Il Primo Caffé della Giornata Scegli la Tua Sedia Preferita by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

 Il Primo Caffé della Giornata Scegli la Tua Sedia Preferita by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

is the sequel of "Finché Il Caffè è Caldo" published by Garzanti.

Interesting, magical book, I found it enchanting. It is moving, I cried, I participated to these stories told with simplicity and at the same time tenderness.  There is not the same poetry that maybe this book would have with less dialogues and more descriptions, but it enters in the heart.

There is in the city of Tokyo a discreet, little cafè where people love to spend some time enjoying a good cup of green or black tea chatting, socializing or simply meeting some friends during the day. A special corner of the cafè is dedicated to temporal trips made by the most diversified people and for the most diversified reasons: they return in the past thanks to a magical coffeepot: drinking a cup of coffee (the trip starts when the person serves the coffee to the time-traveler) from that coffeepot people return in the past. They must know that they can't change their destiny or the one of the person that they want to re-meet in that café in a precise instant of the past: simply, they can still enjoy their presence, clarifying, trying to understand why their path has been a path of sufferance, for living a best present and a peaceful future; living with resignation and courage what it is lost, and much much more.

The guidelines of these special meetings with the past are simple: the person must drink the coffee still warm for return home safely; in opposite case he/she would become a ghost; people must remember that they can't change the past: they must remain sat, and they can only meet only people who had been in the café because these meetings have, de fact, the café as location. Nagare became with the time the owner of the café helped by other relatives when her mother left the activity for going in America. Everyone in the café know this particularity and magical time-experience and no one is surprised by it.

In general people must wait some time before to start these trips in the past, because there is a gentleman, a phantom, constantly sat in that special chair, and the chair becomes free only when he must go to the bathroom. No one knows why there is this ritual, being a phantom, but every place has its particularities, stories, special people...Or phantoms! 

Beautiful!

Original reading!

Highly recommended.

I thank Garzanti for the copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

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The Wuhan Lockdown by Guobin Yang

The Wuhan Lockdown

by Guobin Yang is a new book published by Columbia University Press, where it is chronicled also thanks to a lot of diaries entries, the so-called "Lockdown Diaries" of common citizens, what happened that first weeks of COVID-19 contagion in Wuhan. Wuhan is a city pretty populated, with circa 11 million of people and the city where, technically, people experienced the first, massive problems with  SARS-COV-2,  firstly classified as a sorta of unknown, but similar SARS-pneumonia. And the first case, let's remark it, unrelated to the famous fish market cases discovered later. 

The beginning of this epidemic in Wuhan, unfortunately, in the worsest period of the year: the end of the year in China is marked by beautiful and felt feasts, with familiar reunions, the case of the Lunar New Year: there were also two important congresses in the city, and other celebrations as well. People started to circulate a lot. The first case intercepted at Wuhan of Covid-19 has been reported in january first; but as you will read authorities tried all their best to keep this news secret. 

In particular when infected people became many more. It was embarassing, and the news that a new illness, potentially dangerous could kill wagons of people hadn't to be revealed. But...Pretty soon appeared clear that this one was an illness containing a temible human-to-human transmission, and some doctors reported it on WeChat. It was a disaster. Communicating via WeChat, in fact, a lady was discovered by other doctors, and was called by them: they asked her of speaking, personally speaking let me underline it!!! with all the people she had sent that message, explaining that the informations passed were strongly untrue. Another doctor, confirms that she hadn't told to her husband that there was a new serious illness spreading in her hospital, beause the news had to be kept secret.

Only January 23 Wuhan entered in the most severe lockdown seen in the world: WHO, on January 30 classified COVID a public health emergency of international concern, declaring that we were in a pandemic emergency on March 11. 

But...What happened to the doctors, nurses that at first interacted with this new, unknown illness, similar under many ways to the SARS that China had met along its way years before?

Well, there is to say that it was impossible to speak openly: who did it became an hero, like mr Li Wenliang became: largely treated in the book, this young doctor of just 37 years, died because of Covid-19: he was one of the few courageous doctors who denounced the arrival of a novel dangerous coronavirus with and an aggressive human-to-human transmission. At the same time, authorities, when understood that they had committed a horrible error treating bad Li Wenliang, dead at the beginning of February 2020 (also the precise moment of the departure of this poor doctor is still unknown) declared him a national hero. People haven't forgotten what this doctor did for them. Li was a spectacular, simple man, a bit over-weight, he wrote that his dad was more slim than him, once: passionate of food, he was a genuine person and that's why people loved him and love him for what he denounced. 

The entries of the diaries will give you an idea of how people lived the days of lockdown. These diaries are still existent and maybe they will remain online forever. 

The numerous entries of these online journalis were a cathartic way for expressing feelings, ideas, escapism in a moment of great emotive stress and big fear. 

Absolutely fabulous! The book can be read by everyone and I highly recommend it.

I thank Columbia University Press for the physical copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

The Mindset of Home Activities Stay at Home Boredom Busters for Kids of All Ages By Jane Holder

 The Mindset of Home Activities Stay at Home Boredom Busters for Kids of All Ages

By Jane Holder is a newest work born because of the COVID-19 pandemic, proposing an answer for that parents in search of some inspiration for activities that can be done at home. Toddlers, elementary age, children, and pre-teens/teens, these groups are taken all in consideration by the author. Jane adds that "activities contained in this book are meant to keep its participants engaged, either by

moving their bodies or by exercising their minds."

You will notice that the next  chapters will be of great inspiration for you, and for having a lot of fun with your children!

Highly recommended!

I thank the publishing house https://imris-kdp-publishing.com/ for the copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

Crochet Yarn for Crocheting Easy Crochet by Magnus D'Jango

Crochet Yarn

for Crocheting Easy Crochet by Magnus D'Jango wants to be a guide mostly for beginners, so that you can start to crochet successfully till now. In the past, crochet was a pretty appreciated  hobby that it is returning thanks also to the fact that we stay closed at home more often.  There is also to remark that this hobby is appreciated by a lot of women of the most diversified ages.

In the book you will also find, as writes the author  " The various yarn types best for crochet, as well as different methods to carry your yarn around comfortably so you can crochet wherever you go; we will even give you a couple of new ideas for projects to crochet for gifts."

You can crochet wherever you are. At home, while waiting in a studio a visit, in the bus, if you live in a countryside, wouldn't be wonderful to crocheting outside, sat on a bench, under a tree, or simply as a form or relaxation?

Enjoy! Life will be more warm and colored, because you will donate something made by yourself to your family members or your friends!

Highly recommended.

I thank the publishing house for the copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

Dans ma rue, y’avait trois boutiques…by Anthony Palou

 Dans ma rue, y’avait trois boutiques…

by Anthony Palou is a book that you must read! Written with love, tenderness and attention, this french book will involve all your senses: smells and tastes, flavours and perfumes of old and recent food; it's a multiform and colored universe in an original trip at the discovery of our past and our present; it's a work of memories rediscovering the past that has been with melancholic touch: it's the story of french people, their unicity and strong connection with food, smells, flavours, and.... old customs and old little shops, dead because of the advent of new ways of selling products: supermarkets have killed many singulars, delicate and strong realities, characteristics of little towns and big cities.

There is Moroccon's blood in the veins of Anthony, and his grand-parents and parents have been merchants of fruits and veggies. Born delicate, without a strong body, little Anthony helps his parents and relatives starting to read avidly every sorta of book and later, becoming an important signature and editor of Le Figaro one of the oldest French newspapers.

Written during the lockdown, in 2020, this book wants to be the most important witness of the state of things regarding little commerce also thanks to interviews with merchants. 

Born in Quimper, Paolou at the age of 6-7 years with her sister loved to spend some time in a little store where there was a little guy: Ce Petit Vélo was the name of the local. This man, called Poulidor smelled of rubber, writes Anthony. 

As editor and journalist of Le Figaro, Anthony travelled all along France, but also in Switzerland and Italia, falling sick in Ireland. 

Interviewing the old artisans appear clear something: newest generations are less interested in that kind of jobs. 

Pharmacists  are the most original ones in terms of anecdots: it's a weird world the one of this category during their nights populated by toxics, and prostitues: there are exilarent episodes involving their days with patients!

Quimper in the past had a little boutique, pretty claustrophobic where it was possible to  buy everything. These emporiums are disappearing. 

Cafés in little towns are centrals: you can eat a soup, buying cigarettes, chocolate. 

An important question asked to himself and the readers: "… et nous, que sommes- nous devenus ? Des pousseurs de caddies, des arpenteurs de rayons Leclerc, Intermarché, Auchan, Carrefour, Lidl, Leader Price, Netto…" 

Anthony doesn't forget bookstores. The President of France considered books at a certain point of the lockdown as an essential item.

Angélique, Léa and Erwan are owners of a french bookstore: Angélique spent time in Italy, Bologna. They agree: being owners of a bookstore is a passion: "Being a bookseller is a dream." The smell of paper is their tobacco, writes.

But...Which are the little merchants and artisans disappeared or not in great state? "Marchandes de soupes qui réchauffaient les passants, chapeliers, couteliers, horlogers, marchands d’instruments de musique, apothicaires, herboristes, barbiers,rempailleurs, rémouleurs, ramasseurs de crottes, marchandes

des quatre saisons, matelassières."

Historical theathers, papeteries, kiosks are in peril or they have closed as well.

During the lockdown Palou has thought that life was becoming something else.

He writes: "Notre vie n’a plus grand sens, il paraît qu’un virus nous a réduit à l’état de rats, nous a enfermés dans les égouts, nous qui aimions tant la lumière." Our life doesn't have anymore great sense. It seems that this virus is reducing us like rats: we, so in love for light!"

Saint- Germain- des-Prés  doesn't have anything anymore of intellectual: forget it. Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir became with the time Emporio Armani and Louis Vuitton. Considered by Palou a thermic choc.

Bernard Frank once said that Restaurants and cafés remain centrals and crucials in a city and in a town: why? Because there, people are more relaxed, tensions are over:  at the same time people meet  friends, colleagues. It's a way for socializing.

Bernard Frank is also sure that : "Une ville sans bistrots, c’est une ville sans rencontres". A city without bistrots is a city without encounters. 

Then moving in Bretagne, Palou introduces us the land of feasts, elves, cider and beautiful women. 

There are towns in France celebrating with big feasts peaches, and in the entire territory of France people are in love for the sardine with olive oil. 

Great sense of humor, Anthony reports the situation of the first lockdown when supermarkets were assaulted by people. That's why most of them ate lentils, potatoes, topinambours, cereals with immense flatulations, lol, added. 

He doesn't forget books, Anthony returning to the topic for seeing the differences between France and USA. While the USA have largely adopted the use of ebooks, french people remains affectionated to the physical books. Anyway, no one should panic because nothing will replace reading. In a traditional or more modern way. 

Highly recommended.

I thank Emmanuelle de Boysson for the copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

The Strawberry Thief, La Ladra di Fragole by Joanne Harris

The Strawberry Thief,

La Ladra di Fragole by Joanne Harris is her latest book sets in Lansquenet. We meet again the several, beloved protagonists of the sfirst chapter, Chocolat, Monsieur Le Cure, Vianne Rocher, Anoux, the new daughter Rosette, and then Narcisse, Roux, Josephine. Another complicated story filtered with the sensibility typical of Joanne Harris.

The real protagonist of this book is the wind: impetuous, real, wild, calm, soft...The wind in grade of giving back peace: the wind that brings bad novelties: the wind as signal of important changes in the existence of the several characteristics, the wind and the Incidents, the wind as the signal that it is arrived the moment of leaving a place.

The death of Narcisse and a testament, with a confession written for Monsieur Curé will be the heart of the story.

Rosette is the special kid of Joanne: she is her Winter-Daughter, the one who, being special, will always have special exigencies and won't never leave her. 

Anouk is in Paris, differently, and lives with her boyfriend. 

Vianne, sad, would have preferred to see Anoux close to her, understanding at the same time the exigencies of the daughter: after all, her same exigencies, and the same one of her mother. 

Sometimes Vianne is still called by the wind who brought her once at Lansquenet: a wind whispering of moving on: but Vianne understands that roots are important and in Lansquenet she has found the best existence: plus, Rosette was born from her union with Roux, a gypsy, someone who doesn't want chains, constrictions: without a real name or last name, an identity. 

Fresh and wild like only the wind can be.

When the children of Narcisse discover that the old man has left to Rosette one of his most beloved fields where the girl enjoyed to go often for eating strawberries, they are furious. They would want to read the confession of Narcisse, thinking that maybe that words will bring them to a mysterious treasure that the man wants to donate to Rosette.

The story is more complicated. I can't tell you anything else.

At the same time, the little community of Lansquenet, in pain for the departure of Narcisse discovers that the store of flowers owned by Narcisse has been rent: but this time the owner is  an ageless lady, a tattoist called Morgane. A normal activity but weird in a town like Lansquenet: Vianne understands that that woman for several reasons is not "normal" but too similar to her for not being diffident. Morgane anyway is not a bad character at all: she will be much more helpful than Vianne with Rosette and Anoux, as you'll see, healing the first one and letting her discover her work, being optimistic and helpful for the future of the second one...

In the story there are inserted also the demons and secrets of Monsieur the Cure, Francis Reynaud.

Less intransigent than the past version we knew from Chocolat, he is capable now of eating also some trasgressive food and beverages during the period of Lent. In his heart there is a terrible secret, and the written pages by Narcisse reassures the poor priest that maybe Narcisse knew what he had done in the past. 

What to add? Superlative. I really enjoyed reading this new chapter of the stories and adventures of Vianne&Co. Waiting for a new one I hope, and another full-immersion in Lansquenet.

Anna Maria Polidori 

The Happy Challenge: Thriving During Social Distancing Don’t Just Survive – Thrive! By Brooke Bradley

 The Happy

Challenge: Thriving During Social Distancing Don’t Just Survive – Thrive! By Brooke Bradley wants to help people to see the positive sides in a pandemic and in particular during a lockdown or the so-called forced social-distancing. We don't know if this pandemic is at the end or not: measures are relaxed somewhere; other countries are still in bad waters: so during moments so difficult like these ones, what should we do? 

The book was written for this reason. 

Of course this one is not a medicine, so if you, after having read it won't feel a best vision of your existence and you will continue to express negative thoughts, please search for help, underlines the author.

This book covers several ideas about how to make the most of the time you have to spend, forcely, at home. A first and wise advice is to detox the soul from all the news on Covid-Omicron, and not just that, on TV: better, after your daily work, a session of yoga, a tea, a conversation with a friend or a walk for keeping light your mind and brain and seeing things from the right distance. 

An important activity that you can develop is writing. Writing on creativity, recognizing the help of other people in your existence, but also what you accomplished during the day.

Do not neglect of taking great care of yourself at home: add make-up, a lipstick, your favorite perfume; just for you. 

Drink a lot of water, organize a gym session in a daily base; re-put things in order, considering the extra-time; read books and learn new languages. Take good care of your car, write more letters and postcards. 

Delete unnecessary pictures and files from your technological devices; clean your home, listen to some good music.

First of all, be happy! Everything will be over, soon or late.

Interesting self-help book on lockdown and Omicron times.

Recommended for sure!

I thank the author for the copy of the book-

Anna Maria Polidori 

Financially Free Mindset 5 Transformational Mindset Secrets To Live A Life Full Of Abundance by Ahmed Hesham

 Ahmed Hesham is an entrepreneur living in Egypt who loves sharing knowledge and helping others on the topics of Mindset & Personal Development. 

It is a good, nice, little book this one by Hesham, Financially Free Mindset 5 Transformational Mindset

Secrets To Live A Life Full Of Abundance in particular for all that people interested in becoming successful in their existence. 

As writes Ahmed, "Living to impress others means that you will be helping them achieve their own dream at the detriment of yours. You will not be living your life for you and to make yourself better. Many good things and ideas in your life will not be started because you do not want to do anything to ruin your relationship with them." 

The first thing to do is to avoid negative people and that toxic relationships not in grade of let you proceed well in your existence. It is also indispensible to being optmistic, having a clear idea of where you want to go, having a plan, so that you can stay focused on the topic and will be serious: it's important to dream big, but it is also important to get out for realizing your dreams, not waiting that your dreams will realize themselves; it is impossible. 

These steps are important so that you will build a good financial existence and you won't be dependant on other people's choices made for you and your future. It's important to get out, to escape from your comfort zone for the...unknown and new adventures!

Decluttering people, things from your life will be another step for having more clear your mind and purposes. Too much confusion creates other confusion. But, also learning to be minimalist, spending just few money for your expenses will be a good idea. You'll save money for other things you want to buy later.

Plenty of good advices, this book is for everyone. Truly interesting, I highy recommend it to you all.

I thank the author for the copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

Numéro Deux by David Foenkinos

 Numéro Deux

by David Foenkinos is enchantingly interesting. 

Imagine....

Imagine that there was another potential pre-teenager contacted for the role of Harry Potter, and that it was more or less done...

Imagine the entrance in scene of Daniel Radcliffe, a little actor interested at the role and, sometimes, in the part more than not the other one. 

 

Everyone know Daniel Radcliffe. 

No one knows the story of the boy-who-had to-be-Harry-Potter. 

This book reports his personal story.

The author admits that this one is a fictional work...

Mmmmm....

I don't know but for being a fictional work there are a lot of elements of a reality too real for being a fiction.

Anyway, let's put aside any possible speculation...

The story is this one: Martin Hill is the son of John, a worker in big productions in particularly the ones of Hugh Grant. He is in fact from UK. The mother of Martin is french. After a beautiful love-story, love ends for a reason and another and Martin remains with his father that, of course, love immensely.

Then, the story of the birth of Harry Potter: I didn't know all these details: I didn't know that J.K.Rowling loved to visit the bookstore Shakespeare & Co. when she lived in Paris, but for sure she had great taste: the story of the first book and first movie is clearly pretty powerful. J.K. Rowling didn't want to involve in the movie Americans as main protagonists. People, children, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred etc had to be British. And, she asked for Chris Columbus as director.

The casting appeares immediately an adventure. The role of Ron and Hermione is  assigned soon. David, of the casting, contacts John. John's son, Martin is perfect for this role. And Martin truly believes it. As for the rest of the men of this production, he is their Harry Potter: then the entrance in scene of Daniel Radcliffe.

The final choice is that one.

And for Martin the life becomes a real hell. He can't cope anymore with the stress of having been rejected: too similar to Daniel everyone notices it. 

At the same time there are other tragedies. While filming Love Actually with Hugh Grant, John falls sick. There is nothing to do. Martin, orphan of his father starts to live with his mother. The mother has a new companion, Mark with a son Hugo, had with another woman.

I don't want to spoil a lot but this one will be another hell for Martin...There would be many considerations that can be done in this case. When a person loses a big opportunity people in general laugh and tend to ridicule the person in question. It will be what will happen to him, but at the end, Martin will win!

Martin, and the Other. 

The one who had stolen his role: his life is a hell. Martin can't see a book of Harry Potter without feeling strong sensations, he can't see any imagine related to the movie: he cannot  go to the cinema for seeing this movie. Nothing. 

He feels that he has been betrayed: that life has been unfair with him. 

Sensations that changes pretty heavely his existence. 

After the school Martin decides of not attending the university, becoming a guardian of the museum the Louvre. There, he knows a beautiful girl. He loves her; she loves him....Just...When he goes to her home, for a romantic appointment, noticing a book by J.K.Rowling starts to panic. He runs away.

After many other years of solitude the idea that maybe loving is the answer to all problems. One day, as predicts, Martin meets Sophie, a wonderful girl, in grade of understand the hell with which he is coping with. Not only: he knows another boy who has been rejected, refused for a role: yes, maybe not a planetary success like Harry Potter, but with an immense director...

And here, prepare the handkerchief: Sophie doesn't know how to help Martin, but it is important to normalize and stabilize his existence. She tries all her best, but Martin doesn't want to speak with psychologists: also other possible solutions don't work. Then, one day she understands that Daniel Radcliffe is in Paris.

He is the only one: the only card never played that can convince Martin that there has been life, after all, during that twenty past years and that there will be! 

That a lost occasion doesn't mean a lost life.

As writes wonderfully well, David: "Il est rare que l’on ait ainsi accès à son

destin opposé ; notre route unique n’offre pas le moindre accès aux chemins que nous n’empruntons pas." 

It's rare or unique to be in grade of touching the destiny that could have been our destiny but that hadn't been.

It's what happen to Martin.

I imagined the emotion when Daniel receives that letter written by Sophie...Sophie...A girl who thinks...It must works.... Daniel must be the solution.

From the Other Potential Harry Potter: the Number Two.

Memories are vivid: the casting, the Other Boy, Martin...Daniel returns to breath the excitement of that first moments...

Daniel abandons what it is planning to do, and sends an SMS to Sophie. Sure: he wants to see again that teenager, enthusiastic like him of the possibility of playing the role of the main protagonist.

Hemingway Cafè. 

There is just a boy, sat in the cafè when Martin enters: who will be? Sophie has just told him of entering there. He is  pretty discomforted. Then, he notices...He notices that the one sat, and waiting for him is Daniel. 

Daniel... The boy with which he mentally fought the past decades everyday. 

Daniel remembers him. He starts to saying that he wanted to call him after that he had been chosen but that then he thought that maybe he wouldn't known what to say...He explains...Oh yes..Fame, success...But many lost occasions of normality. Addiction. Suicides thoughts followed several protagonists of Harry Potter. Pressure was a lot. Reality and fiction mixed together created a lot of messes. 

And then Daniel asks to him something of the existence spent. And Martin tells him that 

after all it hasn't been so miserable: he is  lucky, he has met a wonderful girl, he works at the Louvre so an immersion in a reassuring past, he has had two beautiful parents.

 

Daniel and Martin, looking like each other, understand something: "Chacun avait désiré ce qu’il n’avait pas. La lumière pour l’un, l’ombre pour l’autre" each of them has desired what the other one has: success, invisibility: in a word the destiny of The Other One.

If you are a fan of Harry Potter, you will love this book so badly. 

And, for case, this Martin Hill exists somewhere... You are great! 

Highly recommended book!

I thank Gallimard for the copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

Garden of Hope 18 Stories to Inspire Love, Hope and Joy

Garden of Hope

18 Stories to Inspire Love, Hope and Joy is a beautiful collection of short stories of several women, located in different parts of the world sharing with the readers their childhood, past, present and future, ideas on this pandemic, how they lived that first difficult traumatic moments, analyzing movies and their meanings, including our Life is Beautiful by Roberto Benigni: there are stories of new work-beginnings: in Weaver of Joy, a woman tells everything of her existence,  pretty sad when little, frustrating because of her parents: later, she made peace with them, becoming a satisfied, happy person. Screen Time in Quarantine tells the experience lived when in lockdown.

The editor writes that they decided to chose the theme of nature for a best inspiration. Nature is immensely beauty, a moment of relaxation, calm: a balm for the soul. 

All the proceedings of sales will be forwarded to I-India a charity that provides care, love and development for children and communities living on the streets of Jaipur in extreme poverty. 

I-India reaches in a daily base more than 3000 children.

For more info:

https://i-indiajaipur.org

Highly recommended book.

I thank the authors for the copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

There is Life After the Nobel Prize by Eric R.Kandel

 There is Life After the Nobel Prize

by Eric R.Kandel is a sunny book published by Columbia that I highly suggest to everyone. 

I found this man on the cover too sunny for not asking for a copy of this book at the Columbia Press.

This book is extremely accessible to everyone: Kandel expresses ideas, and concepts in a very simple way.

Winning a prize, an important prize, (not just the Nobel) for someone means the end of creativity. 

So, there was "extreme" worry in Kandel's wife when in 1996 Eric Kandel communicated her that the Nobel Commission was taking in considerations his work in neuroscience: "I hope not too soon" replied his wife. As seen by sociologists, people winning Nobel Prize, but again, also other important prizes, become more lazy and don't offer anymore anything of important to science or art. 

Kandel thought that if he would have won the prize, he would have acted differently. 

Born in Austria, because of the racial laws and the advent of the second world war, at just 9 years escaped from Austria with his parents finding a new home in the USA.

He entered at the Columbia University in 1974 where with other colleagues formed the Division of Neurobiology and Behavior. Kandel has been the first director of this department. 

Ten years later he also created at the Columbia thanks to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, a department on molecular neural science. This department investigated how the brain works for trying to better its conditions when under stress, or under effects of drugs, because sick, etc: a second purposes involved psychiatry as well.

Kandel will let you understand how memory is created, stored by the brain seeing later what happens in a brain under effect of drugs, or invested by an illness complicated like schizofrenia is, and other clinical cases.

At the end Kandel won the Nobel Prize in 2000 but after that, as also promised to his wife, he didn't just stay home happy and satisfied of what done: no, he created a TV program at long transmitted for keeping neuroscience, problematics associated with brain, and how they can be sorted out, understable to a largest audience: he bought a house in Paris for his wife, although, admits he falls in love for Paris as well.

Once won the prize he received the call of the President of Austria. His reaction was sad. Austria hadn't wanted him: he escaped in a different country for building a beautiful existence: he is American, Kandel told to the President. The President of the country insisted and later, Kandel accepted to visit the country, accepting prizes, interacting with the researchers of the country, for rediscovering with serenity his country of origin.  Kandel's chapter on art and brain is also very interesting!

The book is pretty short, just 80 pages or so, but it is a wonderful reading: for understanding our brain but also the wonderful existence of this sunny man!

Highly recommended.

I thank Columbia University Press for the physical copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

La Ville Machine by Jacques Ferrier

 La Ville Machine

by Jacques Ferrier book published by L'Herne, will let us all think a lot. Substantially  I discovered that something became profoundly wrong and alienating in the so-called progress when we changed the windows, adding strongest, double windows-pan. For, of course, staying more warm. 

With horror I discovered that these glasses would have avoided also the hearing of "noises" from the outside world. 

Now: Living in a countryside, it was wonderful to hearing the little river's water, the frogs chanting in the night, the birds singing at dawn: that nature that, after a long night started a new day with energy and optimism. Maybe, in a city, not hearing sounds is pleasant, I don't doubt it, but here...

This book was born and written, after the advent of the pandemic and a climate crisis continuously more hard and strong to fight: so, re-thinking cities, and the model, built with the decades, is indispensible.

That the man is in grade of powerful auto-goal and that he damages himself, is more than known.

Cities built, from a certain time at this part are not anymore pleasant places where to live in, no, but real cages for men and women. The progress, and hyper-technology created with the time became reasons of a new slavery.We are prisoned of ourselves and what we built for being more happy, satisfied.

At first, energy, power, certain facilities made the difference for good, in the existence of people, changing their way of living, creating best life-condition: but it was time ago.

At the moment, mr Ferrier sees to the horizon a "technique imposée."

I hadn't never thought profoundly to the meaning of air conditioned as did the author, admitting that also the air that we breath is not anymore normal, but changed, conditioned in a word, altered: and if at first common opinion was that that air was the cleanest one, now it is known that breathing normal, natural air, is much better.

Everything, in our existence has been altered. Air conditioned has been one of the latest great developments, involving big spaces, cars, houses: at the same time with the advent of the XX century, cities changed again. No one thought anymore of building beautiful places, after all, resistant, but a similar and less diversified model of city, involving the entire world in this new way of living and thinking spaces. Lacking of originality, cities, with the time became real traps for men, always more imprisoned in a life dominated by electric tools of every sorta for cooking, backing, washing, cleaning: hot bottle of water became electric as well with the time! 

For sure, we understood pretty soon that the progress after all wasn't always positive when two nuclear bombs destroyed two japanes cities: Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Let's say that the enchantment ended and new and terrible reasons for being worried involved the Planet. 

What it is important to understand, remarks the author is that the man can't be imprisoned by....his same discoveries! 

What it is lived is not a good existence for the man who sees always new intruders in his privacy and existence: the new technologies, pcs, smartphone, are absorbing most of the time, and real interaction, with the outside world, importants and crucial are reduced. 

Jacques writes: "La règne de l'objectivité dans le design, revendiqué par la modernité, a tenu a distance le corps et l'imaginaire des citadins. Il est temps de revendiquer le retour de la subjectivité et du sensible."

Jean Giono great estimator of nature wrote once that: "Les hommes et le femmes qui habitent cette  ville sont devenus le corps meme de cette ville...Ils ne seront jamais plus alimentés de liberté, jamais plus."

What it is true is that three voices must walk along together without any predominance on man: the nature and its ecosystem, the ecosystem of the so-called technique, and the cité of the citizens. If these three voices will co-exist harmonically, then the man will be fine, and all the human beings, animals, plants included will live harmonically.

A great reading for sure, highly recommended. The style is accessible to everyone, and there is a complete reconstruction of modernity and progress, from the first inventions to the rampant technology seen later.

I thank L'Editions de L'Herne for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

Paris, Je T'aime! by Colette

 Paris, Je T'aime!

is a series of articles chosen by L'Herne and written by Colette celebrating her most beloved corners of Paris. 

Colette, born in Provence in 1893 afforded in Paris only when twenty, with her older husband and a child She was plenty of expectations although, at first, the impact and differences found in Paris with her Provence appeared big and devastating. For the rest of her existence Colette will try to research that corner of Paradise left behind, lost, once she decided, correctly, of leaving Provence for Paris. 

A provincial in Paris, we could write, because after all it was this one the feeling that she felt. 

Colette, once in Paris became one of the biggest personalities, known for her books, articles, for being the first influencer of modern history, attracted by beauty products, becoming a brand...herself.  

Very famous and beloved, Colette lost the use of her legs in her late 40s. 

Once in Paris, pretty soon, it was 1926, discovered Palais-Royal, falling in love for that enchanting and sordid place at the same time. She had to live there! At first she found only a tiny place, portrayed also in her book Trois, Six, Neuf, pretty humorously. Being her health pretty delicate, she left the little apartment, waiting for a best one, always in Palais-Royal where to live in: in 1938 a good, and large apartment this time, was ready for her. 

Palais-Royal was the last place where Colette lived, and she changed a lot of houses in her existence: this one was the most loved one. She died there.

In her writings Colette affirmed and underlined her being "La Citoyenne du Palais Royal." 

Colette described its frenetic activity during, for example an intense summer day: light, birds, animals, flowers, people passing through the garden. Her window became an excellent and privileged observatory, considering that she could not walk anymore. She noticed the changes of Palais Royal during the war, and after the war, with the stress that the period brought and help given to desperate people or people in search of a refugee. 

Once Jean Cocteau asked her: "Vous avez trouvé encore una province?" Colette answered him back that "La province de Paris ne manquera jamais a ses amants parisiens, qui savent la découvrir, au besoin la créer."

Highly recommended book.

I thank L'Editions de L'Herne for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori