All Consuming : shaxxon

Why I recommend "Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa"

nobody@allconsuming.net (shaxxon) — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 15:06:41 GMT

by Karin Muller

If you are passionate about Japan, or just mildly curious—this is a great book. The writer carefully documents her mistakes as well as her triumphs(Trust me there are more mistakes)as she journeys into Japan in search of Wa (Harmony). The reader really gets to experience the struggles of getting to know a new land, trying to understand the complexities of Japan and Japanese culture and hiearchy, and in the end, are reborn—inspired—and a little touched by how human the writer is. I was impressed at how candid she was, and though it wasn’t the best piece of writing, it has soul and a realness to it. The writer has a human voice, one we don’t hear to often in daily clutter.

There are some fantastic revelations about the Japanese, and in the end she comes to an understanding about how they’ve come to be the way they are, and the beauty in the masks they wear. It is a soulful yet human journey into the mysterious world of what it means to be a good Japanese.

A story about "Flightplan (Widescreen Edition)"

nobody@allconsuming.net (shaxxon) — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 18:15:09 GMT

Flightplan (Widescreen Edition)

by Robert Schwentke

Let’s just say, thank god Mary Jane was with me.

2 hours of Jodie Foster FREAKING OUT. I’d rather see her talk to her dead father.

A story about "Happy Accidents"

nobody@allconsuming.net (shaxxon) — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 18:10:35 GMT

Happy Accidents

by Brad Anderson (II)

This was a fantastic movie. I went into it not knowing ANYTHING about it, freaking crazy good.

A story about "The Kite Runner"

nobody@allconsuming.net (shaxxon) — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 19:55:31 GMT

The Kite Runner

by Khaled Hosseini

I think this is a good book abeit a little morning, but worth reading for a slice of a certain kind of life. I read it on a plane that was delayed 8 hours previous, so really it was good I had to struggle through reading it, since it suited the situation.

A story about "Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa"

nobody@allconsuming.net (shaxxon) — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 17:34:50 GMT

Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa

by Karin Muller

I just started this. So excited.

Murakami you've done it again!

nobody@allconsuming.net (shaxxon) — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 17:33:33 GMT

Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World: A Novel (Vintage International)

by Haruki Murakami

This journey through the subconsciousness is highly inventive and evocative. The book starts off in a jarring fashion, but too soon all begins to unfold. I would recommend it to each one of you. The last few chapters are intense, life-changing, and all-consumingly brilliant.

A story about "Everything Is Illuminated: A Novel"

nobody@allconsuming.net (shaxxon) — Thu, 09 Feb 2006 17:32:06 GMT

Everything Is Illuminated: A Novel

by Jonathan Safran Foer

This book blew me away, I love how one story is actually like four separate stories, and even more than that 100,000 stories all in one.

Highly stylized, hilarious and ultimately tragic and illuminating—this book is actually three stories entagled, which in the end is one great big story. Triumph can not exist without tragety. The hero, Jonathan travels to the Ukraine with a translator with badly butchered English to find the woman who may have saved his Jewish grandfather from the Nazis. What occurs is the trials and misunderstandings of three travelers (and a dog) in search for answers that may or may not ever come. What is actually illuminated may surprise you.