The Joy of 'The Joy of Sumo'

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

Title: The Joy of Sumo

Author: David Benjamin

Genre: Japan / Sports

Read: 4th August 2005




Comments: Bringing together two of my greatest loves: sumo and reading, this little book is a gem! Although slightly dated, (it was written in 1991 during the end of the reign of Chiyonofuji ('The Wolf') and the rise of Taka/Waka), the insights are still spot-on and Benjamin writes with the passion of a true fan. It was this book that inspired me to begin the habit of giving nicknames to my favorite wrestlers (e.g. 'The Man from Mongolia', 'Monkey-face' 'and 'The Cry-baby'), and Benjamin's earthy sense of humor as well as his genuine love of these sometimes grand, sometimes ridiculous men shines from every page.
And, to paraphrase my Dad, 'He's not afraid to call a fat guy, a fat guy.'


Quote: 'In the sumo ring’s nudity, women perceive softness,smoothness,sensuality, a huge hairless, silky breathing form upon which one can creep and climb, explore, taste and smell and probe and play out a whole anthology of larger-than-life sexual imaginings.'

The Joy of Sumo

see also

Nihon Sumo Kyokai Official Grand Sumo Home Page

Daisy Miller

Rating: ☆☆☆☆

Title: Daisy Miller

Author: Henry James

Genre: Classic

Read: 1st Aug 2005



Comments: I read 'Daisy Miller' after reading about it and all the stir it caused in Azar Nafisi's English Lit class in 'Reading Lolita in Tehran'. I enjoyed it, but to tell the truth, the culture and mores portrayed were far enough removed from and yet still so similar to our own that it was difficult to react emotinally to it. In this age of Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton et al. flashing their naughty bits to all and sundry, the idea that society could so strongly reject a young woman for simply walking about unescorted seems almost bizarrely quaint, though it would no doubt have been a real shock at the time, as it was to Nafisi's fundamentalist Muslim students.

Definitely worth a read though.

Quote: 'She was a young lady whom a gentleman need no longer be at pains to respect.'

Daisy Miller