"add Deeds to thy knowledge answerable; add faith, Add virtue, patience, temperance; add love,
By name to come called charity, the soul
Of all the rest: then wilt thou not be loathe
To leave this Paradise, but shalt possess
A Paradise within thee, happier far.—"
- Milton (Paradise Lost)
I've spent a lot of my leisure time in used bookstores. One of the best was Berger's in Sunnyvale, California, back in the 80s. It was a dusty hole in the wall, owned by Thomas Berger, who spent his days reading classics and theological works, but would stop and ring up sales or handle trades as needed. I saw him use a vacuum cleaner a couple of times too.
Like any good used bookstore, it reflected the owner's tastes, and in this case, it was the classics and history at very low prices. That was right up my alley, and my average stay was two hours, often more.
My routine was to walk through the aisles and check the new arrivals, which were on the floor in boxes and bags until Mr. Berger could get around to pricing and shelving. Then starting from the letter A in the fiction section, I'd literally look at every book in the store and see what caught my eye. I later realized that what popped out reflected my state of mind at the time.
I'd ask Mr. Berger about a book, and he'd patiently explain the author's background, and most importantly, the context of the work. On one such occasion, an explanation of Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" turned into a fascinating hour long lecture about the book's symbolism and it's influence on the Western novel form, which not only opened my eyes to Bunyan's genius, but convinced me to cash in a months worth of trade credit on a rare vintage copy.
I'd often just pick out a book and read, sitting on one of the boxes of books in the aisles. Once I lost track of time and was still reading after closing, but he kept the store open until I looked up and realized it was getting dark. I bought that book, a vintage copy of Arthur Conan Doyle's "Micah Clarke," which I've talked about in this blog and still own.
Mr. Berger stressed that it was important to read new authors, particularly ones out of my comfort zone. The idea was that one didn't only read for pleasure, but to learn and explore. I wasn't a big fan of Balzac or Longfellow, for example, but I've read them and my experience is richer for having done so. Even if a book isn't to your taste, it's still, in a sense, a conversation with that author and each has something to offer.
...Last Of The Mohicans revisited...
One of the most influential suggestions was to revisit "Last Of The Mohicans" by James Fenimore Cooper, which in junior high seemed too arcane and wordy. He said that people focus on the romantic adventure story and miss the spiritual side, expressed through a young preacher, a character often omitted in movies and reviews. He had an interesting series of exchanges with the Pathfinder, whose conception of God was atavistic and closer to the Mohican view of life. How the two found common ground was out of the norm of religious thought in that era, a naturist view.
On one visit, Berger threw in a free book by Thomas Wolfe, along with the full background on it. He said that Wolfe actually wrote one huge book, and his editor broke it up into separate works. That's not an unusual occurrence in the music world either. Columbia Records producer Ted Macero took several of Miles Davis' rock fusion jams and edited those into such classic albums as "Bitches Brew," "Jack Johnson" and others.
We discussed Wolfe on my next visit, and I mentioned that another book, Jack Kerouac's "On The Road" was a similar trip, having been typed up on a single roll of paper. I told him that the book seemed tedious, with long passages about routine sounding stuff, and he agreed that it wasn't the type of book I normally read.
He pointed out that I was someone who bought every different translation of Homer's "Illiad" that came into the store, and added an interesting observation; that I loved the story and "enjoyed hearing different voices tell the tale."
Story is important, he added, but sometimes it's is only a vehicle to express what the author really wants to say. In the case of On The Road, the symbolism of Kerouac's car trip was to leave an old life and plunge into a new one, and that the book broke from the conventions of it's time by describing an almost existential string of events that wasn't just about finding a girl and living happily ever after.
It was about being in the moment, not living for a far off future or stuck in the past.
Understanding what he meant took another year and several more books. There wasn't a copy of Kerouac's book on hand, so he started me off with a free copy of Henry Miller's "Tropic Of Cancer," adding, "forget story, there isn't one here, but read as if you're listening to him thinking aloud, listen to his voice."
I did what he said, and the book blew my mind wide open. Henry Miller wrote without a filter between his mind and the written word. Even if you don't like his books, you've still had the opportunity to listen to a man who was as free from social conventions like guilt or shame as one could get in that era (though one could include Joyce in that group). It was a voice that spoke without fear, which isn't the same as breaking taboos, a quality that's still rare today and takes real moral courage. I'll be talking about Tropic Of Cancer in the August blog.
That concept of an "author's voice" is important in my book, because I refer to it as "people I've met" in the past, who've said things that developed even more resonance while living out there in a car, all who were introduced to me by Mr. Berger.
“Was it not known of old,” she said, “that a woman should ruin the kingdom of France and that a woman should re-establish it?”
- Anatole France (The Life Of Joan Of Arc)
Francois-Anatole Thibault, who wrote under the pen name Anatole France, was a Nobel prize winning French poet and writer who wrote a two volume biography of Joan of Arc. George Orwell described the work as one that showed that Jeanne, or Joan was "a lunatic," which was his interpretation, not France's.
France did speculate that Jeanne may have suffered from delusions caused by frequent fasting, but the books are actually a detailed collection of fact, historical legend, opinions, and more interestingly, his questions. The critical assessments of the bio vary, and as with any historical work, it's accuracy is disputed by someone or another.
The "Life of Joan of Arc" reads like an old history book. It doesn't have the flow of a modern novel, and because it's a translated work (from French) it loses subtleties like humor and satire. The overall feel of the book is, for lack of a better word, "kind" to Jeanne's story and the occasional insertion of author comment and criticism feels jarring, like a sudden shift in tone. It probably read differently in the original French.
Jeanne's "voices," those of Saints Margaret and Catherine of Alexandria, and occasionally the Angel Michael, are woven into the story. That creates a atmosphere where the protagonists appear to float in and out of "reality" but feels accurate for that era, when visions weren't necessarily considered fantasy or neurosis.
What makes the book worthwhile is that while Anatole was a skeptic, he does give Jeanne a fair shake. One gets the feeling that he admired her, implying that even if manipulated there was no guile on her part. All of the major events are covered in detail, her statements delivered straight, and her piety described without judgement. One will see all the points of view that surrounded this ultimately remarkable woman.
Anatole's book makes clear that she had plenty of detractors, but he doesn't spare them either. During the Hundred Years War, France was a sprawling mess of small provinces ruled by lords that the King couldn't control, and whose soldiers were as likely to rape and pillage their countrymen as the English. The politics and religion of the time was corrupt and infested with scoundrels with fake piety and a devotion to the One True God (of cash).
Jeanne was a young woman who the clergy had verified as pious, sincere, who sorta-coulda be the fulfillment of an ancient prophesy, and who probably struck people as a breath of fresh air from the politics of that era. As far as talking to Saints or other deities, that's something lots of people did then, and still do today. We can't lock them all up.
The actual historical data isn't comprehensive, in fact, it's not even clear what she looked like. Many people base their opinions on the remarkably detailed transcripts of her trial. One problem with data, beyond whether it's accurate or not, is that by itself it generally means nothing. Information often ends up being cherry picked or packaged to back up a conclusion or opinion, like those studies that attempt to diagnose her mental condition.
...a living symbol...
It's clear that Jeanne became a living symbol, and that various people and factions embraced or attacked it depending on their own personal agendas. That's led to modern opinions that reveal more about the writer and his or her motives than the subject. One opinion I've read, that speculates that she was a naive stooge used and manipulated by powerful nobles really just shows the writer's reluctance to believe that a young woman could achieve something great. Her rise and fall certainly involved more than one single factor.
One important point that Anatole makes is that in the events leading up to Jeanne's first (and probably greatest) victory at Orleans, was that the inhabitants welcomed her because of a deep distrust of the French nobility, who were as likely to plunder the city as the English were.
The military situation at Orleans was that the English, called "Godons" because they seemed to use the word "Goddamn" a lot, didn't have enough men to completely seal off the city. The problem was that the population could defend the city walls, and had more supplies than the enemy, but not enough strength to actually attack armored knights in the open and drive them away.
In other words, if the Godons couldn't be driven away, they could eventually gather enough men to completely cut the city off, though that wasn't a given, as the shortage of supplies drove the English to mount desperate attacks to try and bring things to a quick conclusion.
One solution was to ask the French King for help. It could require a hefty payment that might simply whet the appetite of the noble banditry, and after victory, they could possibly have to deal with their rescuers. It was a classic political situation where each solution was a little worse.
Aside from the rapine and butchery that an English victory would bring, it's also clear that France, as it existed then, wasn't in any real danger of being completely conquered. The Hundred Years War was essentially a series of glorified raids by the English where some territory changed hands, and the massive defeats of French armies were followed by payments and concessions that left the country intact.
That the people of Orleans didn't regard getting aid from the King as the default solution shows that the English weren't viewed as a threat to national survival. That's just a simple overview, of course, one can get into a whole lot more detail about that age, which would then open the door for a multitude of theories and opinions.
The salient point is that the myth, or leadership of Joan of Arc was inspiring to the commoners and middle class of France. The people of Orleans were probably relieved to find a hero who could keep the French nobles in check (who by themselves could produce a victory that would be as bad as a defeat).
Joan of Arc, or her image, was a unifier, and it did bring about the defeat of the English at Orleans and elsewhere. Her piety must have been real and inspiring, because in that age, she'd have been tried and executed for witchcraft or heresy long before she picked up the banner for France.
Anatole France's biography, as stated earlier, was written by a skeptic, but like many of the learned religious figures back them, he could find little wrong with the person. Like Sitting Bull or Hannibal, whose histories were largely written by their enemies, it says a lot about them when their character survives attack.
Anatole France could find no hard proof of insanity, and centuries of modern cynicism hasn't produced convincing evidence that she was a mere figurehead for men (unless you're predisposed to assume men are always the real power). Yet despite attempts to destroy her myth and legend, and judged by the same criteria as a man, it can be said that she saved France from the English invaders and became a national hero and Saint who still inspires men and women to this day.
"If you want to write, just write."
- Kenneth Roberts (I Wanted To Write)
My writing days began in high school, though not due to any design. I joined the High School newspaper in my junior year with the hope of becoming an editorial cartoonist, but was instead assigned to the Sports section. My first story, about the poor performance of the JV Tennis team, which as a matter of disclosure I was a part of, was OK'd by the Editor-In-Chief, who was on the Varsity team and agreed with the slant of the piece.
To his credit, the JV Coach didn't kick me off the team but did let it be known that implying he was barely qualified was oversimplifying the problem of trying to coach a team where, for example, one of the members had only been playing for three months. I insisted that it was actually four very intense months, during which time I'd also read two "how to" books on the sport, but was compelled to grant his point.
I was subsequently transferred out of the sports page to the editorial staff, which was deemed a good place to learn about the true conscience of journalism and a convenient place to put someone who appeared to have little interest in learning how to write a proper news story.
Which I'll cop to, I could have cared less. I just wanted to draw cartoons just like the geniuses working for Mad Magazine and be off in time for tennis practice.
The Editor-in-Chief, a senior named Mark, had other plans and decided to make me his successor. It was an odd pairing, as he was a Young Republican type who believed in journalistic integrity and I was a left leaning artiste who thought underground newspapers (and Mad Magazine) were the wave of the future.
Mark not only put me in the Editorial section, which was rarely given any space in the paper, but made sure that my other assignment was layout. It was tedious work, but by the end of the year gave me the ability to combine everything into a layout that was "offset print ready" for the printing technology of the time. I learned what would be picked up by the camera and what details, like the edges of the typed columns, wouldn't show.
It was no small thing. Understanding "print ready" made it possible to put out a publication in the 80s with just a good typewriter and simple graphics equipment. After succeeding to the Editor-In-Chief position in the second semester, I put this knowledge to work and remade the school publication into what looked like an Underground Newpaper and most importantly, gave myself the job of editorial cartoonist.
Though the school paper started to lean left, Mark did teach me one valuable lesson, which was to never forget what a newspaper was. He and the advisor resisted the temptation to censor articles about student anti-war protests, birth control info, and ecology but made sure I put in plenty of content about the student government, school spirit and the various clubs. It's easy to fall into the belief that a publication is all about one's vision, but it's also about who's going to read it.
I didn't use those editing skills until the 80s, other than some freelance commercial art projects here and there. In 1981, after a stint in a punk band, it hit me that a more personal project involving blues and jazz music would allow me to immerse myself in the world of music journalism and gain access to free records.
...the delta snake...
The Delta Snake Blues News launched in 1982, and was immediately popular in the San Francisco Blues scene. I typed the copy in justified columns on a typewriter, and did all the graphics by hand, and delivered the completed layouts to the printer who liked my concept and gave me a discount after agreeing to sit through a presentation about a marvelous food product that was stored in puncture proof containers, never spoiled, tasted as delicious as fresh, and that with good old American go get'um, would make me rich beyond my wildest dreams in a year. I chose the way of art, and stayed poor.
I sent out preliminary review copies to such personages as Tom Mazzolini, the organizer of the San Francisco Blues Festival and DJ for the popular KPFA-FM Blues By The Bay show. He gave me some invaluable advice; remember to put your name and business address on the newsletter.
The first mailing sold out, with 100 copies mailed out to subscribers, and another 99 distributed to record labels, blues clubs and used record stores, all with my name and mailing address written in by hand. Fortunately I forgot to give out the 200th copy, otherwise there'd be no first issue in my sort of complete collection, one of the few belongings I kept even after becoming homeless.
After the first issue, former Eddie Cochran sideman, Troyce Key, who co-owned Eli's Mile High Club in Oakland, California, wrote me and said he liked what I was doing and wanted to buy a regular full page ad. He said make sure to charge enough to cover the printing cost, and until he died, never failed to pay. The entire paper-era run of the newsletter, about seven years, was largely due to his support.
What I did have to worry about was delivering the product. Several blues labels also bought ads and sent review copies of records, over 20 in the first month. Having to write 20 reviews was unexpectedly tedious, but taught me a lot about writing under deadline and the difference a thesaurus makes when describing the same kind of music over and over again.
Distribution soon jumped up to 2500, and I was forced to supplement the printing runs with copies run off Xerox machines at work. I'd offset print the covers and run the other pages at work. Any feelings of guilt over using company property was lessened due to having to wait in line till other staff got their own private newsletters out, but to this day I wince at the thought of how sneaky artistic endeavors on a shoestring can be.
...the beginning of freelance stuff...
It was during this time that the publisher of a local weekly paper approached me to do a blues story. That was my first paid publishing credit, at three cents a word, and encouraged me to seek more freelance writing assignments. That continued into the 90s, with articles that included three cover stories; one that made print, one that was downgraded to research and one that was killed by the publication's legal department.
None of that was discouraging, as once you get into print, you tend to keep getting work, though not necessarily enough to actually live on.
Publishing The Delta Snake, which is still in existence as a blog (though not as active as On The Road With Al and Ivy), taught me the value of being a "one stop shop" where every discipline is combined into one skill. Editing, for example, seems less mysterious, and the drawings seen here in this blog are executed for print, not display. That means every ink line, shading or textures are executed with the intent of running the drawings through effects filters.
I include two versions of the same drawing later in the blog. One was treated to recreate an old 17th-18th century book illustration feel, which took me years to realize that it was the printing process that made it look that way, and a more colorful version that's closer to the original in appearance, where the textures and shading lines can be seen.
I do cringe when reading some of my earliest work. Being my own editor meant that some amateurish work slipped through. But none of that ever "ruined" my writing career, which has occasionally paid well, and not very much the rest of the time. I came out with some disastrous Delta Snake issues that I still shake my head over, and am still haunted by the memory of submitting a successful query for a Jack London article and to my horror, realizing that I had no idea how to write it.
Time is always on the writer's side. The Delta Snake went through three periods; paper, Usenet and then Internet. Each era was a fresh start with new skills to learn, leaving behind past mistakes with useful experience to be carried into the future. My writing got better, though it's still not where I'd like it to be.
Which is another big lesson from those days; that you won't get better at writing by reading about it. To quote the great Maine author Kenneth Robert, "if you want to write, just write."
"The Nymph wondered whether she had misheard his words. She asked: ‘Who may the Father God be? How can any tribe worship a Father? What are fathers but the occasional instruments that a woman uses for her pleasure and for the sake of becoming a mother?’ She began to laugh contemptuously and cried: ‘By the Benefactor, I swear that this is the most absurd story that ever I heard. Fathers, indeed! I suppose that these Greek fathers suckle the children and sow the barley and caprify the fig-trees and make the laws and, in short, undertake all the other responsible tasks proper to women?’"
- Robert Graves (Hercules, My Shipmate)
"But Ino, Cadmus’ daughter, saw that scene—she, nymph with lovely ankles, once had been a mortal, one who spoke with human speech; but, honored by the gods, she then became Leucóthëa, a goddess of white waves."
- Homer (The Odyssey, Allen Mandelbaum translation 1990)
- Al Handa
July 2019
Note: I later composed an ambient electronic piece about the idea of Ivy becoming a mermaid, it's on the Electric Fog Factory site on YouTube, called "A Dog Dreams And Becomes A Mermaid."
https://youtu.be/vJLXEAHI3yo
- Al Handa
The Al & Ivy Homeless Literary Journal Archive:
Cover Reveal For Hide In Plain Sight
This is the cover for the upcoming book, Hide In Plain Sight, hopefully out sometime in 2019.
