Author Michael Crichton dead at 66

by Aaron Hotfelder on

Michael Crichton, author of several well-known novels like Jurassic Park and The Andromeda Strain, as well as the creator of the long-running television show ER, died Tuesday of cancer.

As a bit of a tribute, I thought I’d excerpt a part of Crichton’s book Travels, an autobiographical account of, among other things, his trips to the Mayan pyramids, the Malay jungle, and Mt. Kilamanjaro. Here’s Crichton on why we travel:

“Often I feel I go to some distant region of the world to be reminded of who I really am…. Stripped of your ordinary surroundings, your friends, your daily routines, your refrigerator full of your food, your closet full of your clothes, you are forced into direct experience. Such direct experience inevitably makes you aware of who it is that is having the experience. That’s not always comfortable, but it is always invigorating.”

Well said, as always. Rest in peace, fellow traveler.

How to choose an atlas

by Karen Walrond on

When my husband and I got married, we were also on the verge of moving from London to the United States. As a wedding present, a number of our friends chipped in and bought us a huge world atlas. It seemed like a somewhat strange gift at the time, but it’s surprising how much we’ve used our atlas, even in these times of Google Maps and other internet resources. There’s just something so nostalgic about pulling out the giant atlas, flipping over its huge papers and pouring over the maps, and inadvertently learning something new (the GDP of Singapore is $168.7 billion, who knew?). And nowadays, we often pull out the huge book to teach our daughter about the various countries of the world, as well.

If owning an atlas (or giving one as an unusual gift) sounds good to you, you’re in luck: Ben Keene, editor of Oxford University Press, has just posted his handy guide on how to pick an atlas. His tips include focusing on what you’ll be using your atlas for, determining whether an atlas is outdated or not (or a collector’s gem), and describes how an atlas’ index is much like a search engine. He even gives a compelling argument about why atlases are still relevant in a GPS world.

Tony Hillerman’s Four Corners region of the U.S. and an encounter

by Jamie Rhein on

“An author knows his landscape best; he can stand around, smell the wind, get a feel for his place.” –Tony Hillerman

Yesterday, when I read that Tony Hillerman died, I flashed back to one afternoon when I went as a guest to a writer’s group meeting at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. As I introduced myself, was I surprised when I shook one man’s hand, and his warm voice said, “My name’s Tony Hillerman.” I had no idea that this was the writers’ group he attended.

What struck me about Hillerman was his unassuming aura. He was generous and thoughtful with his comments to the other writers, and not any more important than the others in the room.

Like anyone else who lives in Albuquerque, I was aware of Hillerman’s work as a mystery writer whose stories center around the Southwest. A person cannot live in that city without being aware of how he brought weight to the region. Plus, his books are everywhere. I recall racks of them.

I’m in awe of writers who are able to attach themselves to a place and dive deep into its nuances. Reading a Hillerman novel is a trip to the Four Corners region of the Southwest. His version is not the one that requires putting one foot in New Mexico, one foot in Arizona, one hand in Utah and the other in Colorado before buying a Navajo taco from one of the food vendors.

If you go to Four Corners with Hillerman’s eye, you look for the person behind the scenery. Who is the person who is selling you that turquoise bracelet? Who lives in the houses far flung at the edge of the hills? What about life matters most to them?

Although tourists may visit the various pueblos and Native American reservations across the Southwest, those experiences are merely glimpses of these cultures. Hillerman wrote about people here by getting under their skin.

As he said, “I always have one or two, sometimes more, Navajo or other tribes’ cultural elements in mind when I start a plot. In Thief of Time, I wanted to make readers aware of Navajo attitude toward the dead, respect for burial sites.” [Brainy Quotes]

Considering that Halloween is coming up this week, here’s a Hillerman title for you: Dance of the Dead. The novel is the second one in his series featuring protagonist Lt. Joe Leaphorn. It won the Edgar Award for best novel.

For an interview with Hillerman in Book Page, click here, and for yesterday’s NPR All Things Considered segment on Hillerman, click here.

Would you leave The States if Obama loses?

by Mike Barish on

Election day is next Tuesday and Americans are poised to make one of the most critical decisions in US history. With Obama leading in many polls, Democrats have allowed themselves to be cautiously optimistic. As such, you probably haven’t heard as much of the “If the Dems lose I’m moving to Canada” chatter that emanated from the blue states in 2000 and 2004. In a recent review of Phil Zuckerman’s “Society without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us About Contentment,” Salon columnist Louis Bayard discussed why potential expatriates might shift their glances towards Scandinavia if McCain wins.

Zuckerman’s book, as well as Bayard’s column, focus less on Scandinavians’ high life expectancy, healthcare, economies and social mores and instead channel their energies on religion and faith. Scandinavians live in predominantly secular cultures. Bayard notes that,

As few as 24 percent of Danes and as few as 16 percent of Swedes believe in a personal deity. (In America, that figure is close to 90 percent.) In Scandinavia, belief in life after death hovers in the low 30 percent range, as opposed to 81 percent in America. Some 82 percent of Danes and Swedes believe in evolution, while roughly 10 percent believe in hell. Their rate of weekly church attendance is among the lowest on Earth.

Ideally, people who are disenchanted with the outcome of the election will remain in The States and help fight for their causes. If I was inclined to leave my homeland, however, I don’t think I’d head to Scandinavia. I loved my visits to Iceland and Sweden but I’m not so sure that a long, dark Nordic winter would soothe my soul should the American electorate let me down. And Scandinavia’s suicide rate is twice that of the United States’. I wonder if that has anything to do with their high rate of alcoholism.

No, I think I’ll stay here and be part of the solution if things don’t go my way. Or head south. I’m a warm weather guy. Hmm, maybe I should check out the tax laws in Chile.

Would you leave the States based on the outcome of the election? Where would you go? Drop us a line in the comments.

Photo of the Day (10-15-08)

by Jamie Rhein on

There’s a novel by American author James Still titled River of Earth. This photo by miggiddymatt reminds me of Still’s writing.

Still, who died a few years ago when he was well into his 90s, was an adventurer and traveler who settled in the mountains near Hindman, Kentucky, a tiny town in the southeastern part of the state. He wrote about the Appalachians with an ear that perfectly captured the cadence of place.

Even though this photo is of the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina, the colors and ripples evoke a memory of a day I drove to the end of a road near Natural Bridge State Park to overlook such wonder. When I saw the view, I thought that the earth did indeed look like a river that went on and on forever.

If you have a shot of wonder, send it our way at Gadling’s Flickr Photo Pool.