Category Archives: Books

books: enjoyed, reviewed, otherwise

Curious Expeditions’ Librophiliac Love Letter

Posted on September 10, 2007 by cicada

Bibliophiles: bookmark this link! Librophiliac Love Letter: A Compendium of Beautiful Libraries. One of my favorite blogs, Curious Expeditions, has written what may be the definitive blog post for library lovers. I’ve only been to four of the libraries on … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Destinations, Museum Lust, Photography | 1 Comment

There is such a thing as a tesseract

Posted on September 8, 2007 by cicada

“Why does anybody tell a story?” Ms. L’Engle once asked, even though she knew the answer. “It does indeed have something to do with faith,” she said, “faith that the universe has meaning, that our little human lives are not … Continue reading →

Posted in Books | 4 Comments

The divine Museum Gottwaldianum

Posted on September 8, 2007 by cicada

I saw this at Bibliodyssey. The next day I had to go back and click the link again. A few days later I went shopping at the always-inspiring Anthropologie, and on returning home, had to go back and browse again. … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art, Books, Cephalopodmania, Museum Lust, Wonder Cabinets | 1 Comment

Human nature, 4×6

Posted on September 6, 2007 by cicada

Even if you already know all about PostSecret, this promo video is a little work of art worth watching. The postcard that made me cry: I like to remember my Dad as a boy so I won’t remember him suffering … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art, Blogs and Blogging, Books, Ephemera, Film, Video & Music, Photography | Comments Off

Biologists Helping Bookstores

Posted on September 5, 2007 by cicada

Have you ever gone into a Barnes & Noble and realized you had no clue where to find a book, even though you knew the author, the genre, the title, and maybe even the thesis? Do they do this on … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Blogs and Blogging, Books | 1 Comment

The Bestiary on WPR

Posted on September 3, 2007 by cicada

On Sunday, Wisconsin Public Radio’s “To The Best of Our Knowledge” aired an interesting episode called The Bestiary, about cryptozoology, strange biology, and mythology. You can stream it on the website. I found the handling of the Archaea a bit … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Books | 4 Comments

Our minds and the universe – what else is there?

Posted on August 30, 2007 by cicada

From one of the most personally resonant essays I’ve read lately, by Mary Ruefle: I had recently one of the most astonishing experiences of my reading life. On page 248 in The Rings of Saturn, W. C. Sebald is recounting … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Department of the Drama, Poetry | 1 Comment

Haunted library books

Posted on July 31, 2007 by cicada

Ok, this is just plain bizarre. It’s a row of faux books that, when activated by a motion sensor, move, mutter unintelligibly, and howl with electronic feedback. I laughed at the video. And I love that the book which jumps … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Frivolity | 1 Comment

How large a library can you squeeze in there?

Posted on July 30, 2007 by cicada

one of my favorite xkcds. . .

Posted in Books | Comments Off

Poem of the Week: Sonnet 116

Posted on July 29, 2007 by cicada

Ah, the British Library. In one room: Shakespeare’s First Folio, Thomas More’s last letter to Henry III, Lewis Carroll’s diary, the Gutenberg Bible, a letter from Darwin to Wallace, a letter from Newton to Hooke, Shakespeare’s mortgage, Magna Carta, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Department of the Drama, Littademia, Museum Lust, Poetry | 1 Comment