User talk:Sideming

6/29/2007

Hi again, Si de ming. No, I didn't think we were getting into a wrangle about bai and bhel-.

Your knowledge of China and Chinese casts all sorts of interesting lights on this book. Pynchon doesn't explicitly take the action there, but the whole Silk Road storyline is anchored there. And I notice he's rather careful not to blend Chinese and Japanese (and Uyghur and Turkmen) people, too. Even those who regard Tibet as totally autonomous of China at the time of the action have to see Shambhala in China's, um, do I want to say shadow? No, not shadow but maybe penumbra is OK.

What I've learned from the wiki has sent me off to read a number of other books. Do you know if there is a useful history of central and eastern Asia I could take in? (I think the last I read on the topic was one of George MacDonald Fraser's Flashman novels, highly respectable historical fiction but not history per se.)

Thanks for the fine entries.

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Hi Si de ming...what did that neo-pythagorean believe that you are posting about tonight? MKOHUT 16:40, 8 July 2007 (PDT)

Sid, That limited-unlimited stuff is......fascinating. As well, of course, as the potentially elitist Pythagorean stuff---which I sorta believed---but knew beans about it.

Best, Mark

Sid, that sixth entendre was GREAT. Thanks, mark

Sid,

I've read and been rereading AtD, while reading all of the others, to answer your question. The lifelong resonances and mutual 'sampling' from his own books are fascinating, of course.

Mark