Notes from Slavic Quick Cataloging, Pt. 8

Ukrainian book, on cinematography, with a page at the beginning from the sponsor of the printing– Yakitoria Japanese kitchen. Yakitoria – tvoia territoria! [Yakitoria – your territory!]

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Heated media catologuing discussion: A video which is three episodes of the 1950s television show Rin-Tin-Tin, spliced together an rereleased as a film, called ‘Rin-Tin-Tin, Hero of the West.” Is this categorized as television, or film? Is it an adaptation if the television broadcasts were in black and white, but the film is in color? Was it filmed in color or in black and white and colorized later?

As the internet research progresses, we learn that the official Rin-Tin-Tin website lists filmography by dog.

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Just saw a book of pretty darn amazing Slovak photography. My supervisor tells me that Eastern Europe has good photography in general, but the Czechs are the best. Haven’t seen any Czech photo books yet, but I got the cover from Majstori Hrvatske fotografije [Masters of Croatian Photography] which also had some beautiful pieces in it.

Actually, the cover isn’t very cool, it just has geometric designs on it, but I’m kind of collecting Slavic text on various book covers, for a project I haven’t figured out. Some sort of collage project, I suppose.

Notes from Slavic Quick Cataloguing, Pt. 7

I’ve added some editorial comments to one or two of the previous posts to account for the offline commentary of the native speaker in my life, who is kind enough to correct my silly mistakes. It’s probably a long-term strategy to keep me from accidentally saying anything really embarrassing to his mother.

Today: fun with Serbia!

Oct 2, 2006 – the 125th anniversary of the establishment of diplimatic relations between the Serbian Principality and the United States of America. Commemorative books were published.

At least, in Serbia.

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Serbian book on the history of Deligrad. One of the pages in the back, showing pictures of two generals, with captions, has been printed in mirror image. The captions are backwards. Flipping through, no other mirrored pages jump out.

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Return of the Politics of the Serbian State Series — two more books came through my hands from this very confusing series. I guess on the ordering end it’s probably hard to tell quickly if we already have Book I Part 1 Number 2….

Notes from Slavic Quick Cataloguing, Pt. 6

Things you may not have known about the layout of slavic books: the table of contents is generally at the back.

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Book entitled “Bogastvo je v nas” (Slovenian). Nas = us. Bog = God. Bogatstvo = riches (in Russian). Subtitle, “iz dnevnika novodobnega milijonarja” (something like ‘from the journal of a modern day millionaire’). Publishing house, “Divine Touch Publishing.” Is this a book about God and Us, or Wealth and Us? You decide!

Also, inside it is laid out like a high school text book. Lots of pictures. Maybe it is a get rich quick manual?

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Book on Mari mythology. Random sentence (my translation) from p. 261: Mari people believe that it’s best to talk with the souls of ancestors at the place of their death: the prayer will be heard.

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Russian book: Oral history in Karelia, vol. 3: Finnish occupation of Karelia (1941-1944).
Karelia (aka Karjala) is ethnically very close to Finland; I don’t think the Finns view it so much as an occupation as much as a brief repossession of what ought to have been part of their country, except that Russia has always been bigger, militarily. And the Finns have learned to be diplomatic and neutral.

Notes from Slavic Cataloging, Pt. 5

The library code for Emory – EMU.
The library code for Cornell, whose records I have been strictly instructed not to use for our database — COO COO.

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Latvian children’s book, illustrated with photos of driftwood assembled into fanciful creatures. I really ought to bring my camera. Here’s an image of the cover. It is called Mazgalvīši spēlē mājās, by Pauls Bankovskis, which is funny for me because my elementary school was named Paul Banks, after a man who had been the janitor, but also wrote children’s plays, one of which was enacted by the school each year at Christmas.

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Media librarians daily discussion topic: Marshmallow peeps.
A package of “tulip-chicks” has appeared on the communal snack table. Someone is quick to check the peeps website and discover that 1) they make “chocolate mousse” flavored creations and 2) the same company is responible for Mike & Ikes, Hot Tamales, etc.
On the website, they proudly list the fact that the number of peeps eaten at Easter could more than encircle the earth. Personally, I think they are mistaken in assuming that they are eaten.

Notes from Slavic Cataloging, Pt. 4

The books in languages I can almost understand make me want to do some sort of grand project, like Ezra Pound, who translated Chinese poetry without knowing Chinese, but extrapolating from the idea that the ideograms originate from visual representations of something. To pseudo-translate these Eastern European novels into something entirely different and new, only slightly connected to the original work. Start with what the first page might say, to my understanding, and go from there. Or just the title.

Here’s a good one in Slovenian. “Sanja in Samostan” I presume Sanja to be a person, and Samostan to be a place. But maybe Slovenian “in” isn’t equivalent to English “in.” Maybe it is equivalent to “and”, “or”, or “of.” Perhaps Sanja is a place, and Samostan a person. Or both people. Sanja and Samostan.

Сам [sam] means ‘self’ in Russian, and perhaps in Slovenian as well. Sanja is probably a short-name for Alexander, or Alexandra. Sanja and Samostan. Best friends since childhood. Samostan is a big fellow, strong and trusting. Sanja is the scrawny one who gets them into and out of trouble.

Then again, саня [sanya] also means ‘sleigh.’ The sleighride to Samostan. But Samostan sounds like a desert place, or a jagged mountain place, that would be hard to get to by sleigh…

Here’s another option: самостоятельный [samostoyatel’nyi] means independnt, self-reliant, literally “self-standing.” Sanja the Independent. It’s a political novel, about a dissident. Or it is satirical, a harshly ironic tale of a the young man who becomes part of The System, despite his belief in original thought. Or the independent sled. Sanja is actually the name of a factory, making sleds, and the tale is told to show how the people involved in sled-making fare with the fall of communism and the rise of independent business. Samostan is an allegorical location where all must be self-dependent, and no long rely upon the state to provide things like pensions for them.

[Ed. –The native speaker in my life informs me that саня [sanya] is rarely, if ever, used in the singular. It’s always сани [sani]. But he agrees with “samostan” bringing self-reliance to mind.]