Recensioni / Reviews

Ok I get it that you stared at a pretty girl's ear to pass the time on your bus journey.I'd still like a name for her though, and to know more about her story'.(38)A thread of decentring is weaved throughout the collection.In "Still Life with Witch Hazel" we move from our short-term and individualistic perspective to that of witch hazel.Witch hazel holds various memories for Arthur.It becomes the catalyst for his imaginings of his parents' marriage.It brings us to an interrogation of the phenomenological theories of philosopher Edward Husserl and thence to memories of the author's gardens.The effect is both moving and meaningful."Life is bigger than us" is the enduring theme; meaning comes from perspective.Arthur himself provides a succinct summary of his book's approach and theme:Meaning-making, that unnoticed industry we're perpetually engaged in, the process by which we make the world make sense to us, depends on cutting down the gargantuan scale of time and space that faces us into moments, objects, relationships, making stories that are sized to fit the constraints of consciousness and the limits of our language.(212)In a world where the craving for instant gratification and instant "knowledge" is being deliberately promoted by algorithms cut off from community, nuanced and thought-provoking contributions such as Hidden Cargoes are needed more than ever.This is a generous intellectual offering, clothed in humour and lyricism, like a warm coat on a cold day or a magic cloak to shield us when we travel too near to the sun.