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History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Average customer rating:

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
Very Interesting
History as Science Fiction
Provocative, appealing and controversial
pharaohs lived in the 3rd century AD

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America: Lost History And Legends, Unearthed And Explored
Before the Pharaohs: Egypt's Mysterious Prehistory
Forbidden History: Prehistoric Technologies, Extraterrestrial Intervention, and the Suppressed Origins of Civilization
They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of Essays on the Illuminati, Revisionist History, and Suppressed Technologies

ASIN: 2913621058

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Provocative, appealing and controversial.......2006-08-02

Fomenko has succeeded to convincingly demonstrate the misconception about what "history" factually is... It is fiction and -like we can read and judge for ourselves- no science. It indeed is "make belief" only. I "discovered" Fomenko while studying the "old" history of Al Andaluz, Spain. Having found too many contradictions in available data, having seen too many forgeries as to pretend the importance of christianity for its decline, I ventured out to find Fomenko, who convinced me that we know little if anything for sure of the epoch before the XI-century. However, the integration of the Arabic-Islamic cultural history into the heavily distorted Western fails... There are some attempts to fit "the budding new religion" (Islam) into Fomenko's scheme, but they are too weak to be taken seriously and too often focussing on Turkey as the region where things started to influence the West, which is untrue at all.
Islam certainly was no "new religion" in the X-century. That the highly cultivated Al Andaluz ruler Mohammed-I could have been "mirrored" down in time into some myth about the "illiterate" founder of Islam itself is highly speculative. Nevertheless, Fomenko convinces me about the processes that were involved in forging a christian history. Intriguing and controversial as his books are, I recommend them as to rethink our current position in time and space and simply verify what was claimed. It is a "good" book, but not for bedtime reading... Mundus vult decipi, the world wants to be cheated. Fomenko's readers will understand why.

pharaohs lived in the 3rd century AD.......2006-02-16

Traces of white wine were found in Tutankhamen's tomb however there were no record of white wine in Egypt until the 3rd century AD, 1600 years after the young pharaoh died according to the traditional chronology. http://www.newscientist.com/channel/being-human/mg18925395.400
It can be interpreted as a contribution towards New Chronology theory that pharaohs lived in the 3rd century AD.

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)

Average customer rating:

Check and see
Suprise! Suprise!
Prescient St Augustine?
Something of a disappointment
Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy..

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Anatoly T Fomenko
Manufacturer: Delamere Resources LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America: Lost History And Legends, Unearthed And Explored
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ASIN: 2913621066

Product Description

`History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2` is the second volume of the most explosive and astounding tractate on history ever written - however, every theory it contains, no matter how unorthodox, is backed by rock solid scientific data. The book is easy and pleasant to read; it is well-illustrated, contains hundreds of charts, graphs and illustrations, copies of ancient manuscripts, and countless facts attesting to the falsity of the chronology used nowadays. You will be amazed to discover: - That the chronology universally accepted today and taken for granted is simply wrong; - That ALL methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts known today are erroneous or non-exact; - That there is not a single document that could be reliably dated earlier than the XIth century; The Author refers to the Middle Ages as the Antiquity and proves mutual superimposition of the Second and the Third Roman Empire, both of which become identified as the respective kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Furthermore, he asserts that the famous reform of the Occidental Church in the XI century by Pope Gregory Hildebrand was the reflection of the XII century reforms of Byzantine emperor Andronicus who in his turn identifies with Jesus Christ. The Trojan war counted by Homer happened only as late as of the XIII century A.D. and the great poet actually lived in XIV century A.D. No stone in history of Antiquity is left unturned. Literally. This book is the beginning of a major correction to the chronology we live with.

Customer Reviews:

Check and see.......2007-06-21

I don't care what other people say of this book. Those affirmig it's fake, they hadn't ever read it. Or have some special reasons to do so. "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see..." This book won't make you feel comfortable. It'll make you feel free. It'll make you feel you're "not the only one" to feel you'd been lied to for centuries.

Suprise! Suprise!.......2007-03-22

Here is a serie of books which turns "the whole world" upside down. I learned a lot of it and I hope that a new book from A.T. Fomenko will follow very quick. A absolute must for everybody who is interested in history or even a little bit from it.

Prescient St Augustine?.......2006-02-05

We can so far divide the New Chronology into the following three parts:

a) The verifiable theory that proves consensual chronology wrong with the aid of astronomy, statistics and mathematics;

b) The new chronology hypothesis based on a new understanding of known historical facts and the most likely logical explanation of the most obvious inconsistencies inherent in the official version of history;

c) The history conjectures, that is experimental historical reconstructions based on assumptions that the authors believe to make sense in the light of their research and linguistic parallels - void of ironclad factual support to date.

Fomenko's theory complies with the most rigid scientific standards as a whole:

It gives a coherent explanation of what we already know.

- It is consistent: independent lines of inquiry all lead to the same conclusion.

- The predictions it makes are confirmed empirically.

Fomenko goes by the following axioms:

- Chronology is the basis of history;

- Human evolution has always been linear, gradual and irreversible;

- The "cyclic" nature of human civilization is a myth, likewise all the gaps, duplicates, "dark ages" and "renaissances" that we know from consensual history;

- The accumulation of geographical knowledge as reflected in cartography is a gradual and irreversible process;

- The chronological distance between a given manuscript and the events described therein is proportional to the amount of distortions it contains;

- There is no "useless" information in authentic ancient sources.

Why the mainstream historians do not shower mathematician Academician Dr.Prof Fomenko with thanks and laurels?

The Russians:

Because Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by three centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called "Tartars and Mongols" were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a bilingual state with Arabic spoken as freely as Russian. The ancient Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities. The hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called "blood tax"). Their "invasions" were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion. Fomenko proves that Russian history as we know it today is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scientists brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs, whose ascension to the throne was the result of coup d'état, charged with the mission of making their reign look legitimate. Fomenko proves Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. They represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate rulers and the ambitious upstarts. The winner took it all! Over some 30 years of controversy, Russian historians have made a most remarkable transition - they were initially accusing the young mathematician Fomenko of anticommunist dissident activity and attempts to deface the historical legacy of Soviet Russia; nowadays the middle-aged mathematician is accused of adhering to "pro-communist Russian nationalism" and defacing the proud historical legacy of Great Russia.

The Westerners:

Because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History. Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one the Ancient Rome (the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the XIV century A. D.), the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, and the Ancient Egypt (the pyramids of Giza become dated to the XI-XV century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global "Mongolian" Empire, no less). The civilization of the Ancient Egypt is irrefutably dated to the XII-XV century A. D. with the aid of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone. He was the first one to decipher and date all such horoscopes, coming up with mediaeval dates in every case. English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. To reward the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.

The Chinese:

Because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such thing. Full point. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the XVII-XVIII century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation, this time performed on the Chinese soil by the loving Jesuit hands. The Chinese are the next in line to go berserk. Chinese history is inevitably bound to get both more ancient and more eventful, proportionally to the growing involvement of China in the world affairs. Chinese historians will keep on finding valid proof of prehistoric Chinese spaceflights until the Politburo orders them to shut up.

The Arabs:

Too bad. Islam with all its key figures is datable to XV-XVI century A. D. Arabic historians may find consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI-XVII century. The trouble is that this empire was initially a Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, according to Fomenko! We can only guess if the acquisition of Alexander the Great (a Macedonian and a Christian) as the founder of the Muslim World Empire will make Fomenko's theories more acceptable to the Arabic mainstream. He certainly does not spare any holy cows at all, claiming The Stone of Qa'Aba in Mecca to contain the lost Arch of the Covenant.

The Divinity:

Despite of reiterated statement that his theory is all about chronology and not Religion, Fomenko stirs up a whole condominium of wasp nests. His collection of anathemas, fatwa, and other condemnations from all parties concerned is already considerable. Little wonder, considering that the history of religions à la Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the XI century and JC), Bacchic Christianity (XI-XII century, before and after JC), JC Christianity (XII-XVI century) and its subsequent mutations into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on.

According to Fomenko we know strictly NOTHING about the events that predate the X century A. D.

St Augustin was prescient when he spoke unto us: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."

Something of a disappointment.......2005-09-09

After having read the first volume of this expected series of 7 volumes I was triggered by the thesis of these authors that ancient Greek and Roman history did in fact take place in the Middle Ages. So I started studying medieval history of the Middle East - also known as Islamic history - to find out if the opponents of the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Acheamenid Persians, Sassanids, Scythians, Egyptians, etc. - also have their duplicates in medieval history. My search was disappointing: none of the many medieval Islamic dynasties seemed to correspond to the ancient middle eastern rulers.

However, I did find a close correspondence between Herodotus' Persian kings and medieval events:

- the defeat and capture of an Anatolian king - the Lydian Croesus - by the Persian conqueror Cyrus is identical to the defeat and capture of another Anatolian king - sultan Bayezid - by the Asian/Mongol conqueror Tamerlane;
- the Persian conquest of Egypt by the cruel tyrant Cambyses reds almost exactly as the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim the Grim (note the nickname!);
- Darius the Lawgiver of the Persian Empire looks very much alike to Sulayman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver in Islamic history;
- Xerxes, whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by the Greeks at the naval battle of Salamis, looks like Selim II (the Sot) whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by a Spanish-Italian alliance at the naval battle of Lepanto.

I should have expected Fomenko et al. to arrive at similar conclusions, however, they claim that the Persian kings are the alter egos of the Angevin kings of Sicily whose biographies do not contain the exploits of the Persian kings.

The similiarities I indicate lead to the conclusion that Herodotus must have written his Histories at the close of the 16th century. But this is extremely late, given that Herodotus is "the Father of History", so therefore all other "ancient" histories must have been fabricated even later. Yet, the founders of modern chronology - Scaliger and Petavius - laid their foundations also at the close of the 16th century and had the full corpus of ancient histories already at their disposal.

It seems to me that Fomenko has to address these inconsistencies, maybe in the forthcoming 5 volumes?

Another critique of their book is that the correspondencies between different rulers are often based on a superficial comparison of the biographies; upon a more thorough comparison many details appear that do not correspond at all.

Finally, the authors rely heavily on the works of Gregorovius (1821-1891!!) - his medieval histories of Rome and Athens - as the source of medieval history; these works are - at least in the West - hoplessly outdated and have been superceded by more up-to-date works (for instance, Julius Norwich's trilogy on Byzantine history is not even cited).

Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy.........2005-07-30

If you agree with Fomenko that Roman chronology is basically the foundation of the entire edifice of global chronology; you would also certainly agree that despite its numerous gaps and inconsistencies, Roman history is the best-documented field of ancient history, and thus a reference scale. But how well is the actual date of the Eternal City's foundation known?

Firstly, Rome is supposed to have been founded by the Trojans who had to flee after the fall of Troy. Some claim Rome to have been founded by Aeneas and Ulysses shortly after Troy had fallen; others are of the opinion that there was an entire dynasty that ruled for 500 years between the fall of Troy and the foundation of Rome.

Well, that's just an innocent 500 years long misunderstanding compared with what heretic Fomenko says, asserts, proves in his second volume: Second Roman Empire, Third Roman Empire, Biblical Kingdom of Israel, Biblical Kingdom of Judah, Holy Roman Empire are stories about basically same events, written from different points of view at different times. The underlying events have actually taken place during xii-xv cy. These histories have been written and perfected by multitude of highly talented humanist and clerical writers of xiii-xvi cy disguised as "ancients" with glorious names like Homer, Pluto, Thucydides etc..Chronology 2.0 beta..

Historians are kindly invited to report the bugs.

Average customer rating:

Like Watching Someone Else's Dreams
An Excellent Accidental Read
amazingly weird
Wind-Up Birds
FABULOUS

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
Haruki Murakami
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0679446699
Release Date: 1997-10-21

Amazon.com

Bad things come in threes for Toru Okada. He loses his job, his cat disappears, and then his wife fails to return from work. His search for his wife (and his cat) introduces him to a bizarre collection of characters, including two psychic sisters, a possibly unbalanced teenager, an old soldier who witnessed the massacres on the Chinese mainland at the beginning of the Second World War, and a very shady politician.

Haruki Murakami is a master of subtly disturbing prose. Mundane events throb with menace, while the bizarre is accepted without comment. Meaning always seems to be just out of reach, for the reader as well as for the characters, yet one is drawn inexorably into a mystery that may have no solution. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is an extended meditation on themes that appear throughout Murakami's earlier work. The tropes of popular culture, movies, music, detective stories, combine to create a work that explores both the surface and the hidden depths of Japanese society at the end of the 20th century.

If it were possible to isolate one theme in The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, that theme would be responsibility. The atrocities committed by the Japanese army in China keep rising to the surface like a repressed memory, and Toru Okada himself is compelled by events to take responsibility for his actions and struggle with his essentially passive nature. If Toru is supposed to be a Japanese Everyman, steeped as he is in Western popular culture and ignorant of the secret history of his own nation, this novel paints a bleak picture. Like the winding up of the titular bird, Murakami slowly twists the gossamer threads of his story into something of considerable weight. --Simon Leake

Book Description

Japan's most highly regarded novelist now vaults into the first ranks of international fiction writers with this heroically imaginative novel, which is at once a detective story, an account of a disintegrating marriage, and an excavation of the buried secrets of World War II.

In a Tokyo suburb a young man named Toru Okada searches for his wife's missing cat. Soon he finds himself looking for his wife as well in a netherworld that lies beneath the placid surface of Tokyo. As these searches intersect, Okada encounters a bizarre group of allies and antagonists: a psychic prostitute; a malevolent yet mediagenic politician; a cheerfully morbid sixteen-year-old-girl; and an aging war veteran who has been permanently changed by the hideous things he witnessed during Japan's forgotten campaign in Manchuria.

Gripping, prophetic, suffused with comedy and menace, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is a tour de force equal in scope to the masterpieces of Mishima and Pynchon.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Customer Reviews:

Like Watching Someone Else's Dreams.......2007-06-23

I first read this book in the summer of 1999 and it felt as if someone had taken my brain apart and put it back together again. I literally wasn't able to read anything else for several weeks after finishing it as I couldn't get it off my mind. I've gone through it 4 times since then and am constantly amazed at how readable it is even when I know what is coming. There is always something that I see for he first time or reinterpret in a new and interesting way. In a way, it makes me think of what it must be like to watch someone else's dreams.

Others will have written about the plot, so I will leave that alone. Something the (potential) reader should note is that the book in Japanese is actually 3 seperate books that were published several years apart from each other. I have read that Murakami actually aimed to end the book at the end of the 2nd volume (Book 2 of the English version), but that interest from readers compelled him to write the 3rd book. In that sense the final section sometimes feels as if he is trying just a touch too hard to tie up all the loose ends he created. This is a minor complaint, however, as I find the end of the book to be quite satisfying. I do wonder what ever happens to May Kasahara, though.

Something I did years ago that is still sort of interesting for me was to think about who I would cast in a movie version of the book, if I had the chance. I stuck with Japanese actors and actresses for authenticity. Hopefully some of these names will be familiar to some readers. Feel free to let me know what you think of my choices!

Toru: Takao Osawa
May Kasahara: Ryoko Hirosue (circa 1999-2000) or the current Masami Nagasawa
Kumiko: Takako Matsu
Noboru Wataya: Takanori Jinnai
Malta Kanno: Takako Tokiwa
Creta Kanno: Yuko Takeuchi
Mr. Honda: Beat Takeshi
Nutmeg: Yuriko Ishida
Cinnamon: Hiroshi Abe

An Excellent Accidental Read.......2007-06-19

I picked this up by mistake but loved it. The sense of time, synapse and memory was wonderfully engaging. Don't want to give anything away, but be prepared to see things in a different light.

amazingly weird.......2007-06-10

I loved this book. It's just plain crazy. The most random things happen that made me laugh just at the thought of someone being able to think-up these things. In the end, a lot of things still don't make sense. But that's life i guess...A couple parts were disturbing, but the vivid imagery depicted makes this the great book that it is.

Wind-Up Birds.......2007-04-23

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, by Haruki Murakami, is like waking out of a hazy dream. Your not sure what you are reading, why, or if you are really reading at all. It is the type of book that defies explanation, or at least simple explanation. It is in no way a simple book.

I will not bother retelling the entire story, Murakami does it better. It is a story about change though. Are we really who we think we are type change. The book has the ability to make you question yourself by telling the story of Toru, a man that is searching.

The book carries you all the way through to the end in this magnificent half dreaming/half waking state. Toru emulates this same state at several points in the book. The reader often will question if what he/she read was real or imaginary.

This is not my favorite Murakami book, which would be Norwegian Wood. But, the book is very good and stirring. Murakami has a writing style that doesn't suite all readers and some people detest every word he puts on the page. I would encourage picking up one of his books and finding out which person you may be. This book is not recommended for youngsters due to some graphic content.

FABULOUS.......2007-04-05

This book is Murakami's masterpiece, and is both captivating and imaginative. Murakami is a master of suspense and I literally could not put the book down, yet it lacked the trashy quality that many equally gripping novels have, which was a pleasant surprise. Moreover, this is the type of book that takes you somewhere worth going, so that after 600-700 pages, you actually feel like you have gone on the same journey Mr. Wind-Up Bird did. Murakami has ingeniously mastered the art of creating a book that is unpredictable - the twists and turns the plot makes will consistently surprise you and keep you interested, yet at the same time they seem inevitable, which is the mark of a true author.

Traces of the Brush: The Art of Japanese Calligraphy Seuil Chronicle

Average customer rating:

Appreciative review on shodou history

Traces of the Brush: The Art of Japanese Calligraphy Seuil Chronicle
Louise Boudonnat , and Harumi Kushizaki
Manufacturer: Seuil
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Calligraphy | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 2020593424

Book Description

In Japanese calligraphy, each stroke is rich with meaning, each character speaks volumes. Traces of the Brush provides the first illustrated history of this unique art. The authors explore its many styles and genres and investigate the calligrapher's tools - paper, ink, and brush. Interwoven with excerpts of literature and poetry, the text immerses the Western reader in the spirit of Japanese calligraphy. Abundant full-color illustrations make this book a feast for the eyes.

Customer Reviews:

Appreciative review on shodou history.......2004-05-20

The authors' sincere appreciation of the art of shodou is convincingly mediated to the reader. Especially the colorful and illustrative praising of kana calligraphy impressed me.
The high-quality images of the ancient masterpieces play an important role occupying a plenty of page space.
Just remember that this is a book on history, attitudes and ways of looking at the japanese calligraphy. This in not a text on calligraphy techniques. Comprehensive instructions on shodou are excluded from this book.

Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697 (Tut Books. H)

Average customer rating:

Half of a really great work.
Quite a good source.
Beware--the Cosimo edition is only first half of the Nihongi--it is incomplete
Hell to read, but growing in neccesity...

Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697 (Tut Books. H)
Shoi Nihon , and W. G. Aston
Manufacturer: Tuttle Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Kojiki: Records of Ancient Matters (Tuttle Classics of Japanese Literature)
Myths and Legends of Japan
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ASIN: 0804809844

Book Description

Nihongi is an account of the story of Japan, focusing on the influence of Buddhism and the advanced culture of China, which entered Japan via Korea.

Customer Reviews:

Half of a really great work........2007-03-06

W.G. Aston's Nihongi is the standard translation of one of Japan's greatest works of early literature. For those studying early Japanese history or folklore it is a must read. It describes the creation myths of Japan, the origin of Amaterasu, the sun goddess and the descent of the emperors from the gods (kami). It transitions slowly from myth to history somewhere around 400 AD as it begins to describe the acts of the emperors and Japan's interaction with its neighbours, most notably the kingdoms of Pekche, Silla and Koryo in what is now Korea.

The creation myths are somewhat jumbled in format and, without Aston's copious footnotes, would be almost unintelligible to the uninitiated. While at times the translator's commentary threatens to overwhelm the actual text, for the most part it plays a key role in aiding our understanding. The expert may find the notes annoying (and possibly dated since the book was translated in 1896) but I found them quite helpful. As the book proceeds into the more narrative historical sections, the footnotes decrease accordingly.

It appears that the Nihongi was written to provide the back-story to the role of the emperor as it existed circa 800 AD. Thus genealogical information forms a large part of the book and there are a lot of names in here. Aston also points out, with considerable annoyance, that many of the speeches and acts of the Nihongi are anachronistically cribbed from Chinese material extant at the time of the Nihongi's writing. Poetry, as well, is a large component of the work, often with inscrutable translations but tempered by copious notes. It should also be noted that to avoid corrupting the morals of the youth, passages dealing with sex are translated from Japanese into Latin. The curious and prurient may wish to brush up on their classical studies.

I was completely unaware, as I read the book, that the Cosimo edition of the Nihongi is only the first of two original volumes. Nowhere in the book is it made clear that there is another volume, although if you read the preface closely you will note that Aston refers to the "thirty books" of the Nihongi - in this edition there are only 16. The errata published at the back are for two volumes, one of which is that in hand while the other is clearly not present, and the title indicates the book will take us to 637 AD while the table of contents only goes as far as Muretsu in AD 499. It is difficult to believe you could publish this book without being aware that there was a second volume and almost as difficult to believe the publisher deliberately misled the readers into buying what was effectively only half of a book. Whatever the answer, I am quite disappointed in the lack of a second volume.

The writings themselves are excellent. While I usually enjoy folklore more than history, in this case, the best and most moving tales belong to the "historical" portion of the book. Tales of the evil emperor Yoriaku, the bold empress Okinaga and others are quite entertaining, while obviously not completely factual. I would have to give the Nihongi 5 stars as a great work of literature, Aston's translation 4 stars due to is dated nature and the publisher 1 star for delivering only half of the great tale.

Quite a good source........2007-01-13

Mr. Aston outdid himself with this work, which must have been an undertaking of many a year. With more detail on the creation story than the Kojiki, the book runs a similar ground but as Aston will point out on occassion, has a large Chinese influence as well. I have been researching world myth for eight years now, and find this a great ancient source for the subject. The time of the gods lasting just over the first hundred pages, however the remaining literature provides in depth custom and legend that others around the globe can appreciate, and in some cases relate to, reguardless where you dwell.

Beware--the Cosimo edition is only first half of the Nihongi--it is incomplete.......2007-01-05

The Cosimo edition of the Nihongi is only the first half (up to the reign of Buretsu--or Muretsu, according to Aston's rendering of the name). This is probably because the original edition was in two volumes, and the Cosimo edition only reproduces the first volume, while claiming to be the entire Nihongi. The Tuttle editions have both volumes in one book.

Hell to read, but growing in neccesity..........2000-03-21

This translation is about the only one in existance. But, similar to the original, it is not easy reading. Like the Bible, it contains long, tedious lineages. If you can get past (or around) those, you are opened up to the mythology of Japan. Along with the Kojiki (written shortly before this, in 712) this provides a look into the beliefs of ancient Japanese. Not only beliefs, but as of late, more and more archeology is revealing the historical acuracy of many sections which were brushed off in post-war Japan as being mere fictions created to legitimize the reign of the Japanese emperor. Of course, to read this and think its Japan's ancient history without scepticism is a foolish thing to do, but for those looking to start in to researching ancient Japan this is proving to be more of a neccesity than first believed. Recomended, therefor, for the history buff and the world mythology fan alike.

D.K.'s Sushi Chronicles from Hawaii: Recipes from Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar

Average customer rating:

excellent even for beginners
offers a wealth of knowledge and local hawaiian lore

D.K.'s Sushi Chronicles from Hawaii: Recipes from Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar
Bonnie Friedman , and Dave
Manufacturer: Ten Speed Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1580084672

Customer Reviews:

excellent even for beginners.......2006-03-11

For beginners, there's a nice introduction to different basic japanese foods and rolling techniques with pictures. There are recipes for sushi, and small and large entrees. I've been to one of the two Sansei restaurants on Maui and the recipes from this book definately cover some of the best things on their menu. The only minor change I could see to make it better is more information about using pre-made grocery store sauces instead of making everything from scratch.

offers a wealth of knowledge and local hawaiian lore.......2004-04-12

Loved the ease of instruction in making sushi. Not hard to follow, well done. Also like the homespun family history. It is a great guide to not only sushi but everthing else in his style. A lot of fun.

Yoshitsune: A 15th Century Japanese Chronicle

Average customer rating:

Yoshitsune: A 15th Century Japanese Chronicle

Manufacturer: Stanford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Classics | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0804702705

Haruki Murakami's The Wind-up Bird Chronicle: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries)

Average customer rating:

Understanding the Bird
a great companion piece...
perfect for fans

Haruki Murakami's The Wind-up Bird Chronicle: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries)
Matthew Strecher
Manufacturer: Continuum International Publishing Group
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle: A Novel
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ASIN: 0826452396

Book Description

This is part of a new series of guides to contemporary novels. The aim of the series is to give readers accessible and informative introductions to some of the most popular, most acclaimed and most influential novels of recent years - from `The Remains of the Day' to `White Teeth'. A team of contemporary fiction scholars from both sides of the Atlantic has been assembled to provide a thorough and readable analysis of each of the novels in question.

Customer Reviews:

Understanding the Bird.......2003-02-01

I've read all of Murakami's fiction that has been released in english, so i am interested in anything that analyzes his fiction. This little 96 page book does quite a good job. It starts off with a short itroduction about Murakami himself. It is pretty short, and many fans would probably like to know more about Murakami, but it does help the reader to understand better from where Murakami is coming from and how his own personality is put into his characters. The second part of the book takes up many themes such as sexuality and violence. It gives the reader a higher understanding of Murakami's characters, and gives the reader an insight of what aspects that each character represents. The third part of the book is about the reception of the book in japan and in the rest of the world. This is a nice little book for a Murakami fan to read after he or she has finished reading _the wind-up bird chronicle_

a great companion piece..........2002-02-26

This series of books are not intended to be definitive guides (at under 100 pages how could they be) but are put together nicely as further reading for fans of the works they cover.

WUBC is one of my favourite books and this guide contains a great deal of interesting information and analysis on the novel. There are some fascinating quotes from Murakami himself and a number of interesting angles on the reading of the text.

It took just one train journey to read and I enjoyed it a great deal. Highly recommended for fans of Murakami.

perfect for fans.......2002-02-05

OK, I should admit straight up that I'm biased - The Wind-up Bird is my favourite novel. So I'm hardly able to give this guidebook a neutral, detached review. In fact, I'm amazed that someone has published this - are there enough of us fanatics to make this kind of thing profitable?? I hope so, as I see that Mr Strecher has another book coming out shortly! Anyhow, this is a great place to start. It was good to read about Murakami's views on other Japanese writers, his student days, and his falling into a ditch at the age of three. If you've read the novel, that explains a lot! I thought that Strecher's analysis of the novel was wonderfully accurate, although as he admits himself, he has only scratched the surface of it. Especially fascinating was the section about the reviews the novel received - astonishing how many of these missed the point. In short, if you love this novel then I think you'll like this book. And if you haven't read this novel, please go and read it. Now.

Average customer rating:

Excellent!

The Japanese Chronicles
Nicolas Bouvier
Manufacturer: Mercury House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Japan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

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The Way of the World

ASIN: 1562790080

Customer Reviews:

Excellent!.......1999-06-04

I read this book one month into a year-stay in Japan. The country which was becoming increasingly unattractive to me became fascinating again. I love this book. Like Alan Booth, the author presents Japan and its people in a unsentimental, yet loving way. Highly recommended.

Eccentric Spaces, Hidden Histories: Narrative, Ritual, and Royal Authority from The Chronicles of Japan to The Tale of the Heike (Asian Religions and Cultures)

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Eccentric Spaces, Hidden Histories: Narrative, Ritual, and Royal Authority from The Chronicles of Japan to The Tale of the Heike (Asian Religions and Cultures)
David Bialock
Manufacturer: Stanford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Book Description

After The Tale of Genji (c. 1000), the greatest work of classical Japanese literature is the historical narrative The Tale of the Heike (13th-14th centuries). In addition to opening up fresh perspectives on the Heike narratives, this study also draws attention to a range of problems centered on the interrelationship between narrative, ritual space, and Japan's changing views of China as they bear on depictions of the emperor's authority, warriors, and marginal population going all the way back to the Nara period. By situating the Heike in this long temporal framework, the author sheds light on a hidden history of royal authority that was entangled in Daoist and yin-yang ideas in the Nara period, practices centered on defilement in the Heian period, and Buddhist doctrines pertaining to original enlightenment in the medieval period, all of which resurface and combine in Heike's narrative world. In introducing for the first time the full range of Heike narrative to students and scholars of Japanese literature, the author argues that we must also reexamine our understanding of the literature, ritual, and culture of the Heian and Nara periods.

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