River of Ink: Literature, History, Art

In these 30 essays, Christensen (1616: The World in Motion), a proud generalist and non-academic, addresses a slew of disparate subjects%E2%80%94Taoism and its influence on Chinese art, Lewis Carroll's Sylvie and Bruno, the roots of modern Turkish politics%E2%80%94and proves himself to be voracious reader who can clarify the present with knowledge of the past, accessibly summarize a subject, and share a fine story. Organized geographically, Christensen's essays ramble freely across cultural borders, from West Asia and Africa, to Latin America and Europe. Along the way, he calls our attention to several interesting figures, such as Eva Per%C3%B3n, the wife of Argentina's former president, Juan Per%C3%B3n; Malik Ambar, an Ethiopian slave who rose to the office of prime minister in India; and Sadakichi Hartmann, the critic, poet, and art historian who is credited with introducing haiku to the U.S. These pieces demonstrate Christensen's interests and learning, but not they're not always insightful%E2%80%94they rely heavily on what others have written, and a few seem to end abruptly before a point is made. Nevertheless, it would be difficult to read the book without learning something new. Photos and illus. (Dec.)