Jerrey'n chied hiaghtin, as shoh ny lhiah mee neayr's Jecrean:
SS Astro, y.l. 1 (Banno Negi)
Manga gennal sliss y teihll mychione sleih-ynsee aegey. T'eh aitt, ta ny karracteyryn taitnyssagh (beggan blass cliché, foddee, agh t'ad shoh foast laghyn toshee) as gyn monney ro-veeresoonagh taghyrt. S'mie lhiam slissyn y teihll.
Reading the Past: Egyptian Hieroglyphics (W.V. Davies)
Obbyr hoshee scoillaragh agh so-hoiggal er jalloo-ocklyn Eajiptagh, y shennaghys oc, as reillyn y chorys screeuee. Va soilshaghey magh ny ghaa ayn nagh chiangil rish y jalloo sampleyragh dy baghtal, agh trooid as trooid she obbyr vie v'ayn. Cha nel ee dty ynsaghey screeu ayns jalloo-ocklyn, agh cha nee shen dean ny h-obbyr. Shen red mie, er lhiam - veagh eh foddey ny s'çhee, ny sloo anaasagh, as cha nel y mian shen ayms noadyr. Gyn ourys, t'eh soilshaghey magh dy mie yn aght t'ou screeu as lhaih jalloo-ocklyn dy cadjin, as liehaghys ny ghaa y chorys.
New Arrivals, Old Encounters (Brian Aldiss)
Meshtane dy skeealaght sheanse veg, as rheam sheiltynagh lheead echey. Ta beggan teaymaght, beggan fallsoonys, brod ny ghaa er eieyn politickagh ny sheshoil. Ghow mee soylley jeh, ga dy row eh beggan shiast ny keayrtyn, as rouyr insh ayns ynnyd taishbyney, foddee. Bare lhiam "The Small Stones of Tu Fu", y skeealeen sloo oaylleeagh. Va kuse jeu laccal soilshaghey ambee, ny beggan neuvaghtal, as ta blass doo-aignagh oc son y chooid smoo, agh ta aittys aynsyn ny keayrtyn. Red elley, dennee mee dy row cowraghyn ny h-eash orroo: ta Bun-argidys as Cummynys ayn dy kinjagh, as ta beoyn echey dy haishbyney y Chied Halloo/çheeraghyn aasit/Seihll Bane noi y Treeoo Halloo/çheeraghyn frauee/Seihll Gorrym, ayns barel karracteyryn dy mennick (kuse jeu meehaitnyssagh dy joinagh, er lhiam) agh rere firrinys y teihll t'eh taishbyney myrgeddin. Shen ga dy vel ad loayrt er y 24oo Eash as y lheid. Ta mraane nyn mraane poosit ny streebee, ny keayrtyn fo chaghlaa beg ennagh, myr sampleyr "poosey jeih bleeantyn", nagh vel caghlaa dynamickyn y cochiangley. Trooid as trooid, ta blass ny 60-70yn er ny h-eieyn sheshoil-politickagh, as aght aigney ny karracteyryn. Gyn scansh da shen, ghow mee soylley jeh, as t'eh goaill stiagh eieyn aitt Kafkagh chammah's reddyn bardoil, bunnys.
Bakuman y.l. 4 (Ōba Tsugumi, Obata Takeshi)
Ym-lioar taitnyssagh elley 'sy 'traih. S'anaasoil eh y reayrt çheuthie er y cheird vangagh, as s'mie lhiam ny karracteyryn keirdey, blass fondagh ta cur cormid noi corraght ny h-ellaneyryn. Ta'n ard-chooish ghraih kiart er çheu kiart credjue, lane cowraghyn ard-voyrnagh jeigeyragh; ta cooish chadjin Takagi as Miyoshi foddey ny sassey credjue. Ta caghlaaghyn mie taghyrt ayn chammah, ga dy vel mee goaill yindys er assaaraght ny scoill: scoill woal, foddee, agh nagh lhisagh peiagh ennagh cur geill dou cadley trooid dagh vrastyl..?
The end of week one of the Reading Project, and here's what I've read since Wednesday:
SS Astro, y.l. 1 (Banno Negi)
A light-hearted, slice-of-life manga about young teachers. Fun, with appealing characters (a bit clichéd, perhaps, but it's early days yet) and nothing too preposterous going on. I do have a taste for slices of life.
Reading the Past: Egyptian Hieroglyphics (W.V. Davies)
A scholarly, but accessible introduction to what hieroglyphics are, their history, and how they work as a writing system. A couple of the descriptions didn't tie in quite well enough with the example images presented on separate pages, but on the whole I found it very well-done. It doesn't teach you to actually read and write in hieroglyphics, but that's not the point of the book (thankfully - it'd be a lot less interesting and much harder work). It certainly explains enough for you to understand how hieroglyphics are written and read in general, and some of their fascinating idiosyncracies.
New Arrivals, Old Encounters (Brian Aldiss)
A medley of short science fiction, with a wide and vibrant range of ideas. There are touches of whimsy, spots of philosophy, prods at political and social ideas, and I found it an enjoyable read, if a bit dry at times and perhaps having too much "tell, don't show". I particularly enjoyed "The Small Stones of Tu Fu", the least scientific of them. Others sometimes felt short on characterisation, or slightly unclear; and in general there's quite a negative tone to the stories. At times, they felt quite dated, harping on Capitalism and Communism, or depicting women as wives or whores (occasionally with superficial social changes, like short-term marriage, that don't change the relationship dynamic). There's also a slightly uncomfortable tendency to depict the First/developed/white world against the Third/primitive/black world (his words, not mine), both in setting, and in characters' opinions. In general the sociopolitical contrasts and blocs, and people's ways of thinking, do tend to feel quite dated. Nevertheless, I found it an enjoyable and interesting read, with some entertaining sideways looks and a bit of poeticality.
Bakuman y.l. 4 (Ōba Tsugumi, Obata Takeshi)
Another pleasant and interesting volume. The inside view on the manga industry is interesting and I've got quite fond of the industry characters, who seem less erratic than the artists. The main romance remains just on the believable side of ridiculous, in a grand teenage gestures sort of way; Takagi and Miyoshi are much more credible. There's a nice variation in stuff going on too (though I do wonder about their school - unacademic it may be, but surely someone should worry about them sleeping through every class?).
No comments:
Post a Comment