Product Description
The first biography of one of the brightest, most talented stars of the 90s, whose starring role in ``The English Patient'' has made him the toast of Hollywood. Ralph Fiennes' meteoric rise to fame has made him the subject of much speculation. Sought after on both sides of the Atlantic after the spectacular, Oscar-winning success of ``The English Patient,'' he has become one of the cinema's hottest properties. As desirable as Brando and as English as David Niven, he is also a brilliant stage actor, acclaimed as one of the greatest Hamlets ever. Intensely private and media-shy, however, he remains an enigma. In this new unauthorized biography, journalist York Membery delves behind the headlines to uncover the nature of this curious and exciting man--from his bohemian childhood, through the early days of his acting career and his relationships, up to the very pinnacle of his current success. York Membery is a journalist and feature writer for Britain's Guardian and The Sunday Times. 224 pp 6 x 9 16 pp b/w photos ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Accomplished actor
As a Fiennes fan I think this book offers a glimpse of life of a very private actor. Fiennes is a fine and accomplished actor regardless his moody and intense personality viewed by many. His private life may not be the ideal for everyone, but it is his personal life. York Membery's writing is just fine, but should Membery always makes deep comparison of Fiennes's widely-viewed personality with the characters in Fiennes's works such as Ivanov and Hamlet?

Exhaustive search on the man behind the curtain
It's an excellent book, I must say, although it can be updated. The authors however is yet to prowl further into his private life... if he wants to make this a must-have for all Ralph Fiennes fans, that is. Anotherprob. is that it tends to lack good pictures, pictures of his childhooddays and his family. But since this is the only Ralph Fiennes autobiographyavailable, it is worth a read if you're into his works though.

Too many mistakes ...
Too many mistakes for my taste :(There were so many obvious mistakes in this book. If York's simple research on scenes from The English Patient wasso inaccurate, it makes me wonder how inaccurate the rest of his researchfor the book was. (How difficult is it to watch a film and get thequotes/senarios right?) Does have some nice photos.

Ralph Fiennes: The Biography is a GREAT book!
Ralph Fiennes: the biography is a great book to read. It has tons upon tons of facts about his life! Some parts are really funny to read! There is also some great pictures of him and his "significant others" butyou just have to find out who I am talking about by buying the book! Youwill have a great time reading it. I know I did!

As Close As Anyone Could Come To Know Ralph
York Membrey's book is a fun, insightful and joyous read to all those of us who can't get enough of this actor we adore, yet even Membrey's painstaking research into the life of the man only scratches the surface ofthe soul of the great actor.This is not the fault of the author.In thepersonal research I have done on this man, I find that Ralph Fiennes haslived his entire life almost as an enigma.Not only do we distanced fansfeel detached from his life, but, as this book shows, so do his friends,acquaintances, and even his biographer. While incomplete, however,this book is still a must for any Ralph fan.It's documentation of hisprofessional career will read as mere review, but it's insight into hischildhood is truly fascinating and touching.I hope York Membrey willcontinue the research begun in this book, and provide us with updates as weget to further know the greatest actor of our time. ... Read more

Product Description
Set in 1945, The English Patient explores the lives of four very disparate wartorn people, a young woman and three men, who take refuge in a damaged villa north of Florence as the war retreats around them. In an upstairs room lies the badly burned English patient, alive but unable to move. His extraordinary adventures and turbulent love affair in the North African desert before the war provide the focus around which the vivid tales of his companions revolve. His very presence will for ever change the destiny of those around him...This is a breathtaking story of love and passion that twists through London's Blitz and the intricacies of bomb disposal, through the mysterious, often dangerous world of desert exploration. Beautifully read by internationally acclaimed actor Ralph Fiennes who also starred in the multi Oscar winning film by Anthony Minghella. ... Read more

Product Description
Chapters: Joseph Fiennes, Ralph Fiennes, Ranulph Fiennes, Baron Dacre, Baron Saye and Sele, Nathaniel Fiennes, William Fiennes, 1st Viscount Saye and Sele, Magnus Fiennes, Celia Fiennes, Sir Eustace Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 1st Baronet, Sophie Fiennes, Martha Fiennes, Nathaniel Fiennes, 21st Baron Saye and Sele, Thomas Fiennes, 9th Baron Dacre, Susannah Fiennes, Mark Fiennes, Jennifer Lash, Mary Fiennes, Lady Norris, Gerry Fiennes, James Fiennes, 1st Baron Saye and Sele, Margaret Fiennes, 11th Baroness Dacre, Thomas Fiennes, 8th Baron Dacre, Richard Fiennes, 7th Baron Dacre, Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes Baronets, Maurice Fiennes, Joan de Dacre, 7th Baroness Dacre, Elizabeth Fiennes. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 114. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, known simply as Ralph Fiennes (pronounced ; born 22 December 1962), is an English actor. He has appeared in films such as Schindler's List, The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Strange Days, Maid in Manhattan, Red Dragon and the Harry Potter films as Lord Voldemort. Most recently he appeared in The Reader (2008), The Hurt Locker (2009) and also appeared as Hades in Clash of the Titans. Fiennes has won a Tony Award and has been nominated twice for Academy Awards. He is also a UNICEF UK ambassador. Fiennes was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, England, into an English aristocratic family, the son of Mark Fiennes (19332004), a farmer and photographer (and son of industrialist Sir Maurice Fiennes 1907-1994), and Jennifer Lash (19381993), a writer. His surname is of Norman noble origin. He is an eighth cousin of HRH the Prince of Wales, and a third cousin of the adventurer Sir Ranulph Fiennes. The eldest of seven children, his siblings are actor Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare in Love, Luthe...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=171521 ... Read more

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Features:Julia Roberts, Ricky Martin, Monty Python, Ralph Fiennes, Jackie Collins, Queen Noor, Artie Shaw, Palm Springs, James Cramer, General Augusto Pinochet, and much more! 232 pages. ... Read more

Product Description
Chapters: Ralph Fiennes, Bishop Wordsworth's School, Ken Macdonald, Richard Hill, Basil Chubb, Andy Sheppard, David Oakes, Cecil Chubb, Otto Plaschkes, Tom Edwin Adlam, Anthony Robert Klitz, Robin Baker, Colin Sharman, Baron Sharman. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 69. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, known simply as Ralph Fiennes (pronounced ; born 22 December 1962), is an English actor. He has appeared in films such as Schindler's List, The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Strange Days, Maid in Manhattan, Red Dragon and the Harry Potter films as Lord Voldemort. Most recently he appeared in The Reader (2008), The Hurt Locker (2009) and also appeared as Hades in Clash of the Titans. Fiennes has won a Tony Award and has been nominated twice for Academy Awards. He is also a UNICEF UK ambassador. Fiennes was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, England, into an English aristocratic family, the son of Mark Fiennes (19332004), a farmer and photographer (and son of industrialist Sir Maurice Fiennes 1907-1994), and Jennifer Lash (19381993), a writer. His surname is of Norman noble origin. He is an eighth cousin of HRH the Prince of Wales, and a third cousin of the adventurer Sir Ranulph Fiennes. The eldest of seven children, his siblings are actor Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare in Love, Luther, FlashForward); Martha Fiennes, a director (in her film Onegin, he played the title role); Magnus Fiennes, a composer; Sophie Fiennes, a filmmaker; Jacob Fiennes, a conservationist; and his foster brother Michael Emery, an archaeologist. His nephew Hero Fiennes-Tiffin played young Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. The Fiennes family moved to Ireland in 1973, living in West Cork and County Kilkenny for some years. Fiennes was edu...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=171521 ... Read more

Product Description
Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Gary Oldman, Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Emma Watson, Helena Bonham Carter, Robert Pattinson, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Thompson, John Cleese, Tom Felton, Maggie Smith, Liste D'acteurs et Actrices Mineurs Des Films Harry Potter, Brendan Gleeson, Kenneth Branagh, Rade Šerbedžija, Jason Isaacs, Michael Gambon, Evanna Lynch, Clémence Poésy, Richard Harris, John Hurt, Robbie Coltrane, Jim Broadbent, David Tennant, Timothy Spall, Rupert Grint, Warwick Davis, Miriam Margolyes, David Thewlis, Bonnie Wright, Katie Leung, Tiana Benjamin, Julie Christie, Jarvis Cocker, Imelda Staunton, Julie Walters, Jonny Greenwood, Richard Griffiths, Miranda Richardson, Pam Ferris, James et Oliver Phelps, Matthew Lewis, Eric Sykes, Robert Hardy, Gemma Jones, Lenny Henry, Christian Coulson, Dave Legeno, David Bradley, Fiona Shaw, Geraldine Somerville, Frances de La Tour, Devon Murray, Shirley Henderson, Richard Bremmer, Roger Lloyd Pack, Lee Ingleby, Mark Williams, Natalia Tena, Zoë Wanamaker, Phil Selway, Jessica Stevenson, Leslie Phillips, Jamie Waylett, Toby Jones, Harry Melling, Jimmy Gardner, William Melling, Shefali Chowdhury, Stanislav Ianevski, Helen Mccrory, Ian Hart, Tolga Safer, Adrian Rawlins, George Harris, Angelica Mandy, Chris Rankin, Dawn French, Ralph Ineson, Joshua Herdman, Predrag Bjelac, Sean Biggerstaff, James Walters, Alfred Enoch, Jeff Rawle, Kathryn Hunter, Robbie Jarvis, Robert Knox, Jim Mcmanus, Richard Leaf, Hero Fiennes-Tiffin, Sian Thomas, Jessie Cave, Jason Piper, Tony Maudsley, Michael Wildman, Edward Tudor-Pole, Robert Wilfort, Suzanne Toase, Susie Shinner, Johnpaul Castrianni, Hugh Mitchell, Apple Brook, Freddie Stroma, Ray Fearon, Scarlett Byrne, Amelda Brown. Non illustré. Mises à jour gratuites en ligne. Extrai...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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Chapters: Thomas Wolsey, William Ames, Ralph Fiennes, George H. D. Gossip, Sarah Trimmer, Kieron Dyer, Thomas Clarkson, Melanie Johnson, William Lawrence Bragg, Jason Dozzell, Phyllis Starkey, Aylmer and Louise Maude, Richard Wright, Trevor Nunn, Brian Talbot, Kari Blackburn, Mervyn King, Richard Ayoade, Titus Bramble, Adam Neate, Steve Wright, Martin Gordon, V. S. Pritchett, Frank Leslie, Terry Burrows, Adair Turner, Baron Turner of Ecchinswell, Dani Filth, Karen Pickering, Tesfaye Bramble, Scott Nicholls, Rachel Fuller, Ruel Fox, Jane Lapotaire, Liam Trotter, Keith Deller, John Gordon Sprigg, John Ganzoni, 2nd Baron Belstead, Jack Ainsley, Gary Bailey, Ian Hendry, Stuart Boardley, Dick Higham, Darryl Knights, Louie Donowa, Edward Ardizzone, Ashley Nicholls, Tom Baxter, Brian Cant, Adrian Pennock, Jon Sammels, Daniel Ford Goddard, Richard Hall, John Cordy Burrows, Percy Edwards, Rupert Svendsen-Cook, Danny Potter, Alfred Baring Garrod, Colin Harper, William Thompson, Arthur Frederick Saunders, David Sheepshanks, Edward Maitland, Matt Bloomfield, John Ganzoni, 1st Baron Belstead, Simon Clegg, Des de Moor, Harold Smith, John Mayhew, Charlotte Mitchell, John Taylor (cricketer, born 1923), Felix Cobbold, Mary Anne Keeley, John Louis, Roland Bond, Edward Byles Cowell, Edith Maud Cook, Ian Storey-Moore, Dave Jessup, Johnny Miller, Jenny Platt, Thomas Cobbold, Richard Cobbold, Christopher J. Monckton, Chris Louis, Clara Reeve, Rick Kerry, John Cobbold, Clive Stafford, Johnny Lewis, Val Lehman, William Churchman, Samuel Kent, Edward Lay, Henry Poley, Patrick Forge, Douglas Fry, Claude Batley, Thomas Spencer Cobbold, John Sutton Utterton, Alice Henley, Charles Whitaker, Theresa Zabell, William Churchill, Sebag Shaw, Francis Vernon, 1st Earl of Shipbrook, Olly Flynn, Robert Ferrers, Richard Richardson, Tommy Parker, John Sicklemore, Joseph Martin,. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 414. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a f...http://booksllc.net/?id=19957608 ... Read more

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Chapters: Alan Rickman, Ralph Fiennes, Anish Kapoor, Alexei Sayle, Tim Roth, Terence Conran, Quentin Blake, Maggi Hambling, Ian Mckay, Chris Ofili, Gavin Turk, Steve Mcqueen, Richard Long, Howard Hodgkin, Charlotte Hawkins. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 93. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, known simply as Ralph Fiennes (pronounced ; born 22 December 1962), is an English actor. He has appeared in films such as Schindler's List, The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Strange Days, Maid in Manhattan, Red Dragon and the Harry Potter films as Lord Voldemort. Most recently he appeared in The Reader (2008), The Hurt Locker (2009) and also appeared as Hades in Clash of the Titans. Fiennes has won a Tony Award and has been nominated twice for Academy Awards. He is also a UNICEF UK ambassador. Fiennes was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, England, into an English aristocratic family, the son of Mark Fiennes (19332004), a farmer and photographer (and son of industrialist Sir Maurice Fiennes 1907-1994), and Jennifer Lash (19381993), a writer. His surname is of Norman noble origin. He is an eighth cousin of HRH the Prince of Wales, and a third cousin of the adventurer Sir Ranulph Fiennes. The eldest of seven children, his siblings are actor Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare in Love, Luther, FlashForward); Martha Fiennes, a director (in her film Onegin, he played the title role); Magnus Fiennes, a composer; Sophie Fiennes, a filmmaker; Jacob Fiennes, a conservationist; and his foster brother Michael Emery, an archaeologist. His nephew Hero Fiennes-Tiffin played young Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. The Fiennes family moved to Ireland in 1973, living in West Cork and County Kilkenny for some years. Fiennes was educated at S...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=171521 ... Read more

Product Description
With ravishing beauty and unsettling intelligence, Michael Ondaatje's Booker Prize-winning novel traces the intersection of four damaged lives in an Italian villa at the end of World War II. Hana, the exhausted nurse; the maimed thief, Caravaggio; the wary sapper, Kip: each is haunted by the riddle of the English patient, the nameless, burned man who lies in an upstairs room and whose memories of passion, betrayal,and rescue illuminates this book like flashes of heat lightening.


From the Hardcover edition.Amazon.com Review
Haunting and harrowing, as beautiful as it isdisturbing, The English Patient tells the story of the entanglement offour damaged lives in an Italian monastery as World War II ends. Theexhausted nurse, Hana; the maimed thief, Caravaggio; the wary sapper,Kip: each is haunted by the riddle of the English patient, thenameless, burn victim who lies in an upstairs room and whose memoriesof passion, betrayal, and rescue illuminate this book like flashes ofheat lightning. In lyrical prose informed by a poetic consciousness,Michael Ondaatje weaves these characters together, pulls them tight, thenunravels the threads with unsettling acumen.

A book that binds readers of great literature, The EnglishPatient garnered the Booker Prize for authorOndaatje. The poet and novelist has also written In the Skin of a Lion, Coming Through Slaughterand The Collected Works ofBilly the Kid; two collections of poems, The Cinnamon Peeler andThere's a Trick with a Knife I'm Learning to Do; and a memoir, Runningin the Family. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (310)

Powerful novel about relationships
I found The English Patient to be a fantastic book, but one which is a bit emotionally taxing, particularly the utterly heart-rending ending, which I won't give away, but which tears the community of World War II survivors apart.

I know that for most people The English Patient conjurs up ideas about a great tragic love story between the main character--the English patient--and his forbidden love.For me, however, the love story fell a little bit flat.Maybe it was because I had heard so much about the romantic side of the narrative and perhaps had expected too much from it in terms of romance.And while the love story certainly is central to the plot surrounding the English patient, it's hardly the kind of romance for which anyone would hope themselves.This is not the kind of love story which will make young women fantacize about being Katherine and falling for the mysterious desert-obsessed English patient.Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I didn't shed any tears over the end of their doomed romance, as I had found it rather uninspiring myself.

*note that I have not yet seen the film of The English Patient.My understanding is that the impact of the final scenes is significantly different, bringing more focus and attention to the love story, and for this reason the love story may be more powerful in the film, but I'm not in a position to judge.*

What truly touched me about the narrative of The English Patient was everything but the English patient.Hana was one of the most interesting characters in the novel, in my opinion, as was Kip.Now that I consider this, it's really not all that surprising given my interst in postcolonialism--particularly Indian literature--since Kip and his relationship with the other characters in the novel, all of whom are western define the final conflict of the narrative as a conflict between the west--symbolized in England--and the east--symbolized in both Japan and India.I'm afraid to go on about the powerful nature of this relationship and the consequences for the end of the novel because I don't want to give away too much about the end of the book.My hope, after all, is to inspire others to read great literature, not to make reading great literature unnecessary as I summarize it all.:)

Another very powerful relationship within the novel was the relationship between Hana and her father.I found Caravaggio a rather uninspiring character, but his role within the context of Hana's relationship with her father was crucial.I found that Caravaggio was most interesting and complex when he reminisced about his history as a friend of Hana's father and his memories of her as a child.Hana's final coming to terms with her relationship with her father, with her place in the war, and with the circumstances of her father's life was also extremely powerful, but again I don't want to give too much away.

Suffice it to say that The English Patient is one of those books which everyone ought to read, though be warned that while it is a deceptively slim novel it is also powerfully heavy and an incredibly serious novel.This is one which you won't forget any time soon, and which you will likely mentally chew over for a long time to come.

Read all of my book reviews on my blog at [...]

Complex story with fascinating characters
The rich writing conveys the desert setting, powerful love affair and intriguing adventures of five main characters.It keeps readers on their toes as it jumps from past to present, one character's point of view to another'sbut is well worth the effort required .Themes and nuances are many.The book is worthy of a dissertation topic.

Reading the book and then seeing the film make a very fascinating duo.Surprisingly, each is strong in its own way.

one of my favorites!
It's too bad they make movies out of all the best books because they never do them justice. My other favorite authors are Annie Proulx, Anais Nin and Don Dellilo. If you like their writing styles and sensibilities then you'll love this book!

the movie was better, and different
so I saw the movie when it came out, and really liked it.I always meant to read the book and finally found a copy.I made several attempts to get started and found it confusing and impenetrable.finally, I decided to plow through to the end believing it must be good since the movie was, and the book was a best-seller.

I must say that there isn't much to the book.nothing happens; no real plot develops.it just ends, with a little end-note about Kip the sapper after the war which was both jarring and unnecessary.

the most unsatisfying loose-end is the fate of the patient Almasy.the book ended with him in bed just like it started, and never having been forthcoming with Hana, Carvaggio, or Kip.

also, once in the book it says the Bedouins treated Almasy with tannic acid which turned his skin dark.that is truly bizarre. this is how you tan animal hides to make leather.it kills the cells and makes them non-porous.is there a dermatologist in the house to comment?

English Patient
The English Patient is by far one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. The words are so generous and descriptive, each page was an adventure into the lives of the characters, and every work delicious. I have not read any other books by Michael Ondaatje, but I will certainly be looking for others.
I would recommend this book to anybody who can appreciate good literature, not to the lover of the Mills and Boon type book. ... Read more

Product Description
"Four Quartets" is the culminating achievement of T.S. Eliot's career as a poet. While containing some of the most musical and unforgettable passages in twentieth-century poetry, its four parts, 'Burnt Norton', 'East Coker', 'The Dry Salvages' and 'Little Gidding', present a rigorous meditation on the spiritual, philosophical and personal themes which preoccupied the author. It was the way in which a private voice was heard to speak for the concerns of an entire generation, in the midst of war and doubt, that confirmed it as an enduring masterpiece.Amazon.com Review
Published in the fiery days of World War II, Four Quartetsstands as a testament to the power of poetry amid the chaos of the time. Letthe words speak for themselves: "The dove descending breaks the air/Withflame of incandescent terror/Of which the tongues declare/The only dischargefrom sin and error/The only hope, or the despair/Lies in the choice of pyreor pyre--/To be redeemed from fire by fire./Who then devised thistorment?/Love/Love is the unfamiliar Name/Behind the hands that wave/Theintolerable shirt of flame/Which human power cannot remove./We only live,only suspire/Consumed by either fire or fire." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (16)

Confused and befuddled
I'm not a poetry person, at all.So when my teacher assigned this book, I was skeptical to say the least.I picked it up and became so engrossed that I finished it in one sitting (which was easy to do because it was not very long).There were so many parts of the book that I simply couldn't quite understand.I had an inkling of what it meant but I felt that there were so many points left be discovered.However, this did not bother me in the least.Even though I felt slightly confused and befuddled, I still loved it.The more I read, discussed and studied certain parts, the more I loved it.
What is the book about?It is about time, love, the ever-changing world, and a God who is the still point.
My favorite part is the end, "We shall never cease from exploration..."

Perhaps Eliot's True Masterpiece
Though of course far less famous than The Waste Land and some of his short poems, T. S. Eliot considered Four Quartets his masterpiece, and many fans and critics have come to agree. Consisting of four poems ("Burnt Norton," "East Coker," "The Dry Salvages" and "Little Gidding") that work on their own but also form a cohesive whole, the Quartets are Eliot's last major verse and in many ways his poetry's culmination. A profoundly personal philosophical and spiritual meditation, they essentially answer the dark questions posed by The Waste Land. Eliot had struggled with them his whole adult life, finally resolving them by embracing the Church of England. The Quartets are thus deeply religious but not in the expected sense; Biblical and other theological references are numerous, but Eliot as always alludes to a plethora of diverse writers. More importantly, they are the most personal work from a poet usually characterized as distinctly impersonal; profoundly searching, they embrace the questions haunting all intelligent minds, exploring ramifications and finally coming to a hard-won conclusion. Few poetic works are as deeply meaningful and thought-provoking; even those who disagree with Eliot cannot help admiring his reach, strength, and honesty. The poetics are also top-notch; the verse is immaculate - finely wrought and eminently quotable. Simply put, this is absolutely essential for anyone even remotely interested in twentieth century poetry.

Eliot's Quartets
T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets give us his most mature and profound poetic work.Deeply influenced by the theology of St. John of the Cross, his quartets provide us a probing of the human predicament along with an openness to God's radical solution to it.In "Burnt Norton," we're invited to explore the mysteries of time and history, of memory and experience, to delve deeply into the inner realms of solitude, to discover the inability of words to capture the reality of existence.Then in "East Coker" we discern something of the meaning of history; we discover the reality of spiritual rebirth.Here, Eliot says:"The only wisdom we can hope to acquire / Is the wisdom of humility:humility is endless."
In humility, in submission, we encounter the One who gives us spiritual life, who delivers us from sin's bondage and grants us goodness.The following lines, dealing with Christ's atoning work, are some of the finest I've ever read:

"The wounded surgeon plies the steel
That questions the distempered part;
Beneath the bleeding hands we feel
The sharp compassion of the healer's art
Resolving the enigma of the fever chart.

Our only health is the disease
If we obey the dying nurse
Whose constant care is not to please
But to remind of our, and Adam's curse,
And that, to be restored, our sickness must grow worse.

The whole earth is our hospital
Endowed by the ruined millionaire,
Wherein, if we do well, we shall
Die of absolute paternal care
That will not leave us, but prevents us everywhere.

The chill ascends from feet to knees,
The fever sings in mental wires.
If to be warmed, then I must freeze
And quake in frigid purgatorial fires
Of which the flame is roses, and the
smoke is briars.

The dripping blood our only drink,
The bloody flesh our only food:
In spite of which we like to think
That we are sound, substantial flesh and blood--
Again, in spite of that, we call this Friday good."

The third quartet, "The Dry Salvages," continues Eliot's quest for insight into history, for understanding of the salvation story.Much evades us, much we fail to understand,

"But to apprehend
The point of intersection of the timeless
With time, is an occupation for the saint--
No occupation, either, but something given
And taken, in a lifetime's death in love,
Ardour and selflessness and self-surrender."

The fourth quartet, "Little Gidding," repeats and deepens themes earlier treated.Living with the mysteries of time and history, of sin and sanctity, we're called to a contemplative, prayerful response, to a paradoxical attachment and detachment, a taking hold and letting go, all of which perfect, by cleansing, our will.Here the reality of Pentecost shines forth, for:

"The dove descending breaks the air
With flame of incandescent terror
Of which the tongues declare
The one discharge from sin and error.
The only hope, or else despair
Lies in the choice of pyre or pyre--
To be redeemed from fire by fire.

Who then devised the torment?Love.
Love is the unfamiliar Name
Behind the hands that wove
The intolerable shirt of flame
Which human power cannot remove.
We only live, only suspire
Consumed by either fire or fire."

What's required of us to experience such fire?to know such cleansing?In Eliot's re-echoing of St John of the Cross's Living Flame of Love, what's required is simply this:

"A condition of complete simplicity
(Costing not less than everything)
And all shall be well and
All manner of thing shall be well
When the tongues of flame are in-folded
Into the crowned knot of fire
And the fire and the rose are one."

most famous poem of T.S. Eliot
While T.S. Eliot's "Love Song of J.Alfred Prufrock" is what he is most famous for, "The Four Quartets" merit much to reckoned with.I remember the first time I read "Burnt Norton".I was crashing at a friend of a friend of mine's place at UC Berkeley.I wanted to learn how to be poetic, and "Burnt Norton" was great help with such a matter.It is one of my favorite poems.

Eliot's Four Quartets
The Four Quartets by TS Eliot is a classic and should not be missed. It is of the type of poetry that evokes meanings from their hidden places in us through the use of word trails that are only partially logical. Our own emotions connect things, so when it is read, don't approach it with the usual straining to decipher the meaning. The ring of a gong lingers after it is struck, something of a parallel to how the poem works. Fascinating, too, is its approach to understanding the elusive sense of time, but it is couched more in the sensibilities of the East than the West. ... Read more

Product Description
A copy of Richard II sold at the performace which stared Ralph Fiennes.Front Cover: Richard (Ralph Fiennes)Back Cover: Bolingbroke (Linus Roache)First performance of Richard II at Gainsborough Studios, 30 March 2000 ... Read more

Product Description
Man and Superman was the first drama to be broadcast on the BBC's Third Radio Program on October 1, 1946. To celebrate Radio 3's 50th anniversary, the play has now been directed by Sir Peter Hall, and preserved for all time in this lush audio dramatization. A comedy and a philosophy, Man and Superman is based on the Don Juan theme and, using all the elements from Mozart's Don Giovanni, George Bernard Shaw reordered them so that Don Juan becomes the quarry instead of the huntsman. Boasting an outstanding cast including Ralph Fiennes, Juliet Stevenson, Dame Judi Dench, John Wood, Nicholas Le Prevost, and paul Merton, this recording includes an exclusive interview with director Sir Peter Hall. ... Read more