Illness by Havi Carel

Acumen Press. Reviewed by TERENCE WOOD

“Empty,” the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus once wrote, “is the argument…by which no human suffering is healed; for just as there is no benefit in medicine that does not drive out bodily diseases, so there is no benefit in philosophy if it does not drive out the suffering of the soul”.

Havi Carel understands this better than most. A philosophy lecturer at the University of the West of England she was diagnosed in 2006 with lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), a rare, degenerative, terminal illness present most acutely in the lungs. A transplant might extend the span of her years, but donors are scarce, and even then it only buys time. In the end, either way, short of a miracle she can expect the steady loss of lung capacity and, eventually, death. Lymphangioleiomyomatosis is an illness for which medical science has no cure. Read more »

Extract

Not Out, No Ball, Over! by Jack Perkins

Jack Perkins will be familiar to many as the doyen of Radio New Zealand feature makers. His Spectrum documentaries have provided a space on the airwaves for an extraordinary range of interesting and quirky New Zealanders.

But Jack Perkins the cricketer, writer and blogger is less well known. He’s just published a collection of his cricket blogs Not Out No Ball, Over! that could see that begin to change. Here’s an extract:

Bags Goes Bananas

In a recent post, I highlighted the nicknames of several New Zealand representatives; I could also have mentioned ‘Bags’ Murray. Bags was derived from his full name – Bruce Alexander Grenfell Murray. I bowled many an over to Bags in Wellington club cricket and was always impressed – or perhaps depressed would be more accurate – by the unhurried ease with which he summed up the flight of the ball and its line and length. But I suppose this is hardly surprising for a batsman who accumulated over 2000 test runs at an average of 37.2.

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Mosaic: The Art of Margaret Coupe by Erica Speden

Steele Roberts, $40. Reviewed by SIMON NATHAN

For nearly thirty years Margaret Coupe (1922-2006) created mosaics in her workshop in Kaikohe. She worked largely in isolation, and was little known to New Zealanders outside the Northland region. Over the years she had a few commissions, but her pieces were seldom displayed in galleries. This delightful book is a posthumous record of her mosaic art, arranged in chronological order from 1967-94. It is amazing that such an interesting and unusual New Zealand artist has been overlooked for so long.

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Creature Comforts: Inspirations from Mother Nature by Dexter Fry

HarperCollins New Zealand, Hardcover, $30. Reviewed (in verse) by Craig Ranapia

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore —
While I nodded, nearly napping, in a nest of Christmas wrapping,
I heard one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
“Too much coffee,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door?
I’ll finish this and nothing more.”

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