This catalogue has excellent photographs that gives one a sense of the attitude of the Beat Generation. Everyone is familiar with the writers of the period, but not everyone knows about art generated during those years. This catalogue gives a review of art, film, and writing being created at the time. Not only that but it devotes a chapter to women and a chapter to minorites working during the time period. A good source of information for anyone interested in the 1950's to the early 1960's.

Christopher Fowler and John Bolton give us here a phenomenal comic strip. It is centered on the mental world in which people can really be free, themselves, without any restraint from society and from their own personal censorship. We are ourselves and free only on this mental level that lies beyond real life. Real life is grey, drab, sad, full of norms and predigested behaviors. The mental plane is free, full of colors, full of adventures. Everything is possible and we meet there the strangest beings we can imagine, all those who have left their bodies somewhere in the real world to live the freedom of their minds. But somewhere there is a myth : the desire of those liberated souls to go back to the real world and see their real bodies. They discover then that in the real world they live a life of total alienation, often pent up in some asylum, whereas on the mental plane they can be free and experience feelings that would be impossible in the real world, because on the mental plane they accept any absurdity as being freedom and real being. Yet, in a way, generally catastrophic from a social point of view, the mental state they are in on the mental plane, can free their social bodies and beings in real society by some supernormal, extranormal intervention. The drawing is creative and rich in colors and strange forms. On the mental plane everything is possible, and the drawing assumes this freedom to produce a vision of real freedom in insanity. We long for the possibility to be there and finally get rid of all our restraints. Even if life on the mental plane is only possible if our bodies are still alive in society, somewhere, in a way or another. A fascinating world that is given a tremendous force by a very creative language.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

This book has everything you wanted to know about the NHL teams. Although a little dated it is still up to date but off 6 years. But that is fine. This book tells you what each team's stadium seating capacity and stanley cups they won. It also shows at the back of the book the list of Hockey Hall Of Fame inductees. In this book is the history of the NHL.

un excelente libro de Martine Franck, los retratos de niños y ancianos son soberbios, una clara muestra de la contundencia de esta gran fotografa a traves de su obra

It was a delight to return to John Berger's writings through this collection of essays. A few are previously unpublished and the rest date from 1960 to 1984. Old stuff? No. Some of the essays are timeless, those on art in particular. Some offer haunting pictures of a vanished world, travel pieces in Yugoslavia for example. And some are disturbing and dismaying for their current relevance. "On the Bosphorus" was written in 1979, just after the government of Turkey had declared martial law, again. Berger sets this story of modern Turkey, its people, and its politics, on a ferry across the Bosphorus carrying Anatolian, commuting workers, truck drivers and Kurdish porters. The impact of US intervention on Turkish politics appears in the details of lives situated in history and written on the bodies of Berger's fellow passengers and remembered friends. The essay that follows, "Manhattan," is eery for the juxtaposition, and the two engage the reader in a post-September 11th dialogue.
John Berger is an art critic who taught us another way of seeing 40 years ago, but his strength is in the relation between the visual and the verbal. He writes of the the stories told by works of art and fills his essays with pictures of particular. He is the story teller.

a mildly goofy interpretation that claims Armenian Christian origin for oriental carpets, ill organized, with excruciating page layout, but the sources consulted and the rich illustration make an interesting read and as well an incredible bargain

This is a beautiful book with careful drawings and magnificent color photographs. It is a serious scholarly work. An ideal text for a course on Oriental Carpets.

Dr. Gantzhorn's book is both a fabulous bargain, with over 600 beautiful color plates, and a ground-breaking work of art history scholarship. If you are open to an iconoclastic view of carpet weaving history, i.e., history which differs from the official one, you owe it to yourself to consider Dr. Gantzhorn's carefully researched and documented thesis.

Berger is a new writer for me, and so far (this book and one other), a treat. I have only a general knowledge of the well-known painters, but found the interpretive sections interesting and generally accessible for an interested layman - sufficiently so that I believe I will tackle some of Berger's art essays next.

Besides the observations on painting, A Painter of Our Time interests as a character study, in its examination of the relationship of each of us to his past, and the question of how well we know each other. A small, quiet gem, it rings true throughout - especially as a first novel. I wouldn't say I couldn't put it down, but I didn't want to.

"A Painter of Our Time" is one of the most thought-provoking novels I have read. It contains many insightful reflections on art, philosophy, and politics. In addition, the international setting and the unexplained disappearance of the principal character at the beginning of the story combine to generate the kind of suspense that is characteristic of a classic mystery by Graham Greene. The ambiguities do not end there. A dialectical tension between art and politics, between representational art and abstract art, and between Marxist politics and bourgeois politics is sustained throughout the novel. If the principal character has, in fact, returned to his homeland to join the political struggle there, it is not at all clear which side of the struggle he has joined. The philosophical underpinnings of the book might be better appreciated by a reader who is already familiar with "Ways of Seeing" or other nonfiction books by the same author. But it is not necessary to have a background in philosophy or art theory to enjoy the story. The visual qualities of the book alone would make it an excellent candidate for an award-winning film if it were not for the anti-intellectual prejudice of the American film audience. Although such a film would undoubtedly be a commercial success in Europe, the absence of conspicuous consumption, gratuitous sex, and spectacular violence would doom it to obscurity in this country. So, don't hold your breath waiting for the film to arrive. Read the book.

As a fine artist, I find few things more laughable than the manner in which people in my profession are depicted by writers. How romantic it all sounds! To live in pain for the love of art, expressing one's exotic soul, only to eventually to disintegrate and die in obscurity.

The reality to living as an artist is rather more prosaic than what the writers tell us. The issues an artist faces to produce artwork are far less emotional than what the layman would believe.

Here, for the first -- and as far as I know -- the only time, is a novel which accurately reflects the lifestyle and technical considerations of the typical working artist: a highly skilled professional without a "name". This book says it all.

And it says it with great finesse. Beyond its veracity to the profession, Painter of Our Time is both a well written story and compelling character study of an aging man in a less than perfect marriage.

The one exotic aspect to the story's main character, is that he is a politically committed hungarian refugee living in post-war London. Written in the form of a journal, the artist is haunted by the memory of a dead friend, as he struggles with low income and an indifferent wife.

Some readers may have a problem with the book's heavy emphasis on old school communist doctrine (as I did), but if you can get past this, you will find this a thoroughly absorbing, thoroughly accurate work about what it means to be an artist.

Latife Tekin made a new language:Her first book, 'Berci Kristin Çöp Masallarý'is written by angels. But the angels live in the ghetto and they are ugly.This is Berji Kristin.

Post-Criticum: You MUST read 'Ice Swords' but it isn't publishing yet.So, you should learn Turkish...

Latife Tekin tells the incredible story of a group of rural migrants who build a shantytown in a garbage dump and their experiences in trying to adapt to urban life. A nameless narrator recounts the abstract history of the garbage hills from the point of view of a removed observer, which leaves plenty of room for Tekin's characters to take center stage. Although the inhabitants of the shantytown are simple folk, their stories are told in such rich language that even the most mundane events in their lives stir emotion. Tekin presents the hill dwellers as ignorant victims of the changes swirling around them. Their exploitation by outsiders (factory bosses and politicians) and their manipulation by one of their own (a Muslim cleric) are among many tales the author weaves with poetic language and wry wit. No specific dates or places (other than the hills and their immediate vicinity) are mentioned, but the setting and pace of the novel roughly coincide with that of the massive growth of shantytowns and factories on Istanbul's outskirts during the 1970s. Ruth Cristie and Salina Paker have done an excellent job in keeping the author's flowery prose intact in the English translation, but Tekin's constant use of metaphors may loose readers who are not well grounded in Turkish culture.

"G", by Mr. John Berger is the work of his that won the distinguished, "Booker Prize". What is perhaps more remarkable is that this was completed while he had published the first two, and was completing the final volume of his, "Into Their Labours Trilogy". This trilogy is one that I just read and I feel it is the best of his work that I have had the pleasure to read. Perhaps as it was broken into separate volumes and issued over 15 years made recognition of the trilogy impossible.

This work is different as we begin learning about, "The Protagonist" long before he has been born, and it is quite later on that he is finally referred to as, "G". The only time he actually takes his Father's name is when it is in the form of a falsified passport, which in the context of the story is as it should be. G has an extraordinarily eventful life, however it is devoid of a traditional Family. It is this method of his being raised that leads him to become a veritable predator of woman. But it is not just G who describes what he has planned and what he experiences, but also the women he pursues. However the Author that sets the stage for the events between G and his female friends offers another layer of insight.

The Author's voice is present and at times the dominant presence in the narrative. This book reminded me at times of Mr. Berger's works of non-fiction when he takes the senses that we use without thought and explains their workings so they become fascinating. He makes them this way not by explaining how they perform their tasks, but how they collect and interpret information well in excess of what we are consciously aware of.

I thought G personified an individual who was focused on one basic drive of all animals while being oblivious to what was really going on around him. Observations are made for him, as are the interpretations. This is a man who goes through momentous events in History with barely a nod in there direction, while obsessing himself with a planned affair, insult, or other ego satisfying triviality. His lack of perspective and his careless interest in what is important eventually gain his attention. And when this happens the irony is that the attention he receives he has done nothing to deserve other than to be blissfully ignorant.

I would have given this 5 stars, but after Mr. Berger's trilogy I cannot. This is still a splendid read by a master writer that should not be missed.

The main character - or should I say protaganist- of this book is not particularly interesting or endearing.But the story in its narrative form is compelling.The writer describes the events partly as an historian and partly as an author but then compounds events by addressing the reader with the first person - as though he personally was a witness not only to the events but to the personal emotions of the characters as well. There is much wisdom in this book - not in a cosy way, but in defining life and its intricacies, reminding us of events in our own lives but making us remember those events as exceptional-which I suppose - is the basis of romance. One is engaged with the author whilst we learn about G -closer to the author than the character. G's quest is ultimately pointless, as he single mindedly trawls through his life, marked only by physical conquests - doomed through lust and avarice - his sincerity is faulted, he lives only for now - ultimately he has no vision.

We learn not from his actions but from the authors descriptions and eloquent prose - that there is magic in life, that our experiences count for everything.

What is fascinating about this book is how Berger tells the story of the modern Don Juan (Don Giovanni) from the perspective of the seduced. Instead of telling the heroic tail of the 'conquests,' Berger focuses on the reception of seduction. Rather, seduction is a two-way street. "He" is the seducer--but so are his partners. They all come with interesting stories.

The 'protagonist' is uninteresting; he's not even all that attractive. Yet, Berger isn't all that interested in why G. would be attractive for so many women. Here there are no heroes and no victims. In sex there is the encounter of two: 'who' they are isn't reducible to status and power; rather, it is the activity of anticipation, the clamouring, the lust, the mutual surrender, and the tenderness of fleeting moments.

Such moments are told against the backdrop of an astute historical understanding of the role of the sexes. Berger obliterates our preconceptions of sex-roles, our unconscious historical memories, by focusing on the mutual nature of passion.

This book is part of trilogy - Pig Earth, In Europa, Lilac and Flag - depicting the erosion of traditional peasant culture and the incorporation of the children of the peasantry into modern urban life. Taken together, these books comprise a kind of fictionalized sociology of modernization. Each of these books describes a different aspect of this process. The first book, Pig Earth, describes the traditional life of poor French peasants from the Savoy region. Pig Earth is a series of stories and poems showing the seasonal routine of labor, the close relationship of other aspects of peasant life to seasonal labors, and relatively closed nature of these communities. The latter is shown to have both positive and negative aspects, a combination of social solidarity and insularity. The second book, In Europa, is a series of stories showing the penetration of modern industrial civilization into the life of the peasantry and recounts some of the costs, and benefits, of this process. The last book, Lilac and Flag, is set in a mythical city, called Troy, which has aspects of many modern cities. Lilac and Flag describes the life of a young couple, the descendents of poor peasants, who now live a marginal existence in the metropolis of Troy. Overall, this is a successful set of books. Berger is a very talented writer and this set of books gives a vivid sense of the important transition from peasant life on the land to modern industrial civilization. Berger's attempt to depict this important social process is really admirable. The books do vary somewhat in quality. In Europa is probably the best, containing a number of powerful stories, with Pig Earth coming a close second. Lilac and Flag is probably the least effective. The style, presumably a correlate of the urban setting, is distinctly different and the plot has surreal elements. I suspect that Lilac and Flag will strike many readers as relatively familiar and conventional where the contents of Pig Earth and In Europa are relatively novel. If I were to read just one of these books, I would pick In Europa.

It is important to realize that Berger is describing the tail of a process with roots in the Renaissance and that accelerated tremendously in the 19th century. The traditional life described in Pig Earth is actually a life that has been greatly affected by industrial civilization. Many men in the community described by Berger participate in seasonal labor in large cities, there is compulsory primary education, and the local church has a strong influence. Other aspects of the modern world intrude themselves. These include military service, railroads and it is likely that farm products are produced for an international market. In the early or even mid-19th century, a community like this would have been completely geographically isolated, illiterate, and probably would speak a language distinct from French. There are some other fine books devoted to this topic. Eugen Weber's excellent Peasants into Frenchman is a very interesting and readable social history of the impact of the modern world on the French peasantry. A detailed view of French peasant life can be found in Pierre Helias The Horse of Pride, a combined ethnography and memoir about a Breton peasant community written by a scholar who was the son of Breton peasants.

The, "Into Their Labours" trilogy is among the most extraordinary work I have ever read. "Pig Earth" and "Once In Europa", which lead to Mr. Berger's finale of, "Lilac And Flag" were both brilliant, however the concluding volume is a work you will never forget. Every aspect of this final work is on a grand scale, the writer will lift your spirits and then pummel you with the physical and mental burden of a Requiem Mass. He celebrates, he condemns and redeems with equal intensity, and when the work finally ends you will have a new reference point for whatever reading will follow.

The first 2 installments take place in an Alpine Village that, per the Author, could be easily found many times in the same Alps that he describes. It is even suggested the locale is not unlike the Village that the writer calls his home. In this, the final work, he creates a fictional city, one that he controls, one that will not allow any familiarity to distract from his final act of recording the death of the way of life that starts as nearly idyllic, and ends with a form of redemptive enigma, but only after he has destroyed all that existed in the first two books. The decay and darkness are suffocating, the tale that he ends is infinitely displaced from its origins and is only brought back into contact with its predecessors by his final words, which explain everything, and confirm nothing.

I have never been one for creating lists in an attempt to enumerate the best of what I have had the privilege to read. This trilogy has changed that, for taken as one work it would likely occupy the premier spot, and if taken separately would all reside in the top 5. These writings are the result of 15 years of work and there is no way to categorize it in anything less than superlatives.

From a european reader's point of view, this is one of the most interesting desciptions about the size of love in this end of century. Both main characters represents the dificulty of being a lover in the middle of this times of cholera. Lilac and flag are simple workers. They don't know much about books, poetry or culture but they know what means fall in love, what represents to love another human being in its city, which represents all the big european cities. As the author does in "To the weding", "Lilac and Flag" represents simply the love amd its power in this sad days of poverty, destruction and explotiation of weak people. Thanks for your work John and your way to understand the existence. We'll continue reading you.