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Mightier than the sword 雄文胜武 The collected thoughts on this, that and the other oftwo clever men; 两位智者对于世间百态的思想汇聚; When writers are grand enough, they can producebooks by recycling their journalism, lectures,academic papers and other jottings. Sometimesthat can seem dated and lazy. Sometimes it is atreat: the assorted pieces come together to create a great mosaic. Neither Facts areSubversive by Timothy Garton Ash, an Oxford-based writer and academic, nor Gray sAnatomy by John Gray, a political philosopher, fall into the first trap . They are both good reads. But neither quite reaches the goal of the whole beingmore interesting than the parts. 当作者之声名足够显赫时，他们只需将其资讯稿件、讲演录、学术论文以及其他只言片语回炉再加工一番，新书便告完成。有时，这种做法似乎是在偷工减料地翻炒冷饭;有时，它却为读者奉上一场新的盛宴：混杂的碎片化零为整，一幅伟大的镶嵌作品从中诞生。无论是由身处牛津的作家与学者提摩西加顿阿什所著之《事实方具颠覆性》，还是政治哲学家约翰格雷的作品《格雷剖析录》，都未陷入前一种窘境，两者皆为优秀的读物;不过，它们也未完全实现令整体胜于部分的目标。 Mr Garton Ash is incapable of writing a dull article. Unlike some famous-name writers, he isproud to be a reporter: whatever the subject, he digs diligently. He observes sharply andwith a dry donnish wit that deserves greater play. A remarkable wordsmith, at his best hehas an echo of one of his great heroes, George Orwell. The pieces range from his firststamping-grounds of Germany and central Europe to the bigger themes he took on later and tomore exotic places, including Brazil, Iran and Myanmar. | 
