| |||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Ian Rankin, Sunday Telegraph
Contentious, rude, hilarious, moving and truthful
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Nick Hornby, Guardian
Don Paterson's collection of aphorisms is clever, addictive and funny
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I bought this book after hearing Don Paterson speak at a conference (on translation and creativity), where he was refreshingly irreverent as well as deeply insightful. This is a wonderful book to dip into. It is a collection of aphorisms and meditations - humourous, bitter, wise - ranging from a single sentence to a paragraph, and I think I like it so much because it is completely empty of cliche and second-hand wisdom. In many ways it is a very personal collection, with some fragments referring cryptically to people close to the writer, but even these invariably lead us to reflect on our own natures. Dark and light mix in this book to give an honest picture of the human.
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I really enjoyed these quirky jottings from one of the finest poets writing in English today. Paterson is remarkably clear-sighted and not afraid of sentiment, but with a wicked and biting sense of humour that keeps it all the right side of sentimentality. Made me muse, laugh, sigh, nod and shake my head in equal measures. Lovely change of pace from his (equally delightful) poetry.
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Poet, jazz guitarist and editor Don Paterson has produced a terrific book of aphorisms. Its a shame this literary form seems to be so neglected. An aphorism, by the way is a little original thought expressed memorably and succinctly. Don's musings are by turn touching, funny, crude and insightful. You'll find yourself nodding vigorous agreement at many of these fragments of truth, even though you hadn't thought about the matter in hand before.
Mind you, as Don says: "Anything that elicits an immediate nod of recognition has only confirmed a prejudice."
He is irreverent and the very opposite of pompous.
Here's another taste: "Almost everything in the room will survive you. To the room, you are already a ghost, a pathetic soft thing, coming and going."
"Anal sex has one serious advantage:there are few cinematic prededents that instruct either party how they should look."
Mind you, as Don says: "Anything that elicits an immediate nod of recognition has only confirmed a prejudice."
He is irreverent and the very opposite of pompous.
Here's another taste: "Almost everything in the room will survive you. To the room, you are already a ghost, a pathetic soft thing, coming and going."
"Anal sex has one serious advantage:there are few cinematic prededents that instruct either party how they should look."
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
