PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
M. D. Usher is the Lyman-Roberts Professor of Classical Languages and Literature and a member of the Department of Geography and Geosciences at the University of Vermont. With his wife, he also built, owns, and operates Works & Days Farm in Shoreham, Vermont. His previous books include How to Be a Farmer: An Ancient Guide to Life on the Land (Princeton), Plato's Pigs and Other Ruminations, and a number of books for children, including Diogenes.
This fascinating, well-translated selection admirably exemplifies the multi-faceted nature of the cynic way of life and is thoroughly recommended. ---Peter Jones, Classics For All Reviews The Cynics, observes Usher, 'were not scholars or writers.' Like Jesus, Socrates or Buddha, they were 'oralists whose memorable utterances and actions were transmitted to posterity by admirers (and detractors).' And it's precisely this that explains their endurance, both during and beyond their lifetime... the vivid anecdotes in which they appear have kept them not just alive, but in excellent philosophical shape. ---Costica Bradatan, Times Literary Supplement
