The Thumbnail Book Reviews
by John Q McDonald --- 4 March 1998
by Jim Paul
As we wander about our daily lives, moments come up that carry a greater significance than the others. Moments full of meaning and somehow defining, sometimes shaping whole eras of our lives or of history. This is the premise of this interesting book. Paul, on a flight to Los Angeles, experiences what he calls a "suckhole" when he spills tomato juice over himself and the book about the history of Western thought he is reading. From there, he meditates his way through a weekend in LA with friends in the entertainment business. Throughout, Paul speaks of meaning in life, and how one thinks in the modern world. He admits that he remains a medieval thinker, using history and the thought of people from David Hume to John Cage to bolster his arguments. These points are sprinkled with the relaxed weekend he is having, eating at cafés, going to parties, swimming at the beach, and to good effect. Yet the book is somewhat disjointed. The transitions from daily life to medieval philosophy come to be uneven potholes in the book. Paul takes our normal little diversions farther than most people would, but fails to give them the import they deserve. Niether the philosophy nor the LA story are particularly engaging. The book is interesting but does not really hold together.
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