Category Archives: Asia

What You Need To Keep Warm

Posted on January 6, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

Neil Gaiman has composed his newest written work: a freeform poem to launch UNHCR’s Winter Emergency Appeal for refugees across the Middle East. What You Need to be Warm by Neil Gaiman A baked potato of a winter’s night to wrap … Continue reading →

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Which Side Are You On

Posted on December 27, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

I recently spent three weeks in New Zealand driving on the “wrong” side of the road. Needless to say, it was sometimes a challenge, especially in cities like Wellington and Auckland. As the map above shows, in most countries, people … Continue reading →

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Confucius Says

Posted on October 24, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

 

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Bookstore Tourism : Bangkok

Posted on October 1, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Thailand’s largest bookstore chain Naiin has just opened this beautiful bookshop called Mind Space on two floors of the new Samyan mixed use complex. The stunning bookstore stocks both Thai and English language titles, and is even open 24-hours daily. … Continue reading →

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Flying Book Beetle

Posted on May 8, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Beijing-based firm LUO Studio has created an adorable mobile mini-library crafted out of recycled industrial parts. Made from an abandoned bicycle, discarded iron car sheets and reclaimed wood, the Shared Lady Beetle is a tiny contraption in the shape of a … Continue reading →

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Making Your Mark

Posted on April 26, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Most of us don’t give a second thought to the greatest human achievement in history. But now the British Museum’s new interactive exhibition Writing: Marking Your Mark is celebrating more than 5,000 years of our most amazing legacy. The exhibit, which runs … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Art, Asia, Books, ebooks, Europe, History, Libraries, Middle East, Museums, Tech, Tourism, Writing | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

A Secondhand Book Scheme To Emulate

Posted on April 20, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

An abandoned warehouse in southeastern Seoul, Korea has been transformed into the city’s first publicly supported secondhand bookstore mall. Although it faced sharp criticism, the project developed by the municipal government and main library, has been a resounding success. In … Continue reading →

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It’s still Constantinople to me

Posted on March 11, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

As is often the case in the antiquarian book trade, we can search for a title for weeks with no avail and then years later stumble across a copy when we are not even looking. Many years ago I had … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Asia, Books, Europe, History, Libraries, Maps, Middle East, Travel Writing | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

There are places I remember

Posted on January 26, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

The magazine Vanity Fair commissioned the wonderful 12-minute video tour below of places mentioned in Beatles’ songs. The video trip from Liverpool to Moscow is a treat for Beatles fans even with some errors and misinterpretations.

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Theory of Time

Posted on January 24, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

The Indian artist known as Daku created this wonderful installation for the Start Goa Festival in the state capital Panaji. Suspended netting with inverted lettering used sunlight to project text onto the streets of the old colonial city. The project was alternately titled … Continue reading →

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