« Best of the Jewish Blogosphere #111 | Main | Prison: Just like High School »
March 25, 2007
Quick Cuts
Here are some books I've read in the past few days that I'd like to recommend. As you can see, they run the gamut:
Wisdom from the Batcave: How to Live a Super, Heroic Life by Cary A. Friedman. This is Batman as mussar, ethics. A slim and lovely volume that goes to the core of why we love this crime-fighter. Rabbi Friedman does a superb job of teasing moral lessons from the darkly lit Batcave.
The Essential Writings of Abraham Isaac Kook, Edited, Translated and Introduced by Ben Zion Bokser. This fine book consists of letters, aphorisms and excerpts from larger essays and other writings selected to provide a wide-ranging introduction to the thought and writings of Rav Kook, one of the great Jewish thinkers of the Twentieth Century.
The Golden West, by Daniel Fuchs. This might be one of the best books ever written about Hollywood by a working screenwriter. Fuchs wrote three well-received novels. They did not sell. He was brought out to Hollywood in 1939, and he stayed. He was not bitter. He was not angry. He was grateful for the sunshine, for the opportunity to make a good living. Fuchs understood the business and he also understood that the men and women who made the movies were a special breed inventing a new kind of culture. If you care about the real Hollywood, do not miss this book. There's also a fine introduction by John Updike.
On the Reliability of the Old Testament by K.A Kitchen Hey kids, guess what, the Torah is, uh, reliable. Actually, this is an extremely serious and scholarly refutation of the "minimalist school" by a Professor of Archeology, Classics, and Oriental Studies, University of Liverpool, England. My father has another name for the minimalists: Jew-haters.
A War Like No Other by Victor Davis Hanson. How Athens and Sparta fought on land and sea. It's all here: tactics, torture, targeted assasinations, terrorism. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Every page drips with lessons for our war on terror. Hanson is our Clausewitz, our greatest philosopher on war.
I'm Just Here for the Food by Alton Brown. Okay, I've finally learned how to crack an egg without getting eggshell in my omelette. Alton Brown is the Clausewitz of the kitchen; a warrior with a spatula.
Posted by Robert J. Avrech at March 25, 2007 03:14 PM
Comments
Seraphic Secret is private property, that's right, it's an extension of our home, and as such, Karen and I have instituted two Seraphic Rules and we ask commentors to act respectfully.
1. No profanity.2. No Israel bashing. We debate, we discuss, we are respectful. You know what Israel bashing is. The world is full of it. Seraphic Secret is one of the few places in the world that will not tolerate this form of anti-Semitism. That's it. Break either of these rules and you will be banned.
A voracious reader you certainly are, Robert. Nu, and when do you write?
Posted by: Pearl at March 25, 2007 06:37 PM
Pearl:
I write between pages.
Posted by: Robert J. Avrech ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.seraphicpress.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at March 25, 2007 09:13 PM
"My father has another name for the minimalists: Jew-haters."
solomon schechter once remarked in regards to the school of higher bible criticism: "higher criticism is higher anti-semitism"
Posted by: Ari Kinsberg at March 25, 2007 10:49 PM
I write between pages.
The type must be quite small to fit between the pages.
Posted by: Jack at March 25, 2007 11:13 PM
Alton Brown?!? His show and the book you mention are universally popular with the Hilts family, but at Casa Avrech? Have you taken the first step on the path to becoming a foodie?
Posted by: MAJ Virgil Hilts at March 26, 2007 05:51 AM
Ari:
The Schechter quote is brilliant. Thank you.
Posted by: Robert J. Avrech at March 26, 2007 07:43 AM
Jack:
I use a tiny font, yes.
Posted by: Robert J. Avrech at March 26, 2007 07:45 AM
Maj. Hilts:
Karen and I love Alton's "Good Eats" show. But alas, we have not translated his good advice to out dining table. Too labor intensive. We're like theoretical watchers. Except for his egg-cracking technique, right on the table top. Works every time.
Also: we skip his odes to the bi-valves. Sooooo not kosher.
Posted by: Robert J. Avrech at March 26, 2007 07:49 AM
I love Alton Brown! And I encourage my students to watch his show, too, as he explains so much about the science of cooking. He's kind of like the Bill Nye the Science Guy of the Foodnetwork. ;-)
Posted by: Joannah at March 26, 2007 04:23 PM
Joannah:
Yes! Karen describes Alton as the Mr. Wizard of the kitchen. She loves the science. I love the cheesy props, and the references to old films. He's such a film geek. It's wonderful.
Posted by: Robert J. Avrech at March 26, 2007 06:16 PM