On Becoming An Artist: Reinventing Yourself Through Mindful Creativity (2005) by Ellen J. Langer is an interesting exploration of the links between creativity and mindfulness.

Using her background as a painter and psychologist, Langer introduces readers to the concept of mindfulness and over the course of the book demonstrates how prominent mindless has become in western society. Among other things, Langer examines learning how to become more authentic, how mistakes are mindful tools, how evaluations, absolute rules, and social comparisons stifle creativity, and how talent is a myth.

Langer’s writing is concise and she explains her pertinent concepts in an easy to understand manner. This helps to create a convincing argument.

Sadly, the book’s title is misleading. While Langer discusses mindfulness in relation to creativity and art, most of her theories and examples pertain to the everyday world. Fortunately, this doesn’t ruin what is an engaging read and valid discussion for not only artists but also people of other occupations.

Unfortunately, Langer has a tendency to go overboard with her explanations of the experiments she executed in order to test her theories, which add little to the message she is promoting. That said, Langer’s message about the benefits of living a mindful life and her suggestions on how to implement them in art or life are solid and very relevant.

If you are a struggling artist, or even struggling with life, On Becoming An Artist presents some useful theories for becoming more attuned with your practice or with living a more enjoyable life.

3 stars

Lian Hearn’s Emperor of the Eight Islands: The Tale of Shikanoko is the beginning of a fantasy epic filled with Japanese mysticism and layered with fable-like qualities.

While Kazumaru, young heir to Kumayama, is thought to die in a hunting expedition, a stag breaks his fall and melds its departing spirit with him, transforming him into Shikanoko. Taken in by Matsutani Lord Kiyoyori, he soon finds himself in the midst of an epic struggle as Miboyoshi clan leaders Lord Aritomo and the Prince Abbot seize control of the capital, Ryosonji, creating conflict with the rightful rulers, the Kakizuki clan.

More than just a struggle between clans, Emperor of the Eight Islands is a tapestry of character drama, depicting how such conflict causes tensions below the surface to rise and turn even loyal friends against each other. This is well depicted from the large cast’s varying points of view. Each character is presented as a complex entity with agendas of their own, which often conflicts with those of another character readers have come to love. These varying perspectives show that none of these characters are completely good or evil.

Unfortunately, the overarching plot is only fully evident at the end of the story, which means it seems meandering at times. However, the ongoing character development and conflicts alleviates this.

With such a huge cast of characters, readers who don’t familiarise themselves with the character index are liable to become lost, especially when some characters are not introduced until well into the story. Further, when new characters are introduced, large amounts of backstory are given, slowing what is otherwise a rapid pace. This is necessary given the story’s large scope. Unfortunately, some of the otherworldly concepts, like Gen, Shikanoko’s half-man half-dog companion, are never fully established.

This volume contains two books from the series. The first establishes the world, mythology, and main characters but at times can be erratic as readers move from one character or event to another with little room to breathe. Fortunately, this settles down in the second book, which focuses on key characters and their evolving relationships.

Despite these issues, Emperor of the Eight Islands contains a lot of depth in the world it constructs from Japanese mythology and presents readers with engaging characters. Hopefully future volumes will expand this intriguing saga. If you enjoy Japanese mysticism, I recommend it.

3 stars