Synopses & Reviews
Thomas Christensens previous title
1616: The World in Motion looked at a single year in the age of early maritime globalism--PW gave it a starred review, calling it a stunning overview of the nascent modern world.” By contrast his new gorgeously illustrated
River of Ink ranges widely across time and cultures and offers what amounts to a magisterial history of literacy.
The books title refers to the sacking of Baghdad in 1258 when the Tigris ran black with the ink of books flung into the water by Mongol invaders. Other essays range from the writings of prehistoric Chinese cultures known only through archaeology to the state of book reviewing in the US today to the heroic efforts of contemporary Afghanis to keep the legacy of their ancient culture alive under the barrage of endless war.
Christensens encyclopaedic knowledge of both world art and a vast understand of literature allows him to move easily from a discussion of the invention of moveable type in Korea to Johannes Keplers search for the harmony of the spheres to the strange journey of an iron sculpture from Benin to the Louvre. Other essays cover the Popul Vuh of the Maya as exemplum of translation, the pioneering explorations of the early American naturalist John Bartram, the balletic works of Louis-Ferdinand Celine.
It is Christensens unparalleled gift to seemingly see the world whole and to offer a wealth of absolutely vital connections adequate to our position as citizens of an ever more rapidly globalizing world.
Review
"Christiensen's lively curiosity informs several quirky and engrossing essays."
Kirkus"Christensen (1616: The World in Motion) a proud generalist and non-academic, addresses a slew of disparate subjects
and proves himself to be voracious reader who can clarify the present with knowledge of the past, accessibly summarize a subject, and share a fine story." Publishers Weekly
"An eclectic and sporadically brilliant book in which an erudite writer takes his readers on a set of historical and cultural birdwalks. " The Huffington Post
"An idiosyncratic world tour of diverse cultural histories, a tour de force of eclectic scholarship, a relief map of the journeys of a restless intellect, Thomas Christensen's River of Ink flows from ancient China to the current Americas with myriad revelations along the way. Christensen is a genial guide to little-known wonders with a wealth of information and a light touch. --Stephen Kessler, author of The Tolsoty of the Zulus
Synopsis
With its title harkening back to the sack of Baghdad in 1258when the Tigris ran black with the ink of books flung into the water by Mongol invadersRiver of Ink is a collection of essays that range widely across time and cultures to illuminate the role of literature and art throughout history. Christensen draws from a panoply of subjects, from the writings of prehistoric Chinese cultures known only through archaeology to the heroic efforts of contemporary Afghanis to keep the legacy of their ancient culture alive under the barrage of endless war.
Christensen s encyclopedic knowledge of world art and vast understanding of literature allows him to move easily from a discussion of the invention of moveable type in Korea, to Johannes Kepler s search for the harmony of the spheres, to the strange journey of an iron sculpture from Benin to the Louvre. Other essays cover the Popol Vuh of the Maya as exemplum of translation, the pioneering explorations of the early American naturalist John Bartram, and the balletic works of Louis-Ferdinand Celine.
It is Christensen s gift to see the world whole, to offer a wealth of connections vital for us as citizens of a rapidly globalizing world.
"
About the Author
Thomas Christensens previous books include
New World/New Words: Recent Writing from the Americas, A Bilingual Anthology,
The U.S.Mexican War, and
The Discovery of America and Other Myths as well as translations of books by such authors as Laura Esquivel, Carlos Fuentes, Julio Cortázar, Alejo Carpentier and Louis-Ferdinand Céline. He is director of publications at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco and lives with his wife in Richmond, CA.