The rediscovery of Greek and Roman literature kickstarted the Renaissance in Europe. In a similar way, though on a somewhat smaller scale, the conveniently Imagist makeover of Chinese poetry by Ezra Pound and Amy Lowell undoubtedly had a seismic and far-reaching effect on later 20th century American poetry. In his learned Introduction to this outstanding and indispensable Anthology, Weinberger traces the many subsequent debts owed by a galaxy of fine American poets to that seminal work of re-invention. Such impressively talented scholar-translators as Burton Watson, J. P Seaton, Jonathan Chaves and several others receive an honourable mention, though their work is well anthologised elsewhere, and Weinberger¡¦s brief seems to have been only to include full-time poets: with the possible exception of Hinton, that is. (However, Sam Hamill's, Arthur Sze's and David Young's names have inexplicably been left out: all three of them marvellous contemporary re-interpreters of the classical Chinese tradition, and all three fine poets in their own right.)

Weinberger concentrates in particular on five exemplary writers: Ezra Pound himself, William Carlos Williams, Kenneth Rexroth, Gary Snyder, and David Hinton. They are certainly all major figures, and it's useful to have them grouped together in this way (particular since the last of them diverges in such interesting ways from the Imagist 'Less is More'tradition: though he certainly 'makes it new' in accordance with that central dictum, which is even quoted in the original Chinese characters both on the cover and on the titlepage).

I thought I already knew quite a lot about American translators from classical Chinese---a whole shelf of mine already groans under their weight---but the William Carlos Williams renderings were entirely new to me, and so were some of the later Pound translations.

For this reader it's hard to contain his excitement at such a beautifully produced edition (only spoiled by a spine-label that's somehow been glued on upside down), and I recommend anyone interested in either recent American poetry or in the classical Chinese tradition to go out and buy it straight away. It will admirably complement Minford and Lau's recent historical anthology of all translations (both European and American, and both scholarly and 'creative'), which of course covers a much broader range, but which is similarly ground-breaking and enthralling to read.

Each of the Novellas has a protagonist of unusual proportions, attempting to find something just slightly beyond himself or herself. While being a part of contemporary fiction, there is a certain historical perspective such as the disposed, wandering Jew of Aharon Appelfeld's "The Isles of St. George." Almost alone on this island, he wants to forget Europe, Israel,and his past. One of the most interesting characters in my opinion is Yani in David Grossman's "Yani on the Mountain." Here is a soldier left to oversee a mountain after the war of 1973. The mountain becomes a support, a challenge, something to be overcome, but his friend confronts him, "Hiding uphere on the mountain--armoring himself with hostility and contempt. Afraid. Afraid.." Benjamin Tammuz has one brother living his life vicariously through watching his brother's life unfold in a near-by house. "The Brother" is a thoughtful tale of envy, suppressed love, and hatred. In Yaakov Shabtai's "Uncle Peretz Takes Flight", a zany Jewish communist wants to save the world (which he doesn't even like very much), attending meetings during the day and coming home to climb up on the roof in preparation for flight. Altogether, this is a wonderful collection of stories.

Small Pieces Loosely Joined is a survey of Internet language, experience, and relationships between reality and Web sites makes for intriguing discussions of media and it's influence on human achievement. Weinberger argues the web is more than a worldwide link: it is also a public forum with world contributors and offers the potential for lives to be lived in another realm.

Significant technologies affect the environments within which they operate. Environments shape, warp & re-define the technologies that operate within them. But until "Small Pieces Loosely Joined", there hasn't been a single worthwhile analysis of what these effects are and what they mean.
This *may* be the first significant book written about the major changes the Internet is (and will be) causing among the important minority of people who constitute The Wired World. It's not a business book (though aspiring entrepreneurs would learn some valuable lessons from it), nor is it a "how to" guide. The work is philosophical, sociological, but fun accessible to any reader that has interacted with other people or companies on the web or in a newsgroup. Weinberger's language tends to be simple, and sometimes colorful (e.g., "Knowledge started out fat and chewy", before launching into descriptions of opinions on knowledge from the Bible and Heraclitus).
I don't agree with the author on all his conclusions. And I'm not sure that readers who are widely-read on the social effects of computer networking will not know already many of his explanations.
But there's more valuable, insightful thinking in the first chapter of this book than in any other half-dozen Internet books you could name. If you're interested in how the Internet is changing our institutions and our way of relating to each other, and in what directions this might lead in the future should consider this lively and fun book.

This cluetrain co-author and host of the Journal of the Hyperlinked Organization presents a compelling survey of not what the web should be or could be, but of what it is. Small Pieces looks at our human concepts of space, time, truth and hope, and how the web may not be a perfect world, but unlike the real world, the web is our world. This book is probably going to be a sleeper, the one we later point back at and say, "Here's where we started to understand."

When I started reading Small Pieces, my first thought was "Nice speculation, but how do you know the first-person web is the best web?" Then it hit me: This is not a prescription for how we *should* do Internet, it's a detailed survey of the who, how and why of those who do. David challenges the pundits and frustrates the gurus of web design, but to dismiss him is to discount the grammar of a civil defense warning: Like it or not, Small Pieces is how it is in the online world.

A powerful account of a disturbing aspect of India's rich cultural history, 'Ashes of Immortality' tells the sickening story of a tradition which is still present in certain parts of the great sub-continent.

The simplicity with which the text is written belies the tragedy of these women who gave up their lives for a religious belief which some might argue only serves to degrade their gender.

Aimed at anyone with an interest in contemporary and future wired business, 'The Cluetrain Manifesto' focuses on re-engaging people in conversational interactions with business (rather than being segmented 'over-the-wall' after approval by teams of lawyers!).

The excessively repetitive, rambling, example-light chapters span: the manifesto itself of 95 theses; Internet Apocalypso (some history- errors about AI (60s not 80s); Taylorism mentioned but not balancing human-centric ergonomic approaches (mostly 60s onwards); and us vs them factory distrust not just 1920s Ford, but 1800s UK factories acts (& before with Luddites/ Mills etc..) ); The Longing; Talk is Cheap (newsgroups); Markets Are Conversations (great quotes "consumer... a gullet.. gulps products and craps cash"; and meaningless technolatin veterinarian describing dog as "a platform for sniffing, ... an open environment for fleas, and .. supports barking" ); the hyperlinked organization (mismatch company to staff through: communications, org chart, work management, career path, information, goal-oriented, deadlines, customers, office building and professional status); EZ Answers (list for e-success: relax, have sense of humor, find your voice and use it, tell the truth, don't panic, enjoy yourself, be brave, be curious, play more, ream always, listen up, and rap on); and Post Apocalypso.

Strengths include: the enthusiasm of tone, and extremely timely human-centric anti-impersonal business practices message- it's all about unscripted market and human conversations.

Weaknesses include: the extreme repetition; errors in contemporary & historical technologies/business anecdotes; conflicts between contributions (Web is all about sales in one part, not at all elsewhere); and a lack of side-bar success stories & detailed evidence. It would have been interesting (to this reviewer) for a formal "debate" framing of the message with contributions from process-oriented major consulting firms, and community interjections & involvement.

Overall, 'Cluetrain' is a worthy but lightweight book. Similar books include: Siegels' glossy e-brainstorm "Futurize Your Enterprize" (ISBN 0471357634); Jensen's human-centric 'Simplicity' (ISBN 073820210X); and Bloor's transaction-focused generalist 'electronic B@zaar' (ISBN 185788258X).

You've undoubtedly been to the website and seen and read the manifesto. The book is an expansion of the 95 or so 'commandments' targeted towards corporate America and how they perceive their customers (and the public as whole). I wasn't disappointed by the book, however, I expected the book to further expand on the ideas that are posted on their website. However, what you will get is a collection of anecdotes and examples that support, rather than extend, the principles outlined in the ClueTrain Manifesto. Regardless, this book is a valuable tool, make that a bible, that every corporate slave should read and begin to incorporate into his or her views towards the people he or she is dealing with on a daily basis. Also, this is a necessary read for those in the marketing or advertising fields as it will remind them of what exactly they're here to do: to communicate more effectively. Better yet, to be able to carry a conversation for longer than five minutes without a cosmopolitan in one hand. Read the book and be in touch with how business should be doing business.

I don't much care for business books. But this one blows away the category. Business is, after all, not about dollars. It is about people. Dollars are simply a way to keep score. And what could be more human than conversations? The notion that markets are really conversations is so old it's new. The Cluetrain Manifesto shows how we humans lost our way accepting the command and control structure and format of modern business. We have been engaged in a one-way conversation, with companies doing all the talking, while most folks tuned out the message.

This book demonstrates how the Internet is bringing people back into the commercial process. Technology has frequently been perceived as dehumanizing our world. That's why it is especially ironic that it took a technological revolution in communication to bring back the human side of commerce. We are seeing a sea change where commerce is moving from a seller's market to a buyer's market.

Read this book. Pass it along to your boss. Give it to your employees and your customers. Buy copies for the heads of your engineering, marketing, manufacturing, corporate development, or whatever group. The brave new world is here, but Big Brother's not in charge. We are.