James Collins

The Great Ideas Today attempts to relate the outstanding events of contemporary life and thought to the accumulated wisdom of the past. To the extent that it succeeds in doing this, it reveals the relevance of the great books to the contemporary scene and throws the light of the great ideas on the...

Prolog Wann immer Peter Russell in ein Flugzeug stieg, fragte er sich, ob eine schöne junge Frau sich neben ihn setzen würde, und falls ja, ob er und sie sich ineinander verlieben würden. Auch diesmal ging es ihm so, bloß war er überzeugt, dass es - diesmal! - wirklich passieren würde....

When Peter Russell finally meets the woman of his dreams he falls as madly in love as you can on a flight from New York to LA. Her name is Holly. She's achingly pretty with strawberry-blonde hair, and reads Thomas Mann for pleasure. She gives Peter her phone number on a page of The Magic Mountain,...