May 2009
Charles Darwin, 1809-1882
The highest possible stage in moral culture is when we recognize that we ought to control our thoughts.
The Descent of Man (1871), Chapter 4.
February saw the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin and 2009 is also the 150th anniversary of the publication of The Origin of the Species by Means of Natural Selection, considered to be one of the most influential scientific works of all time.
Find out more about Charles Darwin from the resources below.
Shelf help:
Biographies on Darwin are in the Biography section of the library under DAR. You'll also find books on evolution at 576.8 in the science area of the non-fiction, and biographical dictionaries of scientists at 509.2 - these are excellent for concise outlines of a scientist's life and works.
It's also important to note that Darwin's work has had an impact on disciplines other than science, e.g. philosophy, and these books will be shelved in other areas - try this search for all books about Darwin.
Darwin's works are scattered through the science section. Follow this link to find Darwin's works on the library catalogue.
Below you'll find several recent titles about Darwin:
Books:
Charles Darwin- By Janet Browne
- "I realized that I had never fully understood Fitzroy or Lyell or Dr. Darwin or Emma ... especially Darwin himself. Janet Browne not only makes these historical figures real, three dimensional people, but she shows so elegantly how they affected and interacted with one another. This is not just another biography of Darwin, but a unique and important contribution; it will outlast all others. The scholarship is ... impeccable."--John Tyler Bonner, Princeton University Annotation
Darwin's gift to science and religion- By Francisco J. Ayala.
- "An evolutionary biologist, Francisco Ayala offers lucid explanations of the science, reviews the history that led us to ratify Darwin's theories, and makes a convincing argument for uncoupling science and religion - different ways of knowing the world - thus providing a clear path forward for a confused and conflicted public." (Book Jacket)
Darwin's island : the Galapagos in the garden of England- By Steve Jones.
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"Whatever genes and cultural traditions transmit curiosity, Charles Darwin inherited a uniquely productive sequence. Steve Jones' refreshing contribution to the bicentennial gives the Galapagos finches as little attention as did Darwin himself. Seasickness made Darwin an island-hopper for whom the arrival was everything, the voyage hell. Indeed, after the unpublished 25-year old naturalist got back to dry land at Falmouth on 2 October 1836, he never again left the shores of the British Isles. (He maintained, however, his own worldwide web of correspondents.)"
So, the Voyage of the Beagle and the Origin of Species are here set on one side in order to show Darwin's curiosity and experimental ingenuity as he tackles a lifetime of questions inspired by his own family with its domesticated animals and plants; the teeming life in the soil of his home at Down House and the botanical riches of Ashdown Forest. What are the effects of inbreeding? How do plants move (eg to climb up the Kent hop-poles)? Why do worms matter? Professor Jones links these and more of Darwin's major inquiries to today's research and to the practical consequences in a world so suddenly - in an evolutionary timespan - dominated by man." (Amazon reviewer)
From our databases:
To find out more online, check out articles about Claude Monet on our Biography Resource Center database, and on History Resource Center.
Plus, have a look at this Dec 26, 1859, article entitled Darwin On The Origin Of Species from the Times Digital Archive database (published barely a month after 'On the Origin of Species' was published).
Websites:
The following websites also carry a range of information about Charles Darwin and his work:
February 2009
Claude Monet, 1840-1926
People discuss my art and pretend to understand as if it were necessary to understand, when it's simply necessary to love.
With the largest and richest collection of Impressionist paintings ever to come to New Zealand currently on display at Te Papa, we take a look this month at Claude Monet. Considered by many to be the leading member of the Impressionist school of painting, he often worked directly onto the canvas to explore his fascination with changing light and its effects on the landscape and objects in it. Initially often criticised for this revolutionary approach at the time, today his paintings are admired and loved by people all around the world.
Find out more about Claude Monet from the resources below.
Shelf help:
Biographies and works about Monet can be found in the library collection - many are held at the call number 759.4 Mon and in the Biography section. Here are just a few of them:
Books:
The treasures of Monet- Michael Howard (2007)
- "Monet is one of the leading figures of the Impressionist group of painters that came to the fore in France in the second half of the nineteenth century. This project is aimed at established fans and for those wishing to learn about him for the first time. With the inclusion of facsimiles of some 30 documents from Claude Monet's personal papers and associated archives, "Musee Marmottan's Treasures of Monet" offers a unique insight into his life and works - from his childhood and youth in Le Havre to his study of art in Paris, growth as a painter and development of a style that made him one of the most sought-after artists of his day and in subsequent years." (Amazon)
Monet by himself : paintings, drawings, pastels, letters- Edited by Richard Kendall ; translations by Bridget Strevens Romer (2004)
- "This volume on the life and work of Claude Monet is quite unlike any other book on this popular artist, as for the first time his letters have been brought together with his paintings, pastels and drawings. There are letters to his fellow artists and youthful friends, long affectionate letters to family and loved ones and begging letters in times of hardship. We read of Monet's persistence in money matters, his frustrations and successes while on painting expeditions to Italy, Brittany and Norway, and his experience of solitude, illness and bereavement in later life. Monet emerges from the correspondence as a more troubled and complex individual than his sun-filled canvases might suggest. Alongside the artist's letters are more than 200 superb colour reproductions. These accompany the text and enable the reader to follow the young artist through his first encounters with the Parisian art scene, his days as a commanding presence in the Impressionist movement and the final chapter of his life when he produced some of his most ambitious and colourful work at Giverny." (Amazon)
Claude Monet 1840-1926 : a feast for the eyes- Karin Sagner (2006)
- "Claude Monet (1840-1926) was both the most typical and the most individual painter associated with the Impressionist movement. His long life and extraordinary work were dedicated to a pictorial exploration of the sensations which reality, and in particular landscape, offer the human eye. Monet's poplars, grain stacks, Rouen Cathedral, and water lilies paintings - among the most beloved works of the Impressionist period - were created long before the currents of the contemporary avant-grade and had an inestimable influence on the development of modern art. This book traces the life's work of one of art history's most beloved painters." (Amazon)
Monet, or, The triumph of impressionism- Daniel Wildenstein (2003)
- "Along with Turner, no artist has sought more than Monet to capture light itself on canvas. Of all the Impressionists, it was the man Cezanne called "only an eye, but my God what an eye!" who stayed completely true to the principle of absolute fidelity to the visual sensation, painting directly from the object. It could be said that Monet reinvented the possibilities of colour, and whether it was through his early interest in Japanese prints, his time in the dazzling light of Algeria as a conscript, or his personal acquaintance with the major painters of the late 1800s, what Monet produced throughout his long life would change forever the way we perceive both the natural world and its attendant phenomena. The high point of his explorations were the late series of waterlilies, painted in his own garden at Giverny, that, in their moves towards almost total formlessness, are really the origin of abstract art. This biography does full justice to this most remarkable and profoundly influential of artists, and offers numerous reproductions and archive photos alongside a detailed and insightful commentary." (Amazon)
Other titles:
You can find more items in a catalogue search under the subject headings Claude Monet and Impressionism (Art) France
Claude Monet resources online:
To find out more online, check out articles about Claude Monet on our Biography Resource Center database, and on History Resource Center. Plus try Oxford Art Online, for biographies and images of his artworks.
The following websites also carry a range of information about Monet and images of his work.
- Welcome to Claude Monet's Life and art
- 300 of Monet's paintings searchable by theme, title, date or technique.
- A guide to pictures of works by Monet in art museum sites and image archives worldwide.
January 2009
Robert Burns, 1759-1796
He is not Dante and he is not Pushkin. It was not given to him, as it was to Shakespeare, to illuminate our moral universe. He does not, all that often, make us think. But he makes us laugh, and he makes us cry, and in doing so, most precious of all poetic gifts, he heightens the sense we have of our common humanity. And that is why the lad who was born in Kyle belongs not just to the keepers of the flame but to the whole world.
Biographer Ian McIntyre in Dirt and Deity: A Life of Robert Burns, (1995), p444.
This month sees the 250th anniversary of the birth of the great Scottish poet and songwriter, Robert Burns. One of his most recognisable works, the ever popular 'Auld Lang Syne', is sung globally on New Year's Eve and Burns Night is also celebrated worldwide every year on January 25th, the day of his birth.
Find out more about a farmer's son who became the 'people's poet' from the resources below.
Robert Burns resources online:
To find out more online check out articles about Robert Burns on our Biography Resource Center database.
See also the website www.robertburns.org.uk for further links and information.
Shelf help:
Biographies and collections of his works can be found in the library collection, with many at the call number 821 BUR
Books:
Dirt & deity : a life of Robert Burns / Ian McIntyre (1995)- "This biography illuminates and explores the complexities and contradictions of Burns's character and personality, untangling the myth from the legend. Based on new evidence from 700 letters Burns wrote during his life, McIntyre concentrates on the circumstances of the writing of poetry itself, and paints a vivid picture of Burns's emotional and impulsive political views, the cruelty and gentleness of which he was capable, stressing the importance and the quality of the satirical poetry as well as the unforgettable love poetry immediately associated with his name." (Amazon.co.uk)
Robert Burns, the tinder heart / Hugh Douglas (1996)- "Attitudes to sex have changed since Burns's time, passing through the prim, censorious nineteenth century to move slowly towards the more open attitudes of the present day. In writing about Burns, his women and the influence of love on his poetry, biographers have followed the mores of their own day, rather than his. Consequently, for two centuries his sex life has been denied and glossed over, even though it was the real catalyst for much of his poetry and songs. In all this the real Robert Burns has been lost. So let us explore the life of the real Robert Burns." (Library Catalogue)
