Math and the Mona Lisa: The Art and Science of Leonardo da Vinci

Title: Math and the Mona Lisa: The Art and Science of Leonardo da Vinci

Author: Bulent Atalay

Paperback: 336 pages

Publisher: Collins (February 21, 2006)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0060851198

ISBN-13: 978-0060851194

This book reminds us that art and science are inexorably intertwined. The writing style is lucid yet very readable, including the sections that delve into quantum mechanics, for example. I thought the section on the golden section was a little long-winded, but otherwise it was a good read.

My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands

Title: My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands

Author: Chelsea Handler

Paperback: 213 pages

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA (May 12, 2005)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1582346186

ISBN-13: 978-1582346182

I saw Chelsea doing her standup on The Comedy Channel the other night – she mentioned her book and I had to read it (she’s quite irreverent and funny, two qualities that don’t always work together).

This book is a hoot! I wonder if its all true, but regardless, the stories are fun and sometimes a bit sad. She does seem to come out the other side happily, which is good.

The Unfolding of Language : An Evolutionary Tour of Mankind’s Greatest Invention

Title: The Unfolding of Language : An Evolutionary Tour of Mankind’s Greatest Invention

Hardcover: 368 pages

Publisher: Amazon Remainders Account (June 1, 2005)

ISBN-10: 0805079076

ASIN: B000GQLCXC

I really enjoyed this book – it takes you on a trip around the development of language.  I found some very interesting bits, especially the concept that most language moves from the physical and direct to the abstract.  I see this motion in a lot of things, so its not so surprising, just that I’d never considered its affects on language before

Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea

Title: Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea

Paperback: 192 pages

Publisher: Drawn and Quarterly (May 1, 2007)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1897299214

ISBN-13: 978-1897299210

This is a graphic novel that describes the author’s stay in North Korea, working on animation for European television. Its odd and depressing. There’s more that’s gray than just the black and white graphics in this book. Worth a read!

The Orphanage

Guillermo del Toro’s latest movie is yet another fantastic journey

Guillermo del Toro’s new movie, “The Orphanage,” follows in the footsteps of his other movies.  This is magic realism set in an orphanage where, as you’d expect, things are not what they seem.

In this film, the special effects take a back seat to the story, which is about a woman, who grew up in an orphanage, and her adopted son.  And, even though the ending was apparent, to me, by the middle of the film, I was enthralled with the story, discovering the details of the causes for the plot and seeing the ending unravel.

This is a must-see film!  You can visit the movie web site here.

Haganah

Title: Haganah

Hardcover: 295 pages

Publisher: New American Library (1964)

ASIN: B000JJVW5E

I found this book at a rare and used bookstand at an antique sale on Randolph Street a couple of months ago, and I finally finished it.

Its a good book on a subject rarely covered, the defense (which is a loose translation of haganah) of Israel during its inception (the author was a leader of the Rekhesh, the part of the defense force that brought arms to Palestine).  Because its effectively a memoir, it has its good and bad points.  The author defends, at length, some actions that, in a history book, would just be noted as causes.  There are also few failures noted, and I have to assume there were more than the book mentions.

On the other hand, it gives a nice narative account of some of the covert actions taken by the Haganah to get arms and to smuggle Jews that survived the death camps into Israel.  I think the author recreates the sense of awe, fear and import of the events taking place to the participants.

If you’re interested in the period of history (well, it might not be history quite yet, but that’s yet another discussion), this book is worth finding and reading.

The Accidental Investment Banker: Inside the Decade That Transformed Wall Street

Title: The Accidental Investment Banker: Inside the Decade That Transformed Wall Street

Author: Jonathan A. Knee

Paperback: 288 pages

Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks (July 31, 2007)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0812978048

ISBN-13: 978-0812978049

I bought this book at the Phoenix airport on the way home from an interview (I didn’t get the job, bummer).  This book describes the major changes in investment banking from the early 1990s through 2005 from the point of view of a participant, the author.  I liked this book a lot – I didn’t know a lot about investment banking, having only worked for a commercial bank (and they are quite different).  Knee has a nice, direct writing style, and he provides a lot of bootstrapping information so you can understand the events he writes about.

Youth Without Youth

We saw “ Youth Without Youth,” the new Coppola movie.

The internet database entry is here and the studio web site is here.

I liked this movie and Aviva didn’t – its a story about love, life and the metaphysics of time.  Tim Roth plays the main character, who is struck by lightening and becomes younger by some thirty years.  I don’t want to give away the plot, but make sure to look for the roses….

The Kite Runner

Saw it this afternoon at a midday matinee.

Wow, what a movie – I cried twice during the film, and Aviva cried through most of it.

Its a story of family, trust, friendship, bullys and standing up for one’s beliefs.  Its set mostly in Afghanistan just before the Soviet invasion and then during the Taliban.

This should be an Oscar contender this year.

Spertus Museum reopened and the One of a Kind sale

We did two things this week to take my mind off of my job search.

The Spertus Museum, which is attached to the Spertus College here in Chicago, is a Jewish museum and educational facility on Michigan Avenue.   We went in on Thursday this week to check out their new digs – its a really nice building, very open, bright and airy.  The old space was claustraphobic, but this one is really beautiful.  We had lunch at their cafe, which is kosher food from Wolfgang Puck, all prepackaged except the soups but all properly sealed.  We both had salads which were very good.  The exhibit on display was disappointing – an exhibit of “art” by Jews in the west.

On Friday we went to the “One of a Kind” sale at the Merchandise Mart.  Its a huge sale with at least a hundred people from all over the world selling interesting things.  One company sold harps and psaltries; Aviva bought two sets of earrings from a woman that uses antique beads in her work.