News Flash: A New "Iliad" is Coming Soon!

"Hello!  My name is Chris, and I am addicted to Homer." 

I have made it my business over the past couple of years to find and read copies of all of the major translations of Homer's The Iliad and The Odyssey.  While I very much love the elegant and classy translations by Richmond Lattimore (The Iliad, 1951; The Odyssey, 1965), I'd have to say that my current favorites are those by the late Robert Fagles (The Iliad, 1990; The Odyssey, 1996).  In my opinion, the Fagles translations are eminently readable and enthralling, and it is my understanding that he did a truly masterful job of adapting the original meaning of the Greek into the idiom of Modern English.  Well, at any rate, it sure works for me!

Anyway, I've just recently become aware of a new translation of Homer's The Iliad by Stephen Mitchell that is being released on October 11, 2011, published by Free Press.  From the reviews I've managed to find and read, Mitchell is well qualified and up to the task of giving the world this new translation of The Iliad.  In fact, a publication release I found on-line may provide a bit of the back-story of why Mitchell felt compelled to tackle his own translation of this epic poem--

"Mitchell’s Iliad is the first translation based on the work of the preeminent Homeric scholar Martin L. West, whose edition of the original Greek identifies many passages that were added after the Iliad was first written down, to the detriment of the music and the story. Omitting these hundreds of interpolated lines restores a dramatically sharper, leaner text. In addition, Mitchell’s illuminating introduction opens the epic still further to our understanding and appreciation."

Well, I for one, can't wait to get my grubby little paws on a brand-spanking-new hardcover edition of this book and dive in and form my own opinion.  I'm also seriously contemplating picking up my well-read copy of Fagles' translation and giving it a reread over the next couple of weeks, just so I'll have something to compare and contrast.

Finally, I've just found out that Stephen Mitchell is coming to the independent bookseller, Vroman's Bookstore, in Pasadena on Saturday, November 5th at 4:00 p.m., for a book-signing and discussion of his new translation of The Iliad.  Yup, you guessed it, I'll be there.  Wouldn't miss it for the world!

Review: "The Complete Plays of Sophocles--A New Translation" translated by Robert Bagg & James Scully

I finished this newly published (2011) volume of translations of the seven existing plays by Sophocles recently.  I unhesitatingly recommend this new work of the translators, Robert Bagg and James Scully, as they really did an outstanding job of presenting these powerful dramas with extraordinary lyricism and emotional impact.  For your information, I am providing a list of the plays in the collection and the primary translator--

Aias (James Scully)
Women of Trakhis (Robert Bagg)
Philoktetes (James Scully)
Elektra (Robert Bagg)
Oedipus the King (Robert Bagg)
Oedipus at Kolonos (Robert Bagg)
Antigone (Robert Bagg)

Interestingly enough, this was the first time that I had read Aias (Ajax) or the Women of Trakhis and I really, really enjoyed both of them. While I was familiar with the story of Ajax from The Iliad, I have to say that Sophocles and James Scully really made me realize the physical and psychological toll that warfare and combat has upon a soldier.  One has to believe that what is described in Aias can only be classified as a classic case of "post-traumatic stress disorder" (PTSD).  We see the toll that this 'madness' takes upon the family and friends of Ajax, and it is truly heartbreaking.  In the Introduction to the volume, Bagg and Scully indicate that excerpts from both Aias and Philoktetes have been performed for members of the American armed services and their families in the context of addressing and dealing with PTSD.  I say, 'Bravo!'

Finally, I have to say that I consider myself somewhat a connoisseur associated with Sophocles' Antigone, and the translated version in this collection is simply superb.  The dialog is spare, clipped, and drips with pathos--we emotionally respond not only to what Kreon and Antigone say in the play, but the overall intent of Sophocles in writing the play.  As Antigone prepares to meet her fate she laments,

"Hades, who chills each one of us to sleep,
will guide me down to Acheron's shore.
I'll go hearing no wedding hymn
to carry me to my bridal chamber, or songs
girls sing when flowers crown a bride's hair;
I'm going to marry the River of Pain." (890-895)

That'll wrench your heart-strings.  In this collection, Bagg and Scully have given us a new version of Sophocles that is dramatic, poetic, and lyrical, and incredibly relevant for our time.  The language incorporated in these translations is not in the slightest degree flowery or excessive.  In my opinion, not one word is wasted, the emotion is right there--in your face--and it just feels right.  Read these plays and see what you think.

Novak Djokovic vs. Roger Federer, U.S. Open Semifinal, September 10, 2011

Just a quick note to all of you tennis fans out there--

The U.S. Open Mens Semifinal between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, the world's number 1 ranked player (Novak) versus the number 3 ranked player (Roger) was unbelievably amazing from start to finish and is destined to be an instant classic.  The winner of the match would go on to face the winner of the Rafael Nadal/Andy Murray match in the final of the U.S. Open on Monday, September 12, 2011, and it totally lived up to its billing and all of the hype!

Djokovic was down two sets to love in a potential five-set match, and he looked like he was going to lose to the crafty veteran, Federer, in straight sets.  Shortly after the beginning of the third set the mood of the match changed, and it was evident that Djokovic had sunk his teeth into the match and was not going to go away without a fight--and fight he did!

Djokovic went on to reel off the next two sets, and the two men then started the fifth, and final, set to decide the outcome of the match and who would move on to the final on Monday.  Back and forth the two men went, both serving pretty well and hitting the most amazing returns and ground strokes.  This was championship tennis at its very, very best.

Federer even had two match points to finish off Djokovic and advance to the final, but it was not to be.  Djokovic cracked a laser-like return to negate one match point (this shot stunned Federer and the nearly 24,000 people in Arthur Ashe Stadium).  Federer then served a nearly 110 mph serve right into Djokovic's body that somehow the young Serbian managed to block back across the net for a winner.  This erased the remaining match point for Fed, and it was all Djokovic from this point on.  A stunning turn of events.  In retrospect, this exhibition of tennis excellence from Djokovic shouldn't have surprised me so much.  He has had an absolutely awesome year, with a win/loss record of 63-2--and has won two majors (The Australian Open and Wimbledon)!

While Rafael Nadal dispatched the Scot, Andy Murray, relatively easily in four sets in the other mens semi-final, I have to think that Djokovic will win his third major this year by winning the U.S. Open Final on Monday night.  It should be a helluva final--another great battle between Rafa and the Djoker.  Me, I'd like to see Djokovic win this and just put a heck of an exclamation point on the great year he has had so far.

If you really love tennis go to You-Tube, or the U.S. Open's website (usopen.org/) and look for the video of the match between Federer and Djokovic.  Awesome stuff!

Review: "Middlemarch--A Study of Provincial Life" By George Eliot

I have just finished reading Middlemarch, and this pretty much completes my reading of George Eliot's major works.  Middlemarch truly is quite the sublime novel from start to finish.  At first blush one has this sense of simply being immersed in a rather quiet and pastoral story, but there's really very much more going on here as one turns the pages.It is a story of rural England during the period of great reforms in politics, religion, agriculture, manufacturing, medicine, and even transportation.  Mostly though, it is the story of human beings, and what it means to be human.

Eliot gives us a wonderful cast of characters in Middlemarch, and they cut across all class lines from the landed gentry, tradesmen and women, and the simple country rustics that work the land and work in the manor houses.  While perhaps Dickensian in cast, the peoples that populate the novel are not laden with the satire or comedy of a Dickens or Thackeray novel.  No, these are all people that we can relate to even in this modern age.  These are your neighbors, some rich, some poor; these are your physicians; your pastors; your shopkeepers, and so forth.  The people of Middlemarch are your family, friends, and acquaintances and become even more so as the novel moves along.

As much as I truly enjoyed the plots in Eliot's Adam Bede, The Mill on the Floss, and Silas Marner, I'd have to say that Eliot "kicked it up a notch" in Middlemarch.  This is a stately, sedate, sophisticated, and complexly elegant novel.  It really does demand the reader's full dedication and attention as it is read too, much like I found when I read her last novel Daniel Deronda.  Boy, is it worth the extra effort, and one can't help but find oneself savoring the pacing and structure of the novel as Eliot lays out the tale.

Eliot herself compares one of her primary characters, Dorothea Brooke, to St. Theresa de Avila.  She is a genuinely decent human being who very much cares for the welfare of all of those around her, including even the man she marries early in the novel--Edward Casaubon. Interestingly, at least to me, that through the novel there was an almost tidal 'ebb and flow' of how the reader viewed many of the characters.  The one exception was Dorothea, as she always stayed above the fray and maintains her 'saintliness'.  I suppose that some could say that maybe Dorothea's saintliness was laid on a bit thick, but I think the character of Dorothea and her actions are important in helping to bring home the novel's overall message and moral impact.  I think that this was also true in different degrees with some of the other characters, such as Tertius Lydgate, Rev. Farebrother, Caleb Garth, his wife, and their daughter Mary Garth.  Perhaps the most powerful aspect of the novel though is Eliot's ability to make her readers empathize and even sympathize with the characters that are not so likeable, e.g., Bulstrode or Casaubon.

Finally, I have to again say that somehow I really think that George Eliot had to have been some sort of inspiration for, or influence upon, the later works of Thomas Hardy.  I really do see a somewhat similar approach to realism and naturalism in the works of these two important authors.  While Eliot's novels don't showcase the impact of Fate or Chance perhaps as prominently as Hardy, they both inject a big dose of reality in the day-to-day lives of their characters.  Bad things do happen to good and bad people alike, just like Life.  The beauty of Middlemarch is that it depicts the indomitable Human spirit at its finest (and, dare I say, at its worst at times too).  Those who wish to do good can; and for those who don't, well they get caught out.

Great book!  I highly recommend reading this novel.  I have to be honest and fess up that I tried to read this book off and on for 20+ years, and it just never took with me.  I was finally able to sink my teeth (and brain) into it and just let myself become immersed in the peoples and landscape of Middlemarch, and what a profoundly satisfying and enriching experience it has been.  In all reality, I think that I am at a point in my reading and comprehension these days that I was finally ready for what Virginia Woolf described as "one of the few English novels written for grown-up people."  I do look forward to re-reading it again at some point and thinking about the messages and lessons of this rich novel that George Eliot has crafted and left us.

For me, now it is on to a new translation of Les Miserables by Victor Hugo (translation by Ms. Julie Rose, 2008).  I'm also reading a new translation of the plays of the 5th century B.C. ancient Greek playwright, Sophocles.  This 2011 translation and adaptation has been done by Robert Bagg and James Scully.  Too much good stuff!

Reviews: Thomas Hardy: The Neglected Novels--Part II

I mentioned a week or so ago that I was in the process of reading the remaining four novels written by Thomas Hardy that I'd not gotten to before.  Hardy wrote fourteen novels over the period from 1871 through 1897.  Actually, his very first novel, The Poor Man and the Lady was completed in 1868, but was never published.  Hardy's first published novel was Desperate Remedies in 1871.  His last novel was The Well-Beloved and was published in 1897.  Of Hardy's fourteen published novels, I had read all but the following:  Desperate Remedies, The Hand of Ethelberta, A Laodicean, and The Pursuit of the Well-Beloved & The Well-Beloved.  So, I ordered the the Penguin Classics editions of these four 'neglected', or 'minor', Hardy novels and started reading.

While, after finishing all four books, I can say that it is my opinion that none of these novels quite rise to the level of Hardy's best work, i.e., Far From the Madding Crowd, The Return of the Native, The Woodlanders, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, or Jude the Obscure.  Oh, they are each quite good, well written, and have engaging plots.  Interestingly, at least to me, they are quite different from one another too.

Desperate Remedies was really a rollicking good read--a real pot-boiler of a mystery and romance.  Of all of Hardy's novels this is the one that perhaps most closely emulates some of the literary creations of Charles Dickens or Wilkie Collins.  This has it all--scheming and intrigue, blackmail, illegitimacy, adultery, murder and more.  Sure it was maybe a bit rough around the edges, but that is to be expected as this was Hardy's first published novel and he was really just learning his craft.  Personally, I thought the character development was terrific in the novel, with characters that I very much liked and some that I utterly despised.  Desperate Remedies was a fun novel to read and one that I look forward to picking up again in a few years for a re-read.  If you're looking for something that's kind of edgy and mysterious, yet with a good dose of romance and set in the heart of the Victorian Era, I highly recommend Desperate Remedies.

The next book that I read was Thomas Hardy's fifth published novel, The Hand of Ethelberta.  This was very, very good!  What I loved about this novel was that Hardy's protagonist is a savvy and very street-smart young woman, Ethelberta, from a very poor family of ten children.  Without giving much of the plot away, suffice it to say that this young woman sets out to make something of herself (and also indirectly benefit the members of her family).  She is an accomplished poet, and publishes a volume of poetry that is well received by the critics (Remember, Hardy always considered himself, first and foremost, a poet).  She also is put in the position of ultimately having to find herself a wealthy husband if she is going to be able to provide for her parents and siblings.  Most of the novel is taken up with telling the story of Ethelberta's trials and tribulations in honorably finding a decent man and marriage.  All in all, I found this to be quite funny at times, and a pretty rich satire on Victorian society and the roles men and women were expected to adhere to among the upper class.  Like in many of Hardy's novels, the common folk, or 'rustics', figure prominently; so, one really does get a pretty good feel for the 'upstairs' and the 'downstairs' folks during the time-period of the novel.  Again, good character development makes this a fun book to read.  I found myself anxiously turning the page to find out what would happen next to our heroine and the other characters.  Apparently, Hardy even drew upon his wife's diaries in plotting this novel, along with material he found in the popular romances of the day, weekly magazines, and even ladies fashion journals.  The book does provide a wonderful window into upper-crust Victorian society.

Finally, I just finished the third book of Hardy's 'minor' novels yesterday.  A Laodicean is my favorite of the three I've just read.  It is a sophisticated novel with a superb plot.  Again, there's mystery, some really nasty and nefarious scheming on the part of the bad guys, and a wonderful romantic triangle involving a very wealthy and beautiful young woman and her two very poor suitors.  This novel revolves around architecture and the restoration of an old ruined castle.  Knowing what I know of Hardy's life, one can really see many autobiographical elements in the telling of this tale.  Hardy, as a young architect, spent much of his initial career in restoring old Norman and Gothic churches across Dorset, a task he seemed to thoroughly enjoy.  I found it intriguing too, that this novel, like Desperate Remedies, involve a very poor man falling in love with and courting a woman much wealthier and from the upper class.  A Laodicean is also, in my opinion, a moral treatise on the conflict between maintenance of the old way of life in rural southwest England (i.e., Hardy's 'Wessex') and the new modern age that is fast changing the landscape and people's lives (e.g., the railroad, the telegraph, new religions, etc.).  This examination of the impacts of modernity upon the people and cultures of southwest England is a theme that Hardy will return to time and time again in his subsequent novels and much of his poetry.  I highly recommend reading A Laodicean, and further recommend that you follow up by reading his very next novel, Two on a Tower.  Hardy always considered these two novels to be a diptych--and read together.

So, if you're looking for something new to read; something maybe a bit off of the beaten path and not typically read by the masses, I urge you to seek out these three rather neglected novels of Thomas Hardy (and please do throw Hardy's Two on a Tower onto the pile too).  Pull up a chair next to the window or on your porch or veranda, pour yourself a cup of nice tea, and allow yourself to enter the world of Hardy's Wessex and Victorian England.  You won't be sorry, I promise.  If you read one or more of 'em, do drop me a note and let me know what you thought of the book(s).

Thomas Hardy: The Neglected Novels--Part I

I love serendipity!  Actually, I really love the word too.  It just rolls off of the tongue, and it even sounds 'serendipitous.'  Well, I had kind of a serendipitous morning today, and I'm still grooving on it.  I was up nice and early and made the coffee, settled in on the couch to finish the tenth, and final, volume--"The Crippled God"--in Steven Erikson's magnificent "Tale of the Malazan Book of the Fallen" series of fantasy novels.  After drying my eyes and reshelving the book, I watered the plants and then got ready to head off to work.

I was waiting on the train platform, and noticed the station marquee was broadcasting a message.  My train to Los Angeles was going to be 45 minutes to an hour delayed because of mechanical issues.  I thought about it for a moment, and said, "What the heck?"  I headed back to the house and a nice unscheduled day off.  I immediately changed into my running togs and took off for a nice hour-long five-mile run.  By ten o'clock I was back, freshly showered, and sitting down here posting on my blog, and feeling like a million bucks!  That's serendipity--at least to me!

***

Okay, now that I've bored you with my 'off-the-top-of-my-head' thoughts, I want to let you know what's going on with my reading these days.  As many of you know, I am a huge fan of the works of Thomas Hardy.  Hardy is one of the great novelists of the Victorian period, and is one of the great poets of the early modern era.  While many of his novels and short stories are widely read and hugely popular, Hardy always considered himself, first and foremost, to be a poet--and I would agree wholeheartedly.  I spent much of the last year and half reading most of Hardy's fourteen published novels, his short stories, all of his poetry, and several excellent biographies.  Thomas Hardy is, without a doubt, one of my favorite authors and poets.  If you are interested, you can go back through the archives of this blog and find my many postings, thoughts and observations about all of the Hardy novels and poetical works that I devoured over the past eighteen months or so.

I just wanted to bring to your attention a few of Thomas Hardy's novels that are less well known, three of which I have yet to read.  Personally, I would include the following novels in a list of his lesser known books:

"Desperate Remedies" (1871),
"The Hand of Ethelberta" (1876),
"The Trumpet Major" (1880),
"A Laodicean" (1881),
"Two on a Tower" (1882), and
"The Well-Beloved" and "The Pursuit of the Well-Beloved" (1892)

Of the novels on this list, I've only read "The Trumpet Major" and "Two on a Tower" (which I loved, and is reviewed here).  I recently went ahead and ordered copies of the remaining books (all of them are available in the Penguin Classics paperback editions), and I am very much looking forward to reading them over the next few weeks.  In fact, I started, Thomas Hardy's first published novel, "Desperate Remedies" this morning.
So, if you're at all interested in these lesser known novels of Thomas Hardy, please stay tuned as I promise to post a review of each book as I finish it.  I am very much looking forward to finishing off my reading of Hardy's entire literary oeuvre, and seeing how these remaining lesser known or 'neglected' novels stack up against my faves like, "The Return of the Native," "Far From the Madding Crowd," "Tess of the d'Urbervilles," "The Woodlanders," or "Jude the Obscure."

I'm Baaaaack! Woo-Hoo!

Wow!  It has been a while since I added an entry to my blog--about three months!  Let me see if I can explain why.  There really has been a lot going on, and pretty much all of it good too.

Susan and I went to Florida over the long Memorial Day weekend in late-May and visited our friends Mandi and Brian in Palm Harbor, near Tampa-St. Petersburg.  We had a blast!  Ate some great food, hung out at their beautiful pool, and just generally relaxed for several days.  The weather was fabulous, and we had fun visiting the little coastal communities near Palm Harbor like Tarpon Springs and Dunedin.  I also hauled my landscape photography gear with me and managed to get out a couple of times and photograph some of the beautiful landscapes in this part of Florida.  First, I want to share the early morning view from Mandi and Brian's pool and patio area. How would you like this view with your morning coffee?  Pretty spiffy, huh?  I should mention that if you want to see a larger view of the attached images, please feel free to 'click' on it and open up the larger view. 

I also visited the John C. Chestnut Regional Park late one afternoon and early evening.  This park really highlights most, if not all, of the beautiful ecosystems found along much of the Gulf Coast of Florida.  There is a terrific boardwalk nature trail that winds its way through an amazing saw-palmetto swampy area, and then the trail traverses along the shoreline of Lake Tarpon.  I climbed one of the observation towers and captured a beautiful and tranquil sunset over Lake Tarpon.  It really was a wonderful moment!  I should mention that this part of Florida is loaded with alligators!  It was pretty cool seeing these prehistoric reptiles, in all sizes, occupying just about any body of water, no matter how small.  You surely have to be conscious of these creatures as you wander around next to the water's edge.  I'm still not sure that I'd stick my toe in ANY body of water, other than a pool (and I'd check the pool twice too!), if I lived in Florida.  Trust me, there's a lot of 'gators down there!

Susan's friend, Mandi, is an incredibly accomplished tennis player--really pretty much semi-professional caliber.  We went with her to her club and watched her play a match with one of her friends.  It was really quite inspiring and completely rekindled my life-long love affair with the game.  And this brings me to the next chapter in my 2011 summer of rediscovery.

First, a little background is necessary.  I am tall; in fact, I'm 6'3" in height.  I used to be a pretty fit and trim fellow, but you know how it is as one ages.  Over the years I just kind of let myself 'go to hell in a hand-basket.'  I went from 170 lbs., and swimming a mile several days a week, to 235 lbs. and doing absolutely nothing except eat and drink.  In the meantime, my wife Susan has been diligently trying to watch what she eats and spending several days a week working out.  As I do the lion's share of the cooking, I found that I wasn't helping her one bit.  In fact, I was surely unintentionally sabotaging all of her hard work.

Well, something just 'popped' inside me as I watched Mandi play her friend in that match of tennis in Florida.  I really was tired of looking at the mid-fifties fat guy in the mirror with a double (triple?) chin day-in, and day-out.  In the spirit of full-disclosure, I was also drinking waaay too much booze too.  I found myself knocking back a bottle of red wine darned near every night along with all of the food I was eating.  Something had to give.  Well, my bad and unhealthy habits had to give way to a different lifestyle.

I have not had a drop of alcohol since early June 2011, and it feels fantastic!  Now, I'm not saying that I won't drink again, but I'm going to (1) give myself some time to clean up my act first, and (2) then allow myself to enjoy cocktails with friends in a socially responsible and healthy fashion.  The second big thing that I've done is undertake a significant physical fitness program, and I'm having a blast sharing this part of my new journey with my wife, Susan!  I am playing tennis several times a week, running and walking on the off days, and jumping rope out on the patio.  I took several weeks of tennis lessons from one of the local pros up here in Valencia and it has made all of the difference in my tennis skill level and my entire outlook on the game as a whole.  I feel like I am in my mid-twenties again, and I have developed a ferocious topspin forehand and a pretty wicked two-handed backhand to boot!

Finally, I would say that the biggest thing I've done for myself is that I've become an inveterate user of an app on my Android HTC Inspire phone.  I use "My Fitness Pal" to faithfully record my daily caloric intake, my daily exercise routines, record my weight, modify my fitness and weight loss goals, etc.  I cannot tell you how wonderful and how important this program has been to the new me!  I use the barcode scanner on my phone to scan food items that I eat, and it tells you all of the nutritional information, serving size, and so forth for everything that you're inclined to put in your mouth.  My Fitness Pal has something like over a million food items in its database.  It is amazing to have all of the nutritional information simply pop-up after I've scanned the barcode

I currently have a goal of 1,280 calories a day, and adhering to that goal would allow me to lose about 2 lbs. per week toward my goal of about 175 lbs.  Obviously, exercise helps by allowing you to take in more calories per day.  I encourage you to look into this wonderful program--both, as an app for your phone and for your PC--if you're at all interested in helping to get a better handle on the food that you're eating day-in and day-out.  Sure it takes maybe 15-20 minutes per day to log your diary entries into the program, but its only 15-20 minutes out of your entire day!  Just think, for the very first time you are really getting a true sense of exactly what, and how much, food you are taking in, which is then counter-balanced by the exercise that you do.  It is really quite empowering.

So there you have it--an overview of my summer in just a few paragraphs!  I am still reading some wonderful books, and will be adding some reviews and thoughts about those in the near future.  I've also signed up for the next level of tennis lessons through the local parks and recreation department here in Santa Clarita.  I also bought myself a great pair of really good running shoes.  I feel like a million bucks, and I'm having a blast.  Stay tuned!

Yosemite National Park & Landscape Photography--Part II

I have now had a few days to browse through many of the photographs that I made during my recent trip to Yosemite National Park.  I spent several days camping in Lower Pines campground in the eastern end of Yosemite Valley, and then taking the free shuttle bus to various locations throughout the Valley in an effort to find some interesting photographic opportunities.  Because Yosemite National Park is so heavily photographed by photographers of all skill levels, I find that it is intellectually quite challenging to find some original and visually intriguing photographic compositions and subjects.  Obviously, everybody likes to have the obligatory photographs of the various waterfalls, and the iconic views of the big-walls of granite like Half Dome and El Capitan; but as a landscape photographer, I am always on the prowl for images and compositions that are representative of my own artistic interpretation of this beautiful national park.

An example of an iconic view that I felt compelled to photograph is this view of Half Dome taken at Sentinel Bridge near the Yosemite Chapel (see photo above, at right).  I happened to be nearby, late one afternoon, and even though there were no clouds in the sky whatsoever, I decided to at least take a few photographs from this well-photographed location.  I decided to convert the image to black and white in an effort to highlight the leafing out of the alder and birch trees along the banks of the Merced River (the lighter colored trees at right in the photograph).

I also shot, in my view, perhaps a more interesting perspective of Half Dome from Lower Pines campground, where I was staying.  I happened to be sitting at our campsite reading Thomas Hardy's, The Woodlanders late in the afternoon, and happened to glance through the pine trees and noticed that the light was getting very good (i.e., yellow-golden) on the face of Half Dome.  I grabbed my camera gear and walked over to the edge of the Merced River and set up the camera and tripod and shot a few frames.  Again, I loved the late-light contrasts and felt that this massive wall of granite was best portrayed in the black and white medium.  I'd be interested in which image of Half Dome that you prefer--the first, more iconic view of Half Dome and the Merced River from Sentinel Bridge; or, this more close-up and detailed 'head-shot' of Half Dome.  Please do make sure that you 'click' on each photograph for an enlarged view of the photo.

Over the past few years I have become quite interested in capturing images that I call "intimate landscapes".  These are photographs taken of natural scenes that literally encompass just a square meter or two.  In other words, the challenge is to find those smaller elements in the natural landscape that, when photographed, do a decent job of representing the larger landscape as a whole.  To this end, I have found that reflections in water are a very credible way of creating some artistic photographic images.  Too many photographers spend their time walking through the landscape looking up, or looking off into the distance.  There's really nothing wrong with this approach, but you may be missing a whole host of wonderful images scattered all about you within just a few meters.  For example, I hiked up to Mirror Lake, which offers spectacular views of Mount Watkins, Half Dome and Ahwiyah Point.  Normally, most photographers focus on the larger scale photographs that include Mount Watkins, Mirror Lake, and Half Dome.  I didn't even bother with that view at all, and spent my time wandering along the edge of the lake looking for reflections in the calm water of the mountains and trees around me.  The color version, above left, is just such one of my attempts at capturing the reflection of Half Dome and Ahwiyah Point.  During post-processing, I flipped the image vertically and horizontally.  Personally, I think it kind of has the feeling of a painting from the French Impressionistic movement.  Note that you can discern the 'sand waves' on the base of the lake at the bottom of trees in the image.  What do you think?  Is it an appealing photograph, or is it just too 'out there' for your tastes?

Whilst at Mirror Lake I found a huge boulder sitting near the edge of the lake that had a great reflection in the still lake water.  I played with various compositions and exposures, and finally found one that appealed to me.  This big granite boulder was streaked with a large wide stripe (maybe a quartz-rich pegmatite dike?) that was really quite fetching to the eye.  Given the excellent tonal range exhibited in the image and the newly leafed-out vegetation in the background, I thought it might make an interesting black and white photograph.  I quite like the end results here.  To me, it kind of has a zen-like calming feel to it.  What do you think?

I am also quite fascinated with forested scenes, and always endeavor to make photographs that portray the beauty and mystery of these woodlands.  Early one morning as we were looking for suitable locations to photograph El Capitan from the bank of the Merced River near Cathedral Rock and Spires, I found a beautiful stand of very mature ponderosa pines and western red cedars.  I carefully scouted about for a suitable location and set up my camera and tripod.  I found a little dry gully that wound its way up through the trees and helps to naturally lead the eye into the scene.  During post-processing, I created a black and white rendition (right) and then a color version (left).  Frankly, I like them both, for different reasons.  Again, I'd be very interested in which photograph you prefer, and why.

Finally, during my last afternoon in Yosemite Valley I was wandering around up by a massive cliff known as "The Royal Arches", and I came upon this huge ponderosa pine tree that must have been 150 feet tall and nearly five or six feet across at the base.  A tree like this is probably in excess of 350 or 400 years old too!  I love the bark of the 'yellow-bark' pines, and decided to see if I could make a photograph that captured the textures, patterns, and color of the bark of this beautiful old tree.  I focused in on an interesting section of the trunk of the tree and made a few exposures.  I tried it in black and white and then in color, but decided that the color rendition was really the very best representation.  I love the patterns that nature provides, if only we take the time to look around for them.

So, there you have it--a few representative examples of how I approach the natural world around me with my camera and tripod.  Have I been entirely successful?  I don't know.  I think some of these photographs are pretty well done, and do show off some of the attributes of Yosemite Valley as I intended.  Others are maybe not quite so successful.  Would I have wished for some stormy weather to lend more drama to the sky above?  You bet!  Interesting weather conditions with clouds are always a landscape photographer's best friend.  Unfortunately, I just didn't really have any of those types of conditions; consequently, one does the best that one can with the tools at hand.  And being in Yosemite National Park, at any time of year, and in any conditions, one can hardly go wrong.  Thanks for looking at my images, and please do share your opinions with me.  Cheers!

Yosemite National Park--Landscape Photography & Literature

I'm back!  I have been ever so crazy busy at work the past few months that all of the fun things in life seem to have been set aside--and blogging about books here at ProSe has really suffered mightily.  Fortunately, I was able to get away for a nearly week-long camping trip with some friends during the first week in May.  The primary purpose for our trip was to endeavor to make some decent landscape photographs.  We stayed in Lower Pines Campground in Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park.  The weather was splendid, and with all of the snowpack in the High Sierra (almost 200% of normal), the waterfalls in the Valley were just booming.  Truly spectacular!

I took Thomas Hardy's novel, The Woodlanders along with me for a re-read.  As I wandered about the park, from beautiful location to beautiful location, I would sit below a waterfall, or out in an open meadow, or under a tree, or even in my camp-chair next to the campfire, I'd pull out my Hardy and read.  I have to say that this re-read of The Woodlanders was even more meaningful to me than when I first read it in 2010.  Hardy;s description of the dense Wessex forests around Little Hintock and the lives of his rustics just seemed to come alive for me in the grandeur of one of America's most beautiful national parks.

Anyway, I just wanted to leave a short note that I am back to my blog, and that I am continuing to read some really terrific books these days.  I am currently re-reading Hardy's The Return of the Native, Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre for group discussions in a Goodreads.com group, and reading Charles Dickens's The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club for the first time for another group discussion.  I also have R.D. Blackmore's Lorna Doone in my immediate queue to-be-read.

The photograph I've posted here is a photograph that I made in Cook's Meadow on the floor of the Yosemite Valley.  The small pond is one of the ephemeral ponds that are created by the high-water conditions during the spring run-off.  Do 'click' on the photograph for a larger view too.  Stay tuned--more about my Yosemite photography trip and books I'm reading to come.  Cheers!

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Review: "The Bonehunters" By Steven Erikson

Well, we've officially turned the corner in this series--there is a dim light ahead that is the end of the tunnel.  The pieces are all on the chess-board now, and 'The Game' has begun.  The Bonehunters is Steven Erikson's sixth book in his multi-layered epic high fantasy series, "The Malazan Book of the Fallen."  I've actually moved far beyond just recommending this series for folks who love fantasy fiction.  This is a complex tale that breathes life into Erikson's fictional world; a world comprised of a uniquely awesome mythology, philosophical examinations, geo-politics, archaeology, anthropology, military tactics, a truly fascinating magical scheme, and character development and world-building that is beyond amazing.

The first five novels in the series (i.e., Gardens of the Moon, Deadhouse Gates, Memories of Ice, House of Chains, and Midnight Tides) carefully, and quite originally, place the reader in the world of the Malazan Empire.  It is an ambiguous and grey world, where sometimes right is wrong, or where wrong is actually right.  Where what occurs, what you see and what you hear is not always precisely is as it ought to be interpreted.  The Bonehunters only reinforces this notion.  

A couple of 'rules' to keep in mind as you read these novels--The First Eriksonian Law--Pay very close attention to every word written; and the Second Eriksonian Law--Not everything can be interpreted correctly initially.  I also cannot stress enough the reliance the reader must place on the maps, 'Dramatis Personae' and the 'Glossary' included in each novel.  I would also encourage the reader to carefully read and think about each of the epigraphs that Erikson leads each chapter off with.  There are always valuable little 'nuggets' that can be gleaned from these bits of prose or poetry.  It is my experience that to fully experience all that Erikson offers, the reader must simply and unhesitatingly yield and immerse themselves in the Malazan world.  And trust me, it ain't hard to do with this series!

The Bonehunters is largely the story of the Malazan 14th Army, under the command of Adjunct Tavore Paran, and its pursuit of the remnants of 'Sha'ik's' The Whirlwind' rebellion on the continent of 'Seven Cities.' The siege and battle at the city of Y'Ghatan is not only some of the most riveting military fiction you'll ever read, but the reception the Malazan 14th Army receives after the battle from the Malazan Empress Laseen in Malaz City is jaw-droppingly suspenseful.  The geo-political events/conundrums and mysteries that Erikson introduces in this novel are really nothing short of amazing and mind-boggling.  There are truly mysteries layered upon mysteries nested in this novel, and I can only look forward to the remaining novels to answer the new batch of questions that I now have.

Erikson, it now seems, has now developed and cleverly woven into the story-line all of the major and minor characters into this massive and clever plot.  While there are very, very many characters, not only in this novel, but each of the previous books; we are now reaching the stage in the series that we can see that convergences are beginning to form.  For this novel, the reader is treated to approximately 700 pages of character and plot development/build-up, and then the novel's pacing kicks into an afterburner and you simply can't put it down (I dare you!).  Fortunately, I had a long (very long) day-trip flight from Burbank, California to Denver, Colorado (and return) for a meeting yesterday, and I was able to plow through the remaining 500 pages virtually non-stop!  It bears repeating, but this series really is some of the most clever and smartest fiction that I've ever encountered.

All I can say is that if you are with the series this far; well, there is then absolutely nothing that I need tell you.  Frankly, for anyone who has read the first five novels in this series, the only question I have is--How could you quit now?  Yeah, I know, you can't.  And I completely agree.  I couldn't stop reading these books even if I wanted to--I must see how it ends, and so should you!  The plot of The Bonehunters is an eye-opener, it answers a ton of questions, and it raises a million more.  Oh, how Eriksonian is that?

By the bye, the first cover shown (at top) is the Tor hardcover edition, and the second cover shown is the mass-market paperback edition, and they're both big-time 'fat-books.'  Happy Reading!