books
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The Future of the Past
We often read that Science Fiction Literature and Film predicts the future. The reality is: This is more often false than true. Mostly, Science Fiction is, probably, the genre that is the best at describing hopes, fears and the zeitgeist of the time when it was conceived. There are exceptions, of course: “The Space Merchants”…
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Axolotl
Julio Cortázar Ein Text aus dem Jahre 1956, aus dem Spanischen übersetzt von Mina 2024 Es gab eine Zeit, in der meine Gedanken unablässig um Axolotl kreisten. Ich ging in das Aquarium des Jardin des Plantes um sie zu sehen und betrachtete sie stundenlang, beobachtete ihre Ruhe und kaum sichtbaren Bewegungen. Jetzt bin ich ein…
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From the Wild West to the Deep South of America
Many People know the lovely film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid from 1969 with Robert Redford, Paul Newman and Katherine Ross. Not so many people know that the duo and their “friend” and possible mastermind of the gang Etta Place were real persons. After becoming too notorious in the Far West for robbing trains…
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The Anachronism of Libraries
Today, I read an article about the progressive disappearance of public libraries in the rural areas of Germany, and it got me thinking: Bibliothekssterben in MeckPomm (German) If libraries hadn’t existed for centuries now, there’s no way the concept could have been invented in our time. Think of it: Libraries provide free and unlimited access…