The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter

The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter is the oldest Japanese work of prose fiction dating from the Heian period (794 -1185). It is one of the most important stories in Japanese classical courtly literature. The scrolls, believed to be the earliest surviving illustrated version of the tale, are currently on display in the Chester Beatty Library from May 11 to August 5 2012. The exhibition is free to enter as are the Permanent Exhibitions, Arts of the Book on the first floor and Sacred traditions on the Second Floor. On the ground floor there is The Silk Road Cafe which serves the most divine food from Afghanistan, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Morocco and Palestine, as well as Ireland, along with an amazing gift shop. Membership for the Chester Beatty is €50 for the year. Located at the back of Dublin Castle it is well worth a visit.

The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter Old Bamboo Cutter is out is out gathering bamboo one day when he notices a stalk that glows at the base. After careful investigation he discovers at the base of the bamboo a child of supernatural beauty only three inches tall. He takes the child home where himself and his wife raise the child as their own. As the girl grows in to a woman the Bamboo Cutter grows rich. He dresses his daughter in fine robes and names her Nayotake no Kaguya-hime The Shining Princess of the Supple Bamboo . Word of her beauty grows and Suitors call from throughout the realm. The Bamboo Cutter is anxious to see his daughter settled before he dies he begs his daughter to marry. Kaguya sets each of her suitors a quest to see who was most deserving. Suitor One is asked for the stone begging-bowl of the Budda. Suitor Two is asked to fetch the jeweled branch from Pengai Paradise. Suitor Three is asked to obtain a robe made from fire-rat fur. Suitor Four is asked to retrieve a jewel from a dragon's neck. Suitor Five is has to capture an easy-delivery charm from a swallow's nest. Each suitor fails in their task. Word of Kaguya's beauty reaches the Emperor who goes to great lengths to meet Kaguya. The Emperor stages an imperial hunt near the Bamboo Cutters home in order to meet her. His persistence pays off, he meets her falling in love with her. Three years pass, during which time the Emperor and Lady Kaguya have been corresponding, and Lady Kaguya grows melancholic, finally she reviles to her parents that she is from The Palace of the Moon and wishes to return. Her parents are devastated and turn to the Emperor for help. The Emperor sends the imperial guard but they are no match for the celestial beings. She leaves behind a letter for her parents and bottle of elixir of immortality for the Emperor. Unwilling to prolong his life with out her, the Emperor sends the bottle to the top of Mount Fuji where it is set on fire.

Apologies

Life had been very busy the past few months and so things have fallen by the wayside. However I have been inspired by Sinead's post on http://www.vivaadonis.com/. Hopefully it will be the kick I need

Flash and Bones by Kathy Reichs

Flash and Bones is the 14^th book in the Temperance Brennan series which inspired the hot TV show ‘Bones’. Tempe" Brennan is a forensic anthropologist who splits her time between the University of North Carolina, where she teaches and Laboratoire des Sciences Judiciaires et de Médecine Légale in Quebec.

Flash and Bones is set in Charlotte North Carolina. The book opens with the discovery of a body in a dump site beside the racetrack a week before a big NASCAR race. The body was hidden in a barrel filled with asphalt linking it to the race track. In trying to identify the body Tempe comes up with several possibilities as to who it may be. One is Cindi Gamble a high school senior who disappeared several years ago without a trace.

When it is established the body is a male and not Cindi, Tempe is determined to find out what happened to the teenager. Her hunt for the truth drags her in to the world of NASCAR and to the attention of a group of right-wing extremists who go to great lengths to keep Cindi’s fate hidden.

I am a huge fan of both the ‘Tempe’ books and the TV show ‘Bones’ so I was thrilled when it lashed rain leaving me stuck indoors to read in peace.  Knowing very little about NASCAR I found the story provided the relevant background. Missing from the story was Andrew Ryan who works for the Montreal police.   

Overall I enjoyed the book but it would not be my favorite of the Tempe Brennan novels

Book on One UPDATE

On Canaan’s Side is read by Aine Ni Mhuiri aka Kathleen Hendley from Ballykissangel and Lily Malone from Fair City

The Book on One - On Canaan's Side

According to my copy of The Mail on Sunday TV/Radio listings, On Canaan's Side is the book featured on The Book on One this week Oct 3rd - 7th 2011 Radio 2 11.13pm or catch up on line at the below link

http://www.rte.ie/radio1/thebookonone/

Enjoy !!!

Calling All Jane Austin Fans

Jane Austin

Arguable one of the greatest writers ever published. Many of you, like me, may have wondered what happened to the characters of your favourite book after it ended, or even before it started. While trying to research a book I wanted to blog about I came across this site. Jane Austin is my Wonderland. A Jane Austin fansite it lists books that are prequels and sequels.  It is in French but you can use google translate, and post say which language the book is published in.

Here is the burning question. Non Jane Austin books featuring Jane Austin characters. Yeahy or Nay

Would love to know what you think!

A DEATH IN SUMMER BY BENJAMIN BLACK

A DEATH IN SUMMER BY BENJAMIN BLACK

It is a warm Sunday afternoon when Dick Jewell’s body is found in his office. Dr. Quirke, who some of you might know from “Christine Falls”, “The Silver Swan” and “Elegy  for April”, is called to take a look at the body as Harrison ,the State Pathologist is recovering from a heart attack.  Quirke and Inspector Hackett quickly establish that Jewell, a newspaper mogul, was murdered. What is not so obvious is by whom.  They begin by interviewing the people present at Brookland, the Jewells country home, but Francoise d’Aubigny, Jewell’s wife, his much younger half-sister the highly strung Dannie, and yard manager Maguire are unable to shed light on the matter.  Never one to stay out of matters that don’t concern him Quirke gets involved in the case. With rumours flying around Dublin  Jimmy Minor, journalist and sometime friend of Quirke daughter Phoebe, turns up on Quirke’s door step to see if he can get the inside scope. Jimmy reveals to Quirke that Carlton Sumner, son of a Canadian timber baron, who had a fight with Jewell weeks before he died, also owned 29% of Jewell holdings and was trying to buy Jewells paper ‘The Clarion’.

Quirke and Hackett head Wicklow to interview Sumner, who was in college with Quirke. Sumner denies killing Jewell, but makes reference to Jewells involvement in ‘Friends of St Christopher’s’ a group of wealthy Dublin men  who raise money for St. Christopher’s Orphanage.  Suspicious of Jewell’s charitable work, Quirke pays a visit to Fr. Ambrose at the Orphanage, where Quirke himself was as a child.  Costigan, a member of the Friends pays Quirke a visit to warn him off digging around. A warning when ignored lands Quirke’s assistant, who is in the early stages of a romance with Phoebe, in hospital missing a finger. The investigation encounters many twists and turns before Quirke learns the truth about Jewell’s death and ‘The Friends’ interest in the children in the orphanage.

I am a huge fan of John Banvilles crime novels. I was glad to see the story feature more of the supporting characters like Inspector Hackett and Sinclair. What do you think of the books? Who would you like to see more of