Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts

Friday, June 7, 2019

Fingers Pointing Towards The Moon by Wei Wu Wei

This is one of those books a person has likely heard of if they're familiar with Buddhist and Daoist texts in English thanks to Wei Wu Wei mixing the teachings of both into this book. If you're into reading those type of books, this is going to be a must read with it being one of those books great to pick up and read piece by piece over an extended period of time and then reread several times to help understand what this book is all about. The author knew what he was doing with this book and it the need to take it slow with what he was writing about, making it a book worth keeping close at all times for whenever you have a couple minutes to read.

Sunday, April 7, 2019

The Te Of Piglet by Benjamin Hoff

If you have heard of The Tao of Pooh you will have also heard of this book. The two together serve as companion books and to the misfortune of this book, The Tao of Pooh is a much greater book. It is not that The Te of Piglet has poor writing, it is more of a case being a product of its times.

The book focuses a bit on historical footnotes more relevant to the time of the books release and on the political climate in the US during the time period, placing the book as stuck in early 90's America. It does discuss Daoism as expected but putting a part of the political climate of the time and what is often a forgotten part of world history into a book that teaches on Daoism was not a wise move. The book requires context and one that means a history lesson. Not something I think of when I think of books explaining the beliefs within Daoism.

Sunday, March 3, 2019

Unworldly Wise by Wei Wu Wei

If you seek a book that invokes Daoism but in a more western context, this is a book to go to. It is different with how it tries to get its message out and this is how it gets your attention. It works and thanks to how short this book is, it is easy to just read through this book in a sitting.

Sunday, January 6, 2019

Dreams by Carl Jung

If you are into dreams in any way this book is going to be of interest, but also if you have interest in alchemy the book itself can be of interest due to the alchemical imagery and talk of relation to it despite seeming to be rather unrelated but it is pushed within the book to be related. Of course symbolism within the book is talked about and that is what stands out best within the book itself.

Sunday, December 2, 2018

Hua Hu Ching by Lao Zi (Translated by Brian Walker)

If you are a Daoist this should be a must read. The many short chapters although easily to read from start to end is best chapter to chapter and philosophised on as per the many typical books within the Daoist canon.  This book is often left unread in exchange for books such as the Dao De Jing and Zhuangzi but it is worth reading, even more so if you're serious in studying the Daoist canon.

Sunday, November 4, 2018

Opening The Dragon Gate: The Making of A Modern Taoist Wizard by Chen Kaiguo and Zheng Shunchao Translated by Thomas Cleary

If you're into the more tradition forms of Daoist texts this is not going to be the book for you as the formatting is very different from what is typically presented. It is rather lengthy compared to other Daoist texts and lacks the typical notes that litter many translated Daoist texts as thankfully there is a lack of a need for notes explaining certain things.
Knowing some 20th history of China can help with understanding the book but what will be the thing that will help the most with understanding this book is alike to all other Daoist texts is rereading the book.

Sunday, October 7, 2018

Strange Tales From A Chinese Studio by Pu Songling (Translated by Herbert A. Giles)

If you had to compare The Legends of Tono with its compiled short folkloric tales the best book to go with would without an ounce of doubt be this particular book. Because of this the book is one I would recommend to go to if you're into Chinese folklore and mythology or interested in learning about it.
The one downside of the book due to its many but extremely short stories is that the tone from one tale to another can have very different tones, making it a book I wouldn't recommend just reading as you would like a biography or a true crime book unless you're reading it for study or to take inspiration from artistically.

Sunday, September 2, 2018

Dragons: The Myths, Legends, & Lore by Doug Niles

Alike to the book on vampires that I reviewed it is not necessarily the best book to review here but many readers might find worthwhile and thankfully it is just as detailed. The book is going to be a good start to begin looking into dragon related mythology and dragons in literature. This makes it a perfect book for a person who may want to further look into in regards to dragons but isn't sure where to start.

Sunday, April 8, 2018

Chinese Mythology & Thirty-Six Stratagems by Zhang Ziyun

The book itself is an interesting thing to look into two very different things. The first half is a mythology aspect that is itself that is well detailed in writing and makes getting the book by itself worth it. The second half focuses on the stratagems the titles mentions but has a focus on mentioning on ancient Chinese history frequently which makes knowing ancient Chinese history a need to fully appreciate this section of the book. Even if you are not well versed in ancient Chinese history, there is thankfully plenty to learn from this section and can be a great aid in becoming a better strategist.