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An economist's guess is liable to be as good as anybody else's.


H for Henry! St Johns Avenue, New Town. February 2011.

Primo Levi’s The Periodic Table is a collection of short stories connected by a narrative thread drawn together by the eponymous tabular display of the chemical elements that cursed the lives of many a science student!

Levi – a chemist by trade – takes the kaleidoscope of chemistry to create a vision of the synthesis of life. Like most of his books, it is autobiographical in tone, with all 21 stories inspired by a chemical element. To Levi each element had an associative value and he explores its properties and their capacity to drive certain thoughts and trigger specific memories.

As a (decidedly) layperson on the chemical front, he does a beautiful job.

As with all of Primo Levi’s books, I encourage all of you to get out there and read them.

NOW!

Another book I’ve finished is Daniel Kehlmann's Fame. All about identity, this is an Austrian page turner filled with overlapping narratives and literary devices. Think League of Gentleman scripted by Italio Calvino.

Not a bad little novel, I reckon that I’ll dip into more of Kehlmann's work, if the library permits me.
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Comments

Roy said…
Great job on capturing that old, weathered wood, Kris!
25 February 2011 at 12:05
Roddy said…
I like your take on Henry's initial. Now find an E for Ezra.
26 February 2011 at 05:58
Kris McCracken said…
You can’t beat an old bit of wood and a few rusty nails for texture.
28 February 2011 at 12:42
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