-------- MANTEX NEWSLETTER --------
Number 129 - June 2007 - ISSN 1470-1863
Writing - Design - Dictionaries - Fun
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0--- 'The Teacher's Guide to Grammar' - new book
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/cameron.htm
Should people get hot under the collar about
mis-spelled words and misplaced apostrophes?
Deborah Cameron thinks not. She offers sound
advice on how to deal with a subject which can
sometimes be quite controversial.
Schoolteachers these days have to teach even
small children the mechanics of English
grammar. This book has been specially written
to cope with that problem.
She explains *why* problems arise with grammar,
and her approach is to look at how language is
actually used, then explain its underlying
structures.
Anyone faced with the need to understand grammar
or explain it to others will find this useful.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/cameron.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #1
In what year was Nelson Mandela released from jail?
0--- 'The Letters of Lytton Strachey'
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/levy_2.htm
This has been the major reading event for
me this month. Seven hundred pages that
held me gripped from start to finish.
Lytton Strachey wrote only a few books,
but he influenced a whole generation, and
acted as a key figure in throwing off the
influence of the Victorian and Edwardian
eras to step into the modern world.
His letters are witty, mischievous, and
packed full of gossip. The private lives
and secret vices of writers, artists,
politicians, and aristocrats are exposed
here in a manner which takes your breath away.
And the most shocking revelations are about
Strachey himself - who was a very complex
figure, latterly addicted to S & M.
Highly recommended - the book, that is.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/levy_2.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #2
What was the name of the first man-made satellite?
0--- 'Cradle to Cradle' - new book on design
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/mcdonough.htm
This book is the programme for a philosophy
of design principles based on a consciousness of
global ecology.
It raises fundamental issues about sustainability,
well-used resources, and sensitivity to eco-systems.
The authors are an architect and a chemist who
between them tackle issues from major construction
projects, to the design of shampoo and re-cyclable
running shoes.
Don't expect glamorous colour photographs or
examples of slick kettles and toasters - but be
prepared to have your notions of 'waste' and
're-usability' challenged in a radical manner.
I predict that this will become a standard text
in design schools, alongside the work of Donald
Norman and Viktor Papanek.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/mcdonough.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #3
In music, how many quavers equal a minim?
0--- 'Oxford Guide to Plays' - new book
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/patterson.htm
Imagine you're a fan of the theatre, and you
want to recall the plot of "The Importance of
Being Ernest", or the date it was first performed.
This rather unusual reference book allows you
to do just that - and gives details of the author
and the cultural background to the play.
It covers all types of drama - from Greek classics
to the present day. Full review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/patterson.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #4
Who was the first Labour MP in the UK?
0--- 'Concise Dictionary of Music' - new book
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/kennedy_3.htm
This is a new paperback version of the huge
Oxford Dictionary of Classical Music.
It has listings on composers, concertos,
songs, musical instruments, singers, and
everything to do with the history and
practice of music from the ancient world
to the present day.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/kennedy_3.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #5
Where in a horse is the coffin joint?
0--- 'What is a Print?' - flash animation
http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/2001/whatisaprint/flash.html
Check out this beautiful sequence which
explains the techniques used in etching,
lithography, woodcuts, and screen printing.
It's at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
The sequences themselves are exquisitely
designed, but make sure you see the galleries
of examples at the bottom of each page.
http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/2001/whatisaprint/flash.html
0--- Pub quiz - Question #6
Who lost her pocket?
0--- 'The Handbook of Good English' - book review
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/johnson_2.htm
This guide to writing skills covers just about
every possible aspect of grammar, punctuation,
and syntax you could imagine.
Edward Johnson is an experienced book editor,
and I get the impression he's seen every
common error in written English.
This is his advice on steering yourself out
of trouble and producing clear prose, free
from ambiguities and mistakes.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/johnson_2.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #7
Who pricked her finger on a spinning wheel,
then slept for one hundred years?
0--- 'Complete Critical Guide to Joseph Conrad'
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/middleton.htm
Routledge publish these very popular guides to
major literary figures. This offers a short
biography of Conrad which puts his life into
context, then gives an account of each of
his novels - plus the stories.
There's also a history of criticism of Conrad,
from that of his contemporaries, coming up
to the present day. Then this is topped off
with a chronology of his life and a huge
list of suggested further reading.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/middleton.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #8
Which film star had three names, each with three letters?
0--- Amazon Review attack!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0091795680/b3ta-21
There is an amazing sabotage job going on
in the reviews of Richard Littlejohn's new
book on Amazon.co.uk
[For the benefit of non-UK readers, Littlejohn
is a tabloid journalist who goes out of his way
to write offensive right-wing rubbish, and to
be nauseatingly self-regarding at the same time.]
But some jokers have decided to poke fun at
him by posting over-the-top encomiums for
what is clearly a book-length collection of
his usual bilge.
A counter-offensive from Daily Mail supporters
has just started. Watch the fun here.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0091795680/b3ta-21
0--- Pub quiz - Question #9
What nationality was the murderer Dr Crippen?
0--- Digital Life - Try Skype
http://www.skype.com
I got into a pickle with some technical
matters whilst working abroad recently.
For a solution I needed technical backup
from my IT support man. He persuaded me to
download Skype so that we could have f.r.e.e
VOIP calls (Voice Over Internet Protocol).
Wow! Two minutes later we were talking
as if both in the same room. It really
is far superior to an ordinary telephone.
The person you're calling needs to have
the Skype software installed as well - but
hey, it's f.r.e.e! And so are the phone calls.
http://www.skype.com
0--- Pub quiz - Question #10
What happened in Constantinople in March 1930?
0--- Pub quiz - ANSWERS
#1 In what year was Nelson Mandela released from jail?
ANSWER: 1990
#2 What was the name of the first man-made satellite?
ANSWER: Sputnik
#3 In music, how many quavers equal a minim?
ANSWER: Four
#4 Who was the first Labour MP in the UK?
ANSWER: Keir Hardie
#5 Where in a horse is the coffin joint?
ANSWER: The foot
#6 Who lost her pocket?
ANSWER: Lucy Locket
#7 Who pricked her finger on a spinning wheel,
then slept for one hundred years?
ANSWER: Sleeping Beauty
#8 Which film star had three names, each with three letters?
ANSWER: Rin Tin Tin
#9 What nationality was the murderer Dr Crippen?
ANSWER: American
#10 What happened in Constantinople in March 1930?
ANSWER: It became Istanbul
0--- COMING SOON
Virginia Woolf - illustrated
CSS The Missing Manual
Hyde Park Gate News
Frances Partridge Diaries
Oxford English-French Dictionary
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News-129-June-2007
ISSN 1470-1863
The British Library