Lord of the Flies by William Golding

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow, what a powerful book! For some reason it surprised the wife that I had not read this book back in primary school, as it seems to be on a lot of curriculum; but alas I did not. The imagery was astounding and the pace well suited. My only criticism ist that I had a hard time trying to determine how long they were on the island. Some chapters seemed to take place over a few days while others seemed to have a span much longer between.

The last third of the book is a roller coaster and as the pace quickened to the final pages so did my pulse and my reaction. The build up of fear was palpable, that it was.

The symbolism was subtle yet effective. The post-notes in my edition shed some interesting points and tied this story to a few others I am familiar with (i.e.; Conrads Heard of Darkness) and set the novel in the ideologies of the period. The concept of civilization at its heart still festering the shackles of savagery and humankind’s struggle to maintain the higher concepts of life were poignant.

If you have not read this book in a while, why not give it another read to see what you may have missed with a younger mind. If you never read this book, it is well worth your time to do so.



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The Perennial Philosophy by Aldous Huxley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I picked this book up almost two decades ago coming off a run Robert Anton Wilson and a deep interest in Eastern Philosophies, particularly Taoism. I had never finished the book at the time as the real life of a young adult took sway. Coming back almost 20 years later this book still holds it’s allure.

This is not an easy book to digest and Huxley did an amazing job presenting such a succinct overview of the Perennial Philosophy drawing from so many resources, it’s just plain awe-inspiring. The excerpts from the myriad of texts were wisely chosen and fit the chapter topics and provided a jumping of point for further exploration.

From Zen to Christianity, Buddhism to Islam, Christ to Rummi, and all religions and philosophies in between, Huxley provides an great introduction to the underlying stream of commonality linking us all together in the greater whole of the universe. A thread that has stitched the saints and prophets throughout the ages and presents us with such a simple path that is oh so difficult to follow. The annihilation of self, the achievement of charity and the ultimate path of existence; it is in here.

This book is not a light read by any means and it forces one to take a long hard look at life. My hat is off to Huxley, that it is. Read it!



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The Sea Fairies by L. Frank Baum

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I must be honest, after reading the Oz series, this book did not live up to the tradition. I would think that this would be right up my alley, taking place in the ocean depths; but alas, not so much. That is not to say it was not a good story, just not great.

Both Avery and myself were not at all impressed with Trot. She came off as a sassy, spoiled brat who was too often combatitive and rude. Given that she is merely a little girl, her manners could have been more forth coming and yet never was there a chastising.

Captain Bill on the other hand is always a hoot. He brings joy and patience, every bit the foil of the pom-pass Trot. Why do I harbor such ill will to this character? She did not elicit such emotion from either Avery or myself in the Oz books.

Anway, Trot and Captain Bill explore the ocean depths with mermaids only to get caught up in the throws of the most wicked being at the bottom of the sea: Zog, the wicked magician. Although I have to say, for how wicked Zog was supposed to be he was presented as not unlikable. Every bit of his despicable demeanor was tempered with compassion which made for an odd juxtaposition.

The denizens of the deep blue sea were treated rather callously, very much beneath the way any bit of life was treated in the Oz books. Painted with idiocy and a callous manner, most seemed nothing more than a swimming snack to be forgotten rather quickly.

There was much to do about slaves in this book. Whether it was the poor souls brought to the ocean’s bottom to serve Zog, or the forced servitude of the simple animals of the deep for the Mermaids, Zog or King Anko, the magnificent sea serpent; very little was said about the predicament; and what was proffered was readily accepted as fate.

There were some other odd, dark moments in this book: Some talk of suicide and a bit more violence towards the favourite of my ocean dwellers: Squid; or as they book denoted them – sea devils.

While I am glad I did get to read his book, I am hesitant to read another tale of Trot. If it was Captain Bill alone, I’d jump a the opportunity.

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The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A quick read, and a very powerful read. I recall seeing the movie in grade school and how it brought a tear to my heart. This story still produces that effect and my heart was heavy by the end. Truly a great classic of children’s literature, if you have not read this get to it. It’s available from Project Gutenberg, albeit sans of any illustrations; but the words paint a beautifully touching picture.

Love your stuffed animals so they too can become real one day!



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Glinda of Oz by L. Frank Baum

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

And 14 marks the end of L. Frank Baum’s run on Oz books. What a fantastic journey, so full of adventure and so fun. This final tale begins with Dorthy and Ozma traveling to the far reaches of the Giliken country to the land of the flatheads and skeezers. There a war is brewing between two societies who have never heard of Ozma’s rule. To stave this war, bring peace, and tame the use of magic, Ozma and Dorthy fly to the rescue, and are summarily dismissed and captures by the wicked rules bent on revenge for past slights inflicting upon one another.

How are they rescued? Well I do not want to spoil the story, but it involves a great collection of Oz’s famous characters to rush to the aid!

While I wish there was more Shaggy Man, because he is the bestest, it was still a fun story and a great ending to the series that Baum wrote. I am eager to see how others keep the canon alive and how their tales compare. But before that, we are going to delve into some of Baum’s other tales.



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Guidelines and Other Unsolicited Advice by Anthony Souza

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Souza presents 8 guidelines for leading a carefree, successful life. Following the dialogue of the first book, his presentation continues to be simple yet succinct. What are the eight guidelines? Well put simply they are: Acceptance, Commitment, Faith, Awareness, Cooperation, Involvement, Purpose and Engagement.

As I read these words I find many parallels in the texts I have been studying all along from the Tao Te Ching, to The Bible, to Huxley’s works. From Satre to Rand to Nietzsche. Berkley, Mill, and Kant. So many differences, yet a thread running through them all.

Bah, I get too deep.



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Eternal Truths and Other Myths by Anthony Souza

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a very interesting read and fit nicely with Huxley’s Perennial Philosophy. This book was an introduction to concepts of the Esse. The author was very frank and succinct. It is a quick read and very light-hearted yet covers some heavy material. One would expect a heavy handed approach to such material covering the heavy topics of why we are here, where we are going and the meaning of life. Yet like a river it winds around and over these topics with grace providing some serious comfort and thought.

Probably the one stand out idea I took from this was when Shelley questioned David, the Essean, whether he worried over and afterlife and what death would entail. He responded that he worried not for what came before birth, so why worry about what will be after death?

To get a full grasp of this message one must delve a bit deeper into the tenants of Essean philosophy: Know they self, the cosmos is an infinite presence whose perpetual activity gives rise to tangible material form, do unto others as you would have them do unto you, don’t do to others what you would not done on to you. So to quote from the Essean society page regarding life after death: “as optimists, we generally assume that the essence of our beings will continue to exist perpetually, hopefully reincarnating our individual consciousness in some viable alternative form.”

The movement began in the ’70′s with a group of free thinkers who interpreted the dead sea scrolls allusion to the conflict between “Children of Light” and Children of Darkness” as a conflict between “knowledge” and “ignorance.”

This book is freely available off of smash words: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/13514. It is part one in a five part dialogue. Check it out! And also, check out the Society of Esseans International: http://www.sei-esse.org/



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The Magic of Oz by L. Frank Baum

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

While ferreting out the order of the books I happened upon the fact that this was one of the darker books of the Oz series, and I must agree. Now granted, darker is a bit subjective here, and it’s not “King” or “Barker” dark, but for a children’s book, it can get a somewhat grim. The story starts off with Kiki Aru stealing away some magical secrets put to rest by his family and using his new found transformation magic to run off and explore the world. He meets up with Rugedo the former gnome king who convinces him to use this power to take over the land of Oz and help him mete our revenge for the way they have treated him.

At the same time, Ozma’s birthday is coming up and her friends seek out that special gift to give her. Dorthy and the Wizard end up on one adventure while Trot and Captain Bill on another. They way their adventures cross was clever and fun and the whole story was just one of the more delightful Oz books, that it was.

There is only one more book in the official Oz cannon!



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Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous by George Berkeley

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fantastic dialogues, and very thought provoking. Berkeley uses his two characters to discuss the dilemma of Materialism and rejects that there is anything that exists beyond our senses, other than God. Well, that is a very brief nutshell of this interesting philosophical theory.

The dialogues take place over three days with the first two ending in Hylas pondering what Philonous has declared that day in the garden. The arguments are interestingly through but I find myself lost in thought regarding the limits of knowledge of that period. Would Berkeley contend his ideas were still relevant in this day and age?

If that which exists is merely so by our senses, that nothing can exists if not of our senses, how would one consider the existence of things via technology? Light, wave lengths, are measurable. The reflection of light upon a object produces a specific wave length which stimulates our eyes to evoke color. While what we perceive is of our senses, and we could argue that said object only exists in our senses, we now have a measurable component in the mix – the wave length. But I wonder, is this measurement existing only in our senses? Such things to ponder. Yes indeed!

If a tree falls in the woods does it make a sound if no one is there to hear it? According to Berkeley it would because God is there to hear it, God’s existence gives creedence to all that exists in our sense. For that which exists can only exists in our senses and nothing can exists that does not exist in our senses. So how could that which we are not aware of existing yet exist if it does not exist in our senses? How do we escape the prime mover? According to Berkeley, that is God. For God being omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent and eternal give existence everything via God’s sense.

Well that is my interpretation, and I may be a bit off. I look forward to reading some of his other works along with his contemporaries on the side of materialism.



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The Tin Woodman of Oz by L. Frank Baum

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A new character, Woot the Wanderer is introduced, and he presents himself to the Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow. While in conversation he poses a query to the Tin Man: “Why did he never go back to his true love Nimmie Amee? Surely she must miss him!” That sparks the adventure back to the Munchkin country to reunite the Tin Woodman with his true love, even though his heart is not in it. If she will have his hand in marriage he will make her the Empress of the Winkies.

There are some interesting twists and turns into the darker areas of Oz this time around. New nemesis pop up threatening the successful completion of their quest. Of course Ozma and Dorthy make an appearance but they are relegated to only a few chapters, as most of the book focuses on the three travelers. Polychrome makes an appearance and lends a hand through to the end. Man, she just cannot stay on that rainbow.

The book was a fun read, not my favourite, but still good. I wish the Shaggy Man would have shown up!



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