Military Reading Lists!

The National Defense University has links to all military reading lists on one page. Check it out here. Any on the list that surprise you? Interest you? I scanned the Army's suggested list a few days ago. I'm interested in reading, or at least skimming, Command Culture: Officer Education in the U.S. Army and the German Armed Forces, 1901-1940, and the Consequences for World War II.   Take a look.  

A Poem for Sunday

Rudyard Kipling

I'll try to post a poem weekly.  I have mixed emotions about poetry.  I enjoy good poetry, really, but some poetry takes a good deal of time to read and understand -- particularly poetry laden with symbolism and religious or historical references.  Those can be a tough slog.  But after you've learned a really hard poem it pays off, you will feel that the effort was worth it.  In the spirit of blogging, however, I'll try to keep poems simple and sweet.  Something you can read once, maybe twice, something that rings good to your ear and gives you a few seconds of reflection.

Along the theme of my last post -- whimsical reading, that is -- I picked up an anthology on Rudyard Kipling.  Most know him for The Jungle Book, or maybe you've read what many consider to be his masterpiece, Kim.  Kipling, however, was also a prolific poet.  Flipping through the book today, I stopped and read his poem "The Verdicts [Jutland]."  


The short history is this:  Kipling covered the Battle of Jutland for the London Daily Telegraph in October of 1916.  And for those who forgot the details of The Battle of Jutland (understandable), it was the major naval battle of WWI between British an German naval forces.  And one of the few -- if only one, if I remember -- naval battle that was battleship vs. battleship.  Ultimately the Royal Navy lost more men and ships in the Battle of Jutland, but the German Navy also suffered significant losses as well, and wouldn't risk losing more of their fleet with further forays into the Northern Atlantic.  

Onto the poetry... so Kipling wrote a poem about the men of that infamous sea battle.  And when I finished the poem I realized two things: 

First, after 10 years of war, after Iraq and Afghanistan, I don't know of any published poetry about those wars.  Do you?  (I have seen some poetry blogs.)  There are numerous fantastic war memoirs out there, but no poetry.  Reasons why? I can only guess, but poetry's popularity has decreased -- people simply aren't reading it.  And another reason, poetry, well, good poetry, is difficult to write.  Not that some soldiers or sailors haven't written some fine verse, but good enough to move thousands of readers?  I just don't know.

Second,  Kipling's "The Verdicts" can be read now as it was when first published.  It is, for lack of better words, timeless.  I don't know if our recent wars have changed the future of the world or made us "saviors of mankind."  I think it is much easier to say that of WWII, certainly.  But for me, the poem is a reminder of all the heroic acts that we never see, even in our own services, the deaths and lives lost that we'll never know. 

Read it and decide for yourself.

The Verdicts [Jutland]

Not in the thick of the fight,
Not in the press of the odds,
Do the heroes come to their height,
Or we know the demi-gods.

That stands over till peace.
We can only perceive
Men returned from the seas,
Very grateful for leave.

They grant us sudden days
Snatched from their business of war;
But we are too close to appraise
What manner of men they are.

And, whether their names go down
With age-kept victories,
Or whether they battle and drown
Unreckoned, is hid from our eyes.

They are too near to be great,
But our children shall understand
When and how our fate
Was changed, and by whose hand.

Our children shall measure their worth.
We are content to be blind . . .
But we know that we walk on a new-born earth
With the saviours of mankind.

A Funny 15 Minutes

I encourage whimsical reading. And by whimsical I mean grabbing a book from your shelf and dipping into it if only for 15-20 minutes. Subject matter doesn't matter -- read whatever strikes your fancy at that moment. Essays and short stories, or maybe a graphic novel, these are short enough that you'll be able to get through them from beginning to end within a short period of time. I'd flock to one of those first. So it is in that vein that I decided to grab a P.G. Wodehouse anthology from the shelf last night and spend 15 minutes with the comic master.

If you don't know who P.G. Wodehouse is, well, I'll save the complete biographical rundown for another time and another post, but he was -- and arguably remains -- one of the funniest writers in the English language. He wrote over 50 novels, numerous short stories, plays, and letters.  Funny and touching, a new collection of his letters was recently released this year. What makes him great is his ability to fill almost every page with a fresh simile or metaphor, a well turned phrase, and great dialogue. Here's a small sample:

“Mike nodded. A sombre nod. The nod Napoleon might have given if somebody had met him in 1812 and said, "So, you're back from Moscow, eh?” .... “A melancholy-looking man, he had the appearance of one who has searched for the leak in life's gas-pipe with a lighted candle.”.... And this beauty: “Freddie experienced the sort of abysmal soul-sadness which afflicts one of Tolstoy's Russian peasants when, after putting in a heavy day's work strangling his father, beating his wife, and dropping the baby into the city's reservoir, he turns to the cupboards, only to find the vodka bottle empty.”  You get the idea.  

I opened my copy of The Most of P.G. Wodehouse and read the first story of short stories collectively called "The Golf Stories."  The first story is called "The Coming of Gowf." 

 Imagine a King of a fictional kingdom discovering -- from a indentured servant, Scottish of course -- that there is some "savage religious" ceremony in which sticks are used to hit round objects.   Here we have the king's first introduction to this strange new "religion."

 "According to the admiral, the dunes by the seashore where he landed were covered with a multitude of men behaving just as this man is doing. They had sticks in their hands and they struck with these at small round objects. And every now and again----

"And every now and again," went on the Vizier, "they would utter the strange melancholy cry which you have just heard. It is a species of chant." "Fo-o-ore!" called a gruff voice from below.

Needless to say, the King is interested in this strange new "religion." I will not give away the ending, but reader, I'm sure you know a few people who have discovered the game of golf, or who play golf, only to realize that for them, it is a little more than a game. 

You'll find the "Coming of Gowf" online actually.  If you have a few minutes -- maybe only 15 or 20 -- then click here and give it a go.  

 

Quote of the Week

A book is a mirror: if an ass peers into it, you can't expect an apostle to look out.

-- C. G. Lichtenberg

World's Smallest Book?

From UK's the Telegraph:

"Japan has created what it is claiming is the smallest ever printed book, with pages measuring 0.75 millimetres (0.03 inches) which are impossible to read with the naked eye. The 22-page micro-book, entitled Shiki no Kusabana (flowers of seasons), contains names and monochrome illustrations of Japanese flowers such as the cherry and the plum. Toppan Printing, who have been making micro books since 1964, said letters just 0.01 mm wide were created using the same technology as money printers use to prevent forgery."

Check it out here.

On Bookplates

George Washington's Bookplate

I've never been fond of bookplates.  Before I started building my library and collecting my favorite authors, I didn't believe books should be marked up and I certainly didn't think foreign objects should be put on the board of a book.  But times are changing -- or rather,  I've changed my mind.  I realize now, that if I want inscriptions and signatures from my favorite (living) authors, then I'm going to have to use bookplates.  It's simply not cost effective to send packages of your favorite books to an author in the hopes that they will inscribe the book and it get back to your mailbox in good condition.  My recent success in contacting one of my favorite authors has encouraged me to write more of the men and women whose books fill my shelves.  But what to send them to sign?  A blank piece of nice stock paper?  Something with a personal design? 

Sir Augustus Wollaston Franks

Traditionally bookplates are small decorative labels that are pasted onto the inside of the book indicating the books owner.  Some are simple, and some, well, some are miniature works of art with intricate designs and fonts.  They are collectors items themselves. Sir Augustus Wollaston Franks -- British Museum administrator and antiquarian collector extraordinaire -- had 35,000 bookplates in his collection.  Yale apparently has around 250,000 bookplates in their collection.  That's a lot of bookplates.

Bookplates have been around for hundreds of years (the earliest known use as a printed book label is in Germany during the 15th century).  And years ago, when books were rare, aristocracy -- because they could afford books -- often had their coat of arms imprinted on the plate and placed inside each book.  

Still the question remains:  what type of bookplate should I use?  

Ernest Hemingway's Bookplate

This isn't an easy decision -- well -- it isn't an easy decision for me.  You can't remove your bookplates if you change your mind; you can't say "nah, I liked it without the plate, let's pull that sucker off."  If you do, your inner board will look like a bad case of road rash.  And while I don't own any books that are of any great monetary value, I'm aware that some bookmen believe attaching anything to a book will devalue it.

I'm leaning toward the classical bookplate: simple lines around the edges, lots of white space.   I don't think I will have "EX LIBRIS" printed on them (latin for "from the books," often meaning "from the library of").   I'd rather leave plenty of space for an author's signature or inscription.  I don't need the art.  I'll keep it simple. 

Writing Devices

Every writer has his/her own particular writing device.  I've had a thing for pens since I can remember.  I'm always looking for the perfect pen -- it is elusive, this perfect writing device.  Does it feel good in my hand?  Is the ink flow too strong?  The nib too wide?  So many factors to consider when you are purchasing the perfect pen.  I use different types of pens for different types of writing.  I'm fond of fountain pens for letters and journal entries.  And then for everything else, I'll use a gel ink pen.  I usually prefer a small nib or small point to a large one.  And for gel pens I prefer one that clicks, not one with a removable cap.  

I'm also looking for the best pen for the best price.  If you are in the market for a fountain pen, you'll probably never go wrong with a Lamy.  Lamy is a German pen maker and they produce a very high quality pen at a reasonable price (less than $100 for most in their line).  The trouble is finding a Lamy retailer in your local area.  In Germany they are everywhere.  So if you are stateside, you can find them on E-bay and Amazon.com, which  carries some of the Lamy line on their website.  For about $20 you can purchase one of their fountain pens -- their Safari -- which writes smoothly, is reliable, and at that price point, is affordable.  But it is not a heavy metal build, it's plastic and light.  So if you like a heavier pen look elsewhere (Lamy does have a stainless steal version that is heavier and quite nice.) 

If you want more of a calligraphic look to your writing, you can plop down $7 at your local Michael's craft store for a Scheaffer calligraphy pen.  They work well and are inexpensive.  I prefer a fine nib, but they come in three sizes -- fine, medium, and large -- for whatever writing style you prefer.  Finding the perfect pen should not prevent you from sitting down to write.  (It can, however, frustrate you enough to stop mid-sentence.)  But try out some different brands.  

Finally,  if you are looking for the nice fountain pen that is reliable and feels good in your hand, then you probably can't go wrong with a Waterman.  You'll be looking between $100-$200 for one of their nicer pens, but it is something that you'll have with you for many years.  And like old guitars, whose wood ages gracefully and tone matures with age, a fine fountain pen will do the same.  Over time, the pen's nib will bend and form to the amount of pressure you use when writing.  It will become your pen -- responsive to your writing style.  And it might make a nice gift to a son or daughter many years later.

There are plenty of great fountain pens out there.  You don't have to spend too much money for a good fountain pen.  But you should try writing with one.  It will, I believe, remind you how much writing can be an art and a pleasure.