- Paperback: 400 pages
- Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); New edition edition (July 1 1998)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 014027586X
- ISBN-13: 978-0140275865
- Product Dimensions: 13 x 2 x 19.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 295 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,865,108 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
When Robertson Davies died late in 1995, his literary legacy included almost everything except an autobiography. Thankfully, The Merry Heart, a posthumous collection of book reviews, speeches, articles, and other occasional pieces, is the next best thing. The book was in the planning stages at the time of Davies's death. In place of the individual introductions to the pieces that he originally had intended to provide, the compilers (his wife, daughter, and editor) use excerpts from his diaries and letters, along with details about the occasion and the setting. Admirers will be pleased to discover that many of the pieces featured here appear in print for the first time, while newcomers to the author's work will appreciate the depth and range of his views. Topics range from Canada's preoccupation with its identity and its past to how technology may or may not change the way an author writes to whether literature may be expected to discuss moral problems. Above all, The Merry Heart is a portrait of a serious and sensitive reader who believes that books both embody and make us who we are. "Reading is not a substitute for life, because it is indivisible from life.... By an agency that is not coincidence, but something much more powerful that Jungians call synchronicity, we find, and are found by, the books we need to enlarge and complete us." --Svenja Soldovieri
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
Readers around the world continue to mourn the 1995 death of a beloved literary icon, but this rich and varied collection of Robertson Davies?s writings on the world of books and the miracle of language captures his inimitable voice and sustains his presence among us. Coming almost entirely from Davies? own files of unpublished material, these twenty-four essays and lectures range over themes from "The Novelist and Magic" to "Literature and Technology," from "Painting, Fiction, and Faking," to "Can a Doctor Be a Humanist?" and "Creativity in Old Age." For devotees of Davies and all lovers of literature and language, here is the "urbanity, wit, and high seriousness mixed by a master chef" (Cleveland Plain Dealer)?vintage delights from an exquisite literary menu. Davies himself says merely: "Lucky writers. . .like wine, die rich in fruitiness and delicious aftertaste, so that their works survive them."
- Viking will publish Robertson Davies? Happy Alchemy in July 1998
- Many fine works by Robertson Davies are available from Penguin including The Deptford Trilogy, The Cornish Trilogy, and The Salterton Trilogy
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
ROBERTSON DAVIES' INTERESTING account of a lifetime's encounter with books - ranging in sophistication from The Little Red Hen to Ulysses - encompasses his philosophy of reading before moving on to the provocative assertion that "we who are committed readers may appear to choose our books, but in an equally true sense our books choose us.' Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
ROBERTSON DAVIES' INTERESTING account of a lifetime's encounter with books - ranging in sophistication from The Little Red Hen to Ulysses - encompasses his philosophy of reading before moving on to the provocative assertion that "we who are committed readers may appear to choose our books, but in an equally true sense our books choose us.' Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
My First Davies,
By
This review is from: The Merry Heart: Reflections on Reading Writing, and the World of Books (Paperback)
You don't need to be familiar with Robertson Davies' work to enjoy this set of insightful talks and essays about reading, writing, and life in general. This has been my first exposure to his work (a gift from my mother-in-law), and I loved it. I'm now deeply interested in reading his other work. In fact, I bought the Deptford Trilogy, but haven't gotten to read it yet since my wife got ahold of it before I did.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Reflections on reading, writing, and the world of books,
By
This review is from: The Merry Heart: Reflections on Reading Writing, and the World of Books (Paperback)
It is usually a pleasure to sit down to a Robertson Davies work whether it be a novel, a collection of speeches, ghost stories, essays, or newspaper articles. The Merry Heart is a felicitous adddition to the Davies canon, containing his usual eclectic selection of literary topics and sparkling ideas. Each chapter has a few introductory comments (often including excerpts from Davies' diary) by the book's editors that paint the background for each piece. Readers enjoy comparing notes about favorite books and biographical history, so for avid readers, The Merry Heart will be like reading a series of letters from a funny, witty, learned friend about some of those events and books that have shaped his life. This fine 385 page book of 24 chapters is easy to read in bits and pieces, either during a lunch break, before bed, or on a weekend next to the fire. (One note of caution: for those unfamiliar with Davies' worldview, do not be surprised to see elements of gnosticism popping up from time to time.) All in all, this book was a real pleasure to read.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews) 11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
A welcome little addition to the Davies bibliography.,
By K. Usey - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Merry Heart (Hardcover)
Two years after Robertson Davies' death, here is the unexpected gift of "The Merry Heart," a collection of essays, speeches and autobiographical reflections pulled together by his wife and daughter. They proceeded knowing Davies himself had considered such a project, and in doing so, they honor both his memory and his intentions. Page after page, "The Merry Heart" offers delight and dissertation. From the charm of the opening essay, "A Rake at Reading," to the storytelling wit of the last piece, "A Ghost Story," Davies' distinctive voice covers as wide a range of topics as a sparkling dinner party. From the seriousness of Canada's continuing preoccupation with its sense of place and history in "Literature in a Country without a Mythology" and such timely discourses as "Literature and Technology" and "Literature and Moral Purpose" to the gems of "Christmas Books," "A View in Winter: Creativity in Old Age" and "An Unlikely Masterpiece," he is by turns critical, thoughtful, playful, reverent and above all, a proud bearer of the literary standard. 8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
The old man has done it again!!,
By Johann G. Thorarensen (jgt84@hotmail.com) - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Merry Heart (Hardcover)
When I read this collection it was as if the old friend was still alive. He is most certainly alive and kicking in this book. The book gives not only his honest view of books, authors and the literary world but also includes yet another ghostly tale of mythological origin. Not only was this an informative read, as most of Davies' work is, it was also a heartfelt pleasure, and continues to be so, again and again and again.
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Reflections on reading, writing, and the world of books,
By David Graham - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Merry Heart: Reflections on Reading Writing, and the World of Books (Paperback)
It is usually a pleasure to sit down to a Robertson Davies work whether it be a novel, a collection of speeches, ghost stories, essays, or newspaper articles. The Merry Heart is a felicitous adddition to the Davies canon, containing his usual eclectic selection of literary topics and sparkling ideas. Each chapter has a few introductory comments (often including excerpts from Davies' diary) by the book's editors that paint the background for each piece. Readers enjoy comparing notes about favorite books and biographical history, so for avid readers, The Merry Heart will be like reading a series of letters from a funny, witty, learned friend about some of those events and books that have shaped his life. This fine 385 page book of 24 chapters is easy to read in bits and pieces, either during a lunch break, before bed, or on a weekend next to the fire. (One note of caution: for those unfamiliar with Davies' worldview, do not be surprised to see elements of gnosticism popping up from time to time.) All in all, this book was a real pleasure to read.
|
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Historical > Canadian
- Books > Literature & Fiction > Books & Reading
- Books > Literature & Fiction > Canadian > Classics
- Books > Literature & Fiction > Canadian > Collections & Readers
- Books > Literature & Fiction > Classics > United States
- Books > Literature & Fiction > Essays
- Books > Literature & Fiction > History & Criticism > Criticism & Theory
- Books > Literature & Fiction > Literary
- Books > Literature & Fiction > United States > Classics
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
