SKU: 64161415683

The Ruin of Magic: Longing and Belonging in Strange Times by Kate Holden

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The Ruin of Magic: Longing and Belonging in Strange Times by Kate HoldenA poetic, roaming work of creativity and intellect Is it possible to live wondrously by fluorescent light? In The Ruin of Magic, award winning writer Kate Holden follows in the footsteps of Katherine May, Maggie Nelson and Andre Aciman, crafting essays of intimate personal experience and sharply informed rumination on life in strange times. In gorgeous prose Holden meditates on her instinctive yearning for long ago Europe versus the natural belonging

A poetic, roaming work of creativity and intellect

Is it possible to live wondrously by fluorescent light?

In
The Ruin of Magic, award-winning writer Kate Holden follows in the footsteps of Katherine May, Maggie Nelson and Andre Aciman, crafting essays of intimate personal experience and sharply informed rumination on life in strange times.

In gorgeous prose Holden meditates on her instinctive yearning for long-ago Europe versus the natural belonging she feels to the Australian landscape, and asks, What is a home? The strongest shelter or the most lethal trap, a museum of ourselves or a showcase of fashions? What, then, does it mean to make ourselves at home in an Australia still finding its way amidst old and avoided truths? Is nostalgia a reasonable mourning of timeless lore lost or a dangerous fantasy? And what has happened to magic and beauty in the glare of modern life?

Reading Rainer Maria Rilke, Patti Smith, Walter Benjamin and D.H. Lawrence, dreamers and philosophers and poets, pagan history and new criticism, Holden writes with humour and sorrow of all the ways life today warps us under its glare - and how to find a haven in the subtle shadows.

'Elegant and whip-smart,
The Ruin of Magic is a work of beauty - a sober yet joyful quest to find home and belonging.' -Susan Johnson

'Thrillingly erudite, belletristic, yet necessarily raw. Many readers will encounter this "almost private" book as the mirror they've been walking past their whole lives.
The Ruin of Magic is a very lucid howl.' -Gregory Day

'A shimmering book that teases, enchants and provokes while offering balm through language and memory for our modern anguish and fear of oblivion' -
Robert Dessaix

'Deeply personal and culturally urgent ... an elegantly braided collection that shimmers with intelligence.' -
Books+Publishing

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SKU: 64161415683

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Randall Lindsey
Draper, US
★★★★★ 5
Unfolding of the right to vote in the U.S.
In my forty years of studying the history of the U.S., I find this work to be the most authoritative and complete work yet encountered. Not only is the book a thorough guide through the evolution of our democracy, it is an entertaining read. The book is a 'must' read for those who seek a perspective on many of the current issues involving voting rights.
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Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2006
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Jj7484
Grantham, US
★★★★★ 5
Typical for a casebook.
Format: Hardcover
I had to buy this for school. It’s overpriced and horrible to read but great for what I needed it for.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2019
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C Cox
Grantham, US
★★★★★ 5
Good seller
Format: Hardcover
book in condition provided in description
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Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2021
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felix marcus
Draper, US
★★★★★ 1
Quality products it makes a big difference
Format: Hardcover
This item was not as pictured with damage to the binding
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Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2025
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Berkeley
Omaha, US
★★★★★ 5
very good
Format: Hardcover
very succint
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Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2018

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