. We never were disappointed. Although one expects an overall happy ending the plot twists on the way were original and unexpected.

It is rated PG-13 and some of the material is not suitable for children.

Brains enough for two

And she's got brains enough for two, which is the exact quantity the girl who marries you will need.”

P.G. Wodehouse, Mostly Sally

In the spirit of reading as a hedonist, let's look at a little P.G. Wodehouse, shall we?

Snack with Fried Egg

Snack with Fried Eggs, Georg Flegel

Reading Scripture and entering into a conversation with God

One must not read Sacred Scripture as one reads any kind of historical book, such as, for example, Homer, Ovid or Horace; it is necessary truly to read it as the Word of God, that is, entering into a conversation with God. …

One must start by praying and talking to the Lord: "Open the door to me". And what St. Augustine often says in his homilies: "I knocked at the door of the Word to find out at last what the Lord wants to say to me", seems to me to be a very important point. One should not read Scripture in an academic way, but with prayer, saying to the Lord: "Help me to understand your Word, what it is that you want to tell me in this passage".

Pope Benedict XVI, Meeting with the Youth of Rome, 2006

This is something I have to keep relearning. It's a conversation and to listen to the Lord and to look for him through his Word.

Strawberries

Octav Bancila, Strawberries

Heresies and How to Avoid Them, edited by Ben Quash and Michael Ward

Ten top theologians, all practising Christians, tackle ten ancient heresies and show why the contemporary Church still needs to know about them. Christians need to remember what these great early heresies were and why they were ruled out, or else risk falling prey to their modern day manifestations. The book contains key scriptural passages relevant to each heresy, a glossary of terms, and summaries of historical Church documents in which these heresies were defined and outlawed.

This really is just like the book blurb describes it — reacquainting Christians with ancient heresies and how one might encounter them today. I was surprised to see that a tendency I really hate — to talk about the God of the Old Testament as a hateful deity and Jesus of the New Testament as correcting that OT god with his love and sweetness — is the ancient heresy of Marcionism. Aha! (The Trinity is three persons, ONE essence. As Jesus said, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.")

Anyway, some of the chapters are easier to understand than the others but all are good. Each begins with a quick summary of the heresy, followed by key scriptures which refute the errors. Each of the authors also took pains to point out that the heretics and their teachings were often well intentioned in desiring to clarify a misunderstanding about the faith. Often the heretics simply didn't go far enough in thinking things through and then dug their heels in when their theories were questioned and shown to be inadequate.

The generous attitude of the authors does not mean that they condone heresy. It does mean that they look upon it as "provocative stimuli, catalysts for energetic thought." Otherwise how can one counter it? That is how I have felt when encountering it, as I did very shortly after converting and innocently sashaying out to a bookstore to pick up books about Catholicism. I was quite surprised to see that there were a lot of divergent schools of thought about various topics in the Church. I quickly learned to educate myself in the why's and how's of the Church's dogma and doctrine so I could evaluate what I came across. Many such opportunities to dig deeper into our own faith are presented to us today and that "generous attitude" of one that I think is valuable to remember when we find ourselves confronted with heresy today.

The final chapter and the epilogue point out how dangerous heresy is and why orthodoxy is important. Both are excellent reminders of the importance that real truth makes to our relationship with God.

Broken Egg

Duane Keiser, Broken Egg

Just Plain Fun: Confess, Fletch; Honor Among Thieves; and Game Night

 Sometimes you just want to watch a fun movie that doesn't give you more than a good time. We recently saw three of them that were just plain fun and, as my mother said, silly in just the right way. They also strike me as highly rewatchable. I look forward to doing so.

Confess, Fletch

The roguishly charming and endlessly troublesome Fletch becomes the prime suspect in a murder case while searching for a stolen art collection. The only way to prove his innocence? Find out which of the long list of suspects is the culprit - from the eccentric art dealer and a missing playboy to a crazy neighbor and Fletch’s Italian girlfriend. Crime, in fact, has never been this disorganized.

This is a solid murder mystery like they don't make any more. Extremely entertaining, quick witted, funny, and keeps you guessing. Also, we need more Jon Hamm in humorous roles.

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves brings the rich world and playful spirit of the legendary roleplaying game to the big screen in a hilarious and action-packed adventure. It's an infectiously good-spirited comedy with a solid emotional core.

This captured the sense of the gameplaying while also being a good fantasy adventure movie for any viewer. As a Baldur's Gate game player it was distinctly weird to recognize town names and city buildings and spells and suchlike. 

You know the basic beats of who will grow in what way and what sorts of personal challenges they must face. But that frees you up to sit back and enjoy the show, letting the humor and quests take you on a very entertaining ride.

Game Night

Max and Annie's weekly game night gets kicked up a notch when Max's brother Brooks arranges a murder mystery party -- complete with fake thugs and federal agents. So when Brooks gets kidnapped, it's all supposed to be part of the game. As the competitors set out to solve the case, they start to learn that neither the game nor Brooks are what they seem to be. The friends soon find themselves in over their heads as each twist leads to another unexpected turn over the course of one chaotic night.

After watching Honor Among Thieves we discovered that the same team wrote and directed Game Night, which somehow I'd missed when it came out. This is another movie where the only goal is to entertain, which it does spectacularly.

The type of movie is familiar so we could relax and go along for the ride, enjoying the twists on the familiar beats. There were so many familiar, favorite actors that it was the icing on the cake to have both Jason Bateman and Kyle Chandler in the film together. And it was really fun to see Chandler playing against type.

Ketchup

Ketchup, Edward B. Gordon

Vintage

Vintage
by James Neil Hollingsworth

The Demands of Despair ... and of Hope

Despair demands less of us, it's more predictable, and in a sad way safer. Authentic hope requires clarity — seeing the troubles in this world — and imagination, seeing what might lie beyond these situations that are perhaps not inevitable and immutable.

Rebecca Solnit, Hope in the Dark

I never would have thought to label despair and hope in this way but, of course, this cuts to the heart of the two emotions.

The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells

We all know the basics of this story. On a cold and snowy night, a mysterious traveller shows up at the Coach and Horses inn. His face is swaddled in bandages, he never removes his dark glasses, and he always wears gloves. The curious villagers have various theories for these oddities but it is generally assumed he is an accident victim. When the truth is revealed it is almost incomprehensible — he is an invisible man. As he struggles to survive and discover the antidote, we follow his progress in a story that is funny, exciting, and alarming. 

I have liked this book as a scary tale ever since I first read it many years ago. As I've grown older and wiser I increasingly appreciated H.G. Wells's skill, both as a writer and as an observer of human nature. This book does a lot in relatively few pages. It tells a story that we don't expect to be truly scary because it is so old and well known. However, by the time that Kemp was fleeing from the invisible man, seeking asylum in a bar, and everyone was worried about which doors they forgot to lock, I felt real chills of terror.

H.G. Wells asks the question, "What would you try to get away with if you were invisible?" We've seen a lot of super hero movies look at this sort of issue but this early piece of science fiction is one of the most effective. It also serves as a nice corrective of the modern tendency to give every villain a sympathetic back story. The invisible man actually has a story that you can feel sympathetic about at the beginning. Very quickly, however, the reader is disabused of any tendencies to think him misunderstood, put upon, or simply different.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this again.

Scott Danielson and I discuss the book in episode 311 of A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast.

Juli (July)

Juli (July), Theo Van Hoytema

 

30 Days with Married Saints by Kent and Caitlin Lasnoski

30 Days with the Married Saints will help you to pray with a variety of holy married men and women of the Church from well-known couples like Mary and Joseph to lesser-known couples like Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi (the first couple to be beatified together). Each day contains vivid portraits of heroically virtuous married saints as well as prayers, moving reflections, questions, and practical suggestions to enrich your marriage and inspire you and your spouse on your journey of sanctity.

I picked this up because my husband and I are the Spiritual Directors for an upcoming marriage enrichment retreat. I'm so glad I did because otherwise I would have missed this wonderful devotional.

I was impressed by the range and variety of the married couples presented for our contemplation. In some cases, both spouses were saints. In many more, as one might expect, one was a saint and the other was along for the ride, with varying degrees of enthusiasm. For example, we're all familiar with Saint Monica whose husband was violent, faithless, and unfaithful to her. However, after twenty years of marriage he was baptized shortly before his death.

On the other hand, Blessed Frederic Ozanam who founded the Saint Vincent de Paul Society had a loving, supportive wife. They both worked to keep their marriage full of small, daily reminders of affection. This is despite the fact that he was incredibly busy as a professor, journalist, and helping poor households as a member of the Saint Vincent de Paul society.

Many of the couples merit several chapters. The chapters in this small book are never longer than three or four pages which have been a good amount for my husband and I to read together every day. Each chapter has an opening prayer, modern illustrations of living the examples found in the saints' lives, points for reflection and a closing prayer. I tend not to like reflection prompts but the ones in this book are thoughtful and often highlight angles I might not have considered.

Highly recommended.

The Complete Home

The Complete Home: An Encyclopedia of Domestic Life and Affairs. 1879.
via Books and Art

This is a really glorious book cover. I can only imagine how proud Mrs. Julia McNair Wright must have been when it was published. I also like the beauty implied by the flowers and ornaments, which would be the beauty that a purchaser would hope to bring to their home with the helpful tips inside.

The Wolf-Leader by Alexandre Dumas

Often cited as the first werewolf novel ever written! From the author of adventure classics like The Three Musketeers and The Count Of Monte Cristo, a lost tale of revenge, wishes fulfilled, and a ravenous nature that will take a bite out of you!

Drawing from his own youthful experiences of folklore, Alexandre Dumas tells the story of Thibault, a young man who makes a pact with a talking wolf who promises to grant his wishes. Though he is promised revenge against those who wronged him, Thibault's life only gets worse. His vengeance lays itself bare, but the villagers suspect him to be a werewolf as well!

This is pushed as a werewolf story but it is really a Faustian tale. I know of Faust only by reputation but my impression was always that he was a bit of a clever fellow. Thibault is not. It's fun watching this unfold, especially with the unusual nature of the devil's request for each wish granted. As Thibault progresses in his desires, he encounters different situations that gradually move up through the social strata. This leads to a lot of amusing situations strewn amongst the Faustian choices that are made.

Overall this was rather like infusing the hijinks of The Three Musketeers into a supernatural story with a moral center. It simultaneously was entertaining and thought-provoking as the story proceeded. Recommended if your taste runs in that direction.

A Portrait Of a Christian De Falb

A Portrait Of a Christian De Falbe, Anders Zorn

I'm a big fan of Anders Zorn, but I've never seen anything that looks like this. The combination of visual styles, contrasting between extreme realism in the dog and child with the much more impressionistic fabrics and background makes me think of Gustav Klimt in some ways.

Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, Self-Portrait with Daughter Julie

Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, Self-Portrait with Daughter Julie

During the 40 year period from 1778 to 1818 Vigée Le Brun painted 37 self portraits. 17 were originals and 20 were copies. We've got a copy of one of those self-portraits on the wall of our bedroom. Seeing it at The Kimbell Museum, she struck me as so sweet that I wanted one to take home. It never occurred to me that there would be more than one. I find this portrait with her daughter to be equally as sweet.

A Movie You Might Have Missed #85: U Turn (2016)

It's been 12 years since I began this series highlighting movies I wished more people knew about. I'm rerunning it from the beginning because I still think these are movies you might have missed.

Rachana, a young reporter, is dismayed at the number of illegal u-turns and resulting traffic accidents, and she wants to write a story about it. In pursuing a lead, she finds herself in the middle of a police case dealing with a series of murders. While freeing herself of false accusations, she becomes part of the investigation process. What is behind the mysterious deaths and how are they are all connected to the flyover road?

This thriller is perfect for the wind up to Halloween. One of the most shocking things about it is something that Western audiences will find inexplicable — to have the divider between opposite sides of a highway made simply of large bricks which anyone can move so they can do a U-turn anywhere they feel like it. This blew our minds.

It is the number of U-turns which the young reporter, Rachana, is investigating. Her theory is that this leads to a lot of accidents and deaths. She's right, but not in the way that she originally thinks. Strangely tied to a number of deaths, the unfolding mystery was really intriguing and well told. Keep your eyes open for the number of "U"s showing up, including the beginning where we are upside down and do a u-turn to see the road right side up. 

I can see why this movie is on so many "must see" lists. It is a great thriller and since it is Indian, it is also not too gory.

Note: a "flyover" is what we would call an overpass. That took us a little while to figure out.

Streaming on Netflix now. This is the original which is in the Kannada language. It has since been remade in three other Indian languages.

July

July, Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry

More of the harvest; the sheep are being shorn and the hay is being reaped. The chateau behind them is that which formerly stood on the Clain at Poitiers. University of Chicago

Catechism of the Spiritual Life by Cardinal Robert Sarah

It seemed to me that the eclipse of God in our postmodern societies, the crisis of fundamental human and moral values, and its repercussions even in the Church, where we observe confusion on the subject of divinely revealed truth, the loss of the authentic meaning of the liturgy and a diminished understanding of priestly identity, forcefully demanded that a genuine catechism of the spiritual life be offered to all the faithful. ... This book is a catechism of the interior life. It intends to indicate the principal means of entering into the spiritual life; its purpose if practical, not academic.

This is a meditative, deep look at the sacraments and how they help to form and develop our spiritual lives. Cardinal Sarah's premise is that by following Jesus in the sacraments, like the Hebrews followed Moses in the desert, we will find the path out of our own interior wilderness to true closeness and joy in the Lord.

There's a chapter on each of the sacraments plus one on prayer. Sarah draws on the writings of theologians, saints, and popes (especially Pope Benedict XVI) in a way which is often reflective rather than instructive. This allows for slow, deep reading which opens up our own thoughts.

I was most intrigued when Sarah would comment on the modern world and the Church today. These were used not only as a reflection on the need for the sacraments but also on how to live our lives as Catholics in current culture. The answer, he tells us, is always personal conversion and a return to holiness, a return to a close relationship with Jesus.

Above all, Sarah's hope is that this spiritual catechism will help us reorient ourselves to see the beauty of God's plan for our lives. At the conclusion of the book, Sarah says of the interior wilderness:

In the wilderness, we understood that it is nor our job to take our interior life in hand. We have to let ourselves be formed. We have to let God form us. We have to let ourselves be led and instructed by God. Of course, we are not entirely passive. We have our part in the work. But our labor consists primarily in our willingness to be soft clay in God's hands, suited to be modeled according to his merciful plan.

Amen.

Tiger in the Snow

Tiger in the Snow, Katsushika Hokusai

I don't know what Hokusai was going for, but this tiger just looks so darned happy and maybe a little goofy. It definitely makes me smile. I also really love the way that the tiger's extended claws are echoed in the branch tips thrusting through the snow. The flowing body and shape the stripes make also are echoed in the shape of the bushes. What a great piece.

Carp Leaping Up a Cascade

Carp Leaping Up a Cascade, Katsushika Hokusai

 This is one of my all time favorite pieces of art, much less one by Hokusai. It is so evocative.

Couldn't Put It Down — The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman

More of the books I've been delighted to find I still really enjoy even though I first read it decades ago.

 

Mrs. Pollifax is a widow in her 60s who is extremely bored with her life. When her doctor advises her to try something she always wanted to do, she remembers a youthful longing to be a spy. Showing up at the CIA to apply, she is mistaken for one of their regular couriers and given a simple assignment. That assignment leads to an adventure which takes her to a career in espionage.

This is a bit of a love letter to the first six novels in the Mrs. Pollifax series from 1966-1983. They are that rarest of all creations, the cozy spy novel.

My mother would bring home the latest from the grocery store and it would get passed around. We all enjoyed Mrs. Pollifax's personality and ingenuity, as well as the author's talent for weaving an enjoyable spy novel. There is suspense and mystery but also the light, personal touch that Mrs. Pollifax herself injects into every situation. Of course her lack of experience and training means that she winds up getting deeper into every assignment than her handlers expected. Her interest in the people and situations around her lead to a sort of inspired mayhem resulting from Mrs. Pollifax logically from trying to achieve her goal under circumstances that rapidly spin out of control. 

I'm finding the books also serve as time capsules for living in the days of the Cold War and other political situations that I'd almost forgotten about. It all feels familiar and yet so far away as I read. Dorothy Gilman also took a great deal of care with the geography and culture of these far away places. I didn't realize it so long ago when I was first reading, but they really are a good, if casual, look at the countries Mrs. Pollifax visits.

My favorites are the first six books but there are many more to try.

Thunderstorm Beneath the Summit

Thunderstorm Beneath the Summit, Katsushika Hokusai
from the celebrated Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji series

Helping people or helping yourself ...

When you want to help people, you tell them the truth. When you want to help yourself, you tell them what they want to hear.

Thomas Sowell

Well, well, well. That rings really true!

Hibiscus and Sparrow

Katsushika Hokusai, Hibiscus and Sparrow, 1830
via Wikipaintings

What can I say? I love Asian art, especially by Hokusai. This combines a sense of movement and calm that I like. And I love the balance of the coral and green.

Brochevarevarura (Who Shall Save the Day?)

This story has the framework of an aspiring scriptwriter who is telling the story to an actress who he hopes to interest in starring in the film he's writing. The film pops in and out of this framework and it is interesting to see how the story can subtly change going forward based on the actress's questions or comments.

As it begins, three slackers (or as they are charmingly called in India - back benchers) try anything and everything to make passing marks. They meet another low performer who is a young lady and the principal's daughter. When she runs into trouble, they turn all their limited resources into helping her out.

For the first half of the movie, this was all good and well, but I kept wondering what led to all the good critical reviews and audience enthusiasm. It seemed very ordinary in many ways. However, about halfway through a plot twist popped up that left us astounded and intrigued. This made all the difference as the movie exploded into action and we were glued to the story.

I would like to rewatch this someday because there are hints in the beginning which are fulfilled by the end. I know that we missed some but the obvious ones were a real pleasure when they popped up. This was cleverly written and well acted and directed. Definitely recommended.