Right now, I am reading
1) Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman,
2) The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
3) The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene
Sometimes I stop and read a poem or just a few lines from Gerard Manley Hopkins. His language is such concentrated eloquence, I cannot absorb much without becoming breathless at his words.
A short post, but you may expect from me on the wonder of the world of words, texts and narratives. Last summer, a man who had a few months to live said to me, "You tell stories and jokes. People don't do that much any more." The lack of stories was a big thing he mourned as his life was ending.
Perhaps blogging is the new world of storytelling in an internet connected society. Perhaps that is a good of blogging. Yet I cherish what is face to face even more, conversations that ramble on a big porch, collages of stories that connect us to one another.
I am such a Luddite that I want to return to an oral culture, with stories told, repeated, and embellished; stories as living voices in the hearts of the living community.
So this is a venture to see where telling stories about stories in books leads me and you. Also, there will be lots of tangents. And all these books and stories, how do they become part of my life and yours?
