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Stand Still Like the Hummingbird
One of Henry Miller's most luminous statements of his personal philosophy of life, Stand Still Like the Hummingbird, provides a symbolic title for this collection of stories and essays. Many of them have appeared only in foreign magazines while others were printed in small limited editions which have gone out of print.
Miller's genius for comedy is at its best in "Money and How It Gets That Way" -- a tongue-in-cheek parody of "economics" provoked by a postcard from Ezra Pound which asked if he "ever thought about money." His deep concern for the role of the artist in society appears in "An Open Letter to All and Sundry," and in "The Angel is My Watermark" he writes of his own passionate love affair with painting. "The Immorality of Morality" is an eloquent discussion of censorship. Some of the stories, such as "First Love," are autobiographical, and there are portraits of friends, such as "Patchen: Man of Anger and Light," and essays on other writers such as Walt Whitman, Thoreau, Sherwood Anderson and Ionesco.
Taken together, these highly readable pieces reflect the incredible vitality and variety of interests of the writer who extended the frontiers of modern literature with Tropic of Cancer and other great books.
Miller's genius for comedy is at its best in "Money and How It Gets That Way" -- a tongue-in-cheek parody of "economics" provoked by a postcard from Ezra Pound which asked if he "ever thought about money." His deep concern for the role of the artist in society appears in "An Open Letter to All and Sundry," and in "The Angel is My Watermark" he writes of his own passionate love affair with painting. "The Immorality of Morality" is an eloquent discussion of censorship. Some of the stories, such as "First Love," are autobiographical, and there are portraits of friends, such as "Patchen: Man of Anger and Light," and essays on other writers such as Walt Whitman, Thoreau, Sherwood Anderson and Ionesco.
Taken together, these highly readable pieces reflect the incredible vitality and variety of interests of the writer who extended the frontiers of modern literature with Tropic of Cancer and other great books.
196 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1959
137 people are currently reading
2642 people want to read
About the author
Henry Miller
950books5,060followersHenry Valentine Miller was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist. He broke with existing literary forms and developed a new type of semi-autobiographical novel that blended character study, social criticism, philosophical reflection, stream of consciousness, explicit language, sex, surrealist free association, and mysticism. His most characteristic works of this kind are Tropic of Cancer, Black Spring, Tropic of Capricorn, and the trilogy The Rosy Crucifixion, which are based on his experiences in New York City and Paris (all of which were banned in the United States until 1961). He also wrote travel memoirs and literary criticism, and painted watercolors.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
October 19, 2011
The closest thing to a Bible I've ever owned, my copy is dog-eared, stained and well traveled. Miller's genius lies in his philosophies, not in his prose - he's an ideas man, and here his ideas are perhaps at their most focused. It is this text that I turn to when I need to be reminded that life is to be enjoyed, even when it does not happen on my terms.
August 4, 2008
Better than what I expected. A lot of these essays are just the ramblings of another beatnik who just can't live unless the rest of the world knows how much of a brooding nonconformist he is. But there are a few really good essays in here that make it worth reading, particularly the title essay.
May 6, 2008
Top three books of all time. I can't get enough of this book. I've lent it out so many times and I just keep buying it. Just writing this makes me want to pick it up.
November 27, 2016
Is famous? Or is he just infamous? Or is he both?
I have just finished reading a book of his essays, reviews, and prefaces entitled (1962) and find myself alternately idolizing and deploring the man’s work. Of course, he is probably most famous for his novels featuring S-E-X, especially The Tropic of Cancer (1934). And yet, he can write like a Bodhisattva, as in the essays “The Hour of Man� and “The Immorality of Morality.�
In the latter essay, he wrote what I regard as the definitive answer as to how to live in the era of Trump:
Is it perhaps because Miller also sees himself as a painter, particularly of water colors? The ones I have seen are pretty good, and I shouldn’t be surprised if the author likes the act of pure creativity involved in coming up with these scenes, which he does not paint from life.
In the end, I see Henry Miller as, at times, gifted by his muses—and at other times merely producing when the muses aren’t present. There is a certain lack of consistency in his work. I will continue to read him for the times I find he is spot on. This book has elemts of both Henrys.
I have just finished reading a book of his essays, reviews, and prefaces entitled (1962) and find myself alternately idolizing and deploring the man’s work. Of course, he is probably most famous for his novels featuring S-E-X, especially The Tropic of Cancer (1934). And yet, he can write like a Bodhisattva, as in the essays “The Hour of Man� and “The Immorality of Morality.�
In the latter essay, he wrote what I regard as the definitive answer as to how to live in the era of Trump:
Neither would I urge one to run away from the danger zone. The danger is everywhere: there are no safe and secure places in which to start a new life. Stay where you are and make what life you can among the impending ruins. Do not put one thing above another in importance. Do only what has to be done—immediately. Whether the wave is ascending or descending, the ocean is always there. You are a fish in the ocean of time, you are a constant in an ocean of change, you are nothing and everything at one and the same time. Was the dinner good? Was the grass green? Did the water slake your thirst? Are the stars still in the heavens? Does the sun still shine? Can you talk, walk, sing, play? Are you still breathing?And yet, in another essay entitled “To Read or Not To Read,� Miller brags about reading fewer books “I tried to make it clear that, as a result of indiscriminate reading over a period of sixty years, my desire now is to read less and less.�
Is it perhaps because Miller also sees himself as a painter, particularly of water colors? The ones I have seen are pretty good, and I shouldn’t be surprised if the author likes the act of pure creativity involved in coming up with these scenes, which he does not paint from life.
In the end, I see Henry Miller as, at times, gifted by his muses—and at other times merely producing when the muses aren’t present. There is a certain lack of consistency in his work. I will continue to read him for the times I find he is spot on. This book has elemts of both Henrys.
June 24, 2016
I deeply adored this book. It's the kind of book that I think when I re-read it, I'll discover new things to love. I want to recommend this book to about 5 completely different people. I want to talk about it. I want to book club it. I want to take it camping and re-read the parts about Walden. I want to find an economist and laugh with them over the essay about money, and how it got that way.
With the presidential race, and Brexit it also felt oddly timely. Every generation feels at sea and vaguely like the world is collapsing around them.
The King is dead, long live the King.
With the presidential race, and Brexit it also felt oddly timely. Every generation feels at sea and vaguely like the world is collapsing around them.
The King is dead, long live the King.
May 19, 2019
This book clobbered me when I first read it at age 23, and rereading it at age 36, its most powerful passages, probing questions, and lucid insights still resonated deeply. I've read more of Miller's work since then, however, and I know how his inspired stretches coax one through the more interminable bits, which often comprise too much of it. Then and now, "Money and How It Gets That Way" is grating and unfunny, at least 20 pages too long. On the other hand, "Children of the Earth", "Open Sesame!", "Walt Whitman", "Lime Twigs and Treachery", and the title piece astonished me again. On the grand scale, for me, reading Miller is worth it, and I'll seek out more of his books I haven't read.
I'm grateful to have found my own copy of Hummingbird at Blue Cypress Books in New Orleans, and thank my old friend and roommate Derek for lending me his copy one Chicago winter.
I'm grateful to have found my own copy of Hummingbird at Blue Cypress Books in New Orleans, and thank my old friend and roommate Derek for lending me his copy one Chicago winter.
December 12, 2020
Henry Miller was much more than a writer; he was an artist and a philosopher. The book is a collection of essays from which majority contains Miller’s vision or philosophy of life. It is known that he was under the influence of Tao; so if you are are close to Zen, these essays could broaden your views. If you are not familar with the Eastern teachings, read the book to learn about those.
The book is filled with hundreds, if not much more, of Miller striking thoughts. He insists that life itself is the biggest miracles of all. Also breathing is. Why we search for more, which usually ruins us? Yes we can become faster, but before we preoccupy ourselves with speed, shouldn’t we ask ourselves if we could “stand still like the hummingbird�?
Just read this book, it definitely stands as one the unique visionary masterpices of 20th century.
The book is filled with hundreds, if not much more, of Miller striking thoughts. He insists that life itself is the biggest miracles of all. Also breathing is. Why we search for more, which usually ruins us? Yes we can become faster, but before we preoccupy ourselves with speed, shouldn’t we ask ourselves if we could “stand still like the hummingbird�?
Just read this book, it definitely stands as one the unique visionary masterpices of 20th century.
July 27, 2019
El libro se resume en la introspección del autor sobre temas espirituales, metafísicos y artísticos. Quien desee entender a la persona detrás de sus polémicos escritos tendrá más que suficiente en esta obra personal, dedicada a entender cómo funciona la mente humana desde diversas corrientes. Comentario esencial: ¿será demasiado tarde para ejecutar ese sueño llamado 'la hora del hombre'?
September 16, 2019
A collection of essays, most not autobiographical as his other books were.
The piece "First Love" is personal though, and is the most charming item in this volume.
The remainder of the stories are discourses on money, religion, etc and some can be long-winded and tedious. But he also had that tendency at times in his more personal volumes. Still, this is a necessary read for Miller fans, if only to flesh out his opinions on the big issues.
The piece "First Love" is personal though, and is the most charming item in this volume.
The remainder of the stories are discourses on money, religion, etc and some can be long-winded and tedious. But he also had that tendency at times in his more personal volumes. Still, this is a necessary read for Miller fans, if only to flesh out his opinions on the big issues.
February 20, 2008
"these highly readable pieces" do represent the vitality and variety of Miller's interests, yes, though as well do they represent his occasional vitriol and meanness of spirit ("To the American woman the male, whether husband, son, or lover, is a creature to be bullied, exploited or traduced"). Several of the more remarked-on pieces here do fall under that charge, including "Money and How it Gets That Way," an unsuccessful attempt at both sardonic humor and sociology in the form of a whisk through the history of currency in Culture, and "When I Reach for My Revolver," a bitter comment on the paucity of big-c-Culture in America as compared to the continent, which he cannot help but leave and return-to yearly.
He is at his best here when he manages a simple, direct sweetness free of irony and anxiety. Of these few pieces--including a worthwhile review of George Dibbern's Quest--his appreciation of Sherwood Anderson rates the highest. Anderson remains, now as then, a writer whose obscurity in his own country is less criminal than sadly wasteful, and Miller's respect for the man's character and gentleness of spirit is meant to speak for his body of work as well.
If only for an introduction to Anderson--perhaps the only great modern whose craft had as many credible ties to oral storytelling (nevermind that Leskov, Benjamin) as it did to longer form--is this collection worth it.
He is at his best here when he manages a simple, direct sweetness free of irony and anxiety. Of these few pieces--including a worthwhile review of George Dibbern's Quest--his appreciation of Sherwood Anderson rates the highest. Anderson remains, now as then, a writer whose obscurity in his own country is less criminal than sadly wasteful, and Miller's respect for the man's character and gentleness of spirit is meant to speak for his body of work as well.
If only for an introduction to Anderson--perhaps the only great modern whose craft had as many credible ties to oral storytelling (nevermind that Leskov, Benjamin) as it did to longer form--is this collection worth it.
April 16, 2018
This is a collection of some of Henry Miller's best writing, covering topics in philosophy, art, literature, and the state of the world, post-WWII.
I'm happy to say I've got some new authors to check out as a result of reading this collection. But most striking parts to me were when Miller went deep. After 70 years in the world, Miller has plenty to say. He seems to be heavily influenced by Zen: every moment is miraculous, there's nothing to condemn, nothing to remonstrate, and there is equally no need to understand, no need to conceptualize, no need to control. He reflects on the relative progress of civilization, the ever-forward motion, and wishes we as a species were able to first learn to stay still, to find an inner contentment with our individual lives. Peace is not external but something inherent and possible within all of us. It's not in the accomplishment of most difficult tasks, but rather in the simple and the mundane.
I've marked up this book with highlighting, underlining, asterisks. I've also accidentally spilled water on it and the cover has entirely come loose � it's safe to say this book is now thoroughly mine. It's a book I will need to come back to again when I inevitably veer of course.
I'm happy to say I've got some new authors to check out as a result of reading this collection. But most striking parts to me were when Miller went deep. After 70 years in the world, Miller has plenty to say. He seems to be heavily influenced by Zen: every moment is miraculous, there's nothing to condemn, nothing to remonstrate, and there is equally no need to understand, no need to conceptualize, no need to control. He reflects on the relative progress of civilization, the ever-forward motion, and wishes we as a species were able to first learn to stay still, to find an inner contentment with our individual lives. Peace is not external but something inherent and possible within all of us. It's not in the accomplishment of most difficult tasks, but rather in the simple and the mundane.
I've marked up this book with highlighting, underlining, asterisks. I've also accidentally spilled water on it and the cover has entirely come loose � it's safe to say this book is now thoroughly mine. It's a book I will need to come back to again when I inevitably veer of course.
April 25, 2020
I have mixed feelings with this book. I guess it can be explained by the fact that these essays we're written in different moments of Miller's life. Some are simple, enlightened, genius. A pleasure to read. Others not so much. Derailing into arrogance: ”the writers of short stories, as a rule, do not go about their work joyously�. It really surprises me that this line is written by the same person who says ”The mind can only toy with what food or substance is presented to it; it can never know in any ultimate, absolute sense.�
You have released yourself from your ego, or you haven’t. You not only need to be humble in the way you speak, but in the way you think too. I appreciate reading Miller’s opinions but his lack of self restraint when giving certain statements really bothered me while reading this book.
I really enjoyed his way of coming back to nature in almost every topic. How he can talk about the elements when talking about literature, education, politics and philosophy.
You have released yourself from your ego, or you haven’t. You not only need to be humble in the way you speak, but in the way you think too. I appreciate reading Miller’s opinions but his lack of self restraint when giving certain statements really bothered me while reading this book.
I really enjoyed his way of coming back to nature in almost every topic. How he can talk about the elements when talking about literature, education, politics and philosophy.
March 4, 2013
A wonderful collection of cultural critiques, metaphysical quandaries, and words of wisdom from a truly great writer. Miller's independence in thought and prose radiates through the stories, supplying a definite amount of poise and a good kick in the pants for any reader. Most of the writings are quite short and digestible, allowing one to skip around from piece to piece easily. While the collection was quite good, I would not recommend this volume of Miller to a reader just beginning to peruse this great man. Check out his two first novels, then maybe see what made the freak tick. Overall, an indispensable read for any fan of his work.
February 24, 2021
If I had a time machine, I would travel back to meet Henry Miller specifically. Miller’s musings on a life well lived incorporate two of my favorite philosophies, stoicism and existentialism. If you ever find yourself at a point where you feel overwhelmed by the rat race and the demands of modern life, STOP...and read this book. Miller is adept at getting his reader to step back, take a larger view, get humble, and reassess how one is spending one’s time. Combined with the wisdom of Henry David Thoreau, you may just find yourself selling your possessions, moving to Europe and writing that novel you’ve been dreaming about.
April 29, 2007
I picked up Miller after having read Nin and discovering that they had a rather passionate literary and romantic relationship. From his writing, I imagine Miller with a swagger, with a smart-ass personality. Again, this is another book I packed with me from the States, and it's still sitting on my shelf. Maybe I feel guilty that I wasn't able to get into it. Will try again soon.
March 6, 2013
I love reading what Henry Miller thinks about things. His view is so open, his opinion so logical, and his prose so erudite and direct. He was a very deep person who obviously thought a lot about everything.
March 29, 2018
I recently made the mistake of again buying a book that intrigued me, and finding out I had read it before, but then deciding to read again. In this case it’s Henry Miller’s Stand Still Like The Humminhbird. Miller is a best known for his ribald scatalogical novels, but has written a number of wonderful non-fiction books about his travels and his philosophy of life. This is one them, a series of short essays he wrote over the course of his lifetime. Something of a hodgepodge, often times both tedious but literally wonderful. Reading the book is like digging for precious golden nuggets of insight and beautiful poetic writing in what can be otherwise long stretches of overly erudite overlong repetitious prose. Well worth the searching through though, as any wise prospector knows. What you will find I won’t try to tell you, because that’s the amazing mystery of opening its pages.
February 22, 2022
“¿Para qué sirven los libros, si no nos devuelven a la vida, si no nos hacen beber o vida con mayor avidez?�
Definitivamente Miller es de esos autores a los que uno no puede dejar de recurrir, un alimento mental y espiritual en forma de libro. Leerlo siempre es un viaje hacia el fondo de uno mismo. Un autor que sabe contar y hablar sobre lo cotidiano sin perder la oportunidad para reflexionar profundamente. Henry, golpea, ensambla y vuelve a desarmar.
Este libro recopila 22 ensayos sobre diversidad de temas como: la inmortalidad, ser nacionalista, la moralidad, el surrealismo, el sentido de la vida, etc. Escritos a lo largo 25 años, demuestra que aunque cambiemos de piel, nunca se pierde la identidad, la raíz, la esencia.
“Lo que quiero decir, brevemente, es que un libro, como cualquier otra cosa, sirve con frecuencia de pretexto para lo que de verdad buscamos.�
Definitivamente Miller es de esos autores a los que uno no puede dejar de recurrir, un alimento mental y espiritual en forma de libro. Leerlo siempre es un viaje hacia el fondo de uno mismo. Un autor que sabe contar y hablar sobre lo cotidiano sin perder la oportunidad para reflexionar profundamente. Henry, golpea, ensambla y vuelve a desarmar.
Este libro recopila 22 ensayos sobre diversidad de temas como: la inmortalidad, ser nacionalista, la moralidad, el surrealismo, el sentido de la vida, etc. Escritos a lo largo 25 años, demuestra que aunque cambiemos de piel, nunca se pierde la identidad, la raíz, la esencia.
“Lo que quiero decir, brevemente, es que un libro, como cualquier otra cosa, sirve con frecuencia de pretexto para lo que de verdad buscamos.�
January 17, 2019
While several of the essays are quite enjoyable and further fascinating insight into the elder mind, many of the pieces feel like padding and are probably only of serious interest to the Miller completist.
Skipping about is called for and while religious trappings and seeming belief in the paranormal may only be humorous or metaphorical I enjoy the colors it gives his efforts. Sometimes reading the works of a few generations ago can feel a bit like exploring a lost civilization. Miller inspires and that’s really the best we can hope for despite his grouchy anti-hope dictum!
Skipping about is called for and while religious trappings and seeming belief in the paranormal may only be humorous or metaphorical I enjoy the colors it gives his efforts. Sometimes reading the works of a few generations ago can feel a bit like exploring a lost civilization. Miller inspires and that’s really the best we can hope for despite his grouchy anti-hope dictum!
April 25, 2021
The kernel of Miller's view on life. Essays on writers, money, spirituality or whatever Miller deems worthy- some stupendous, some tedious. It's short and mostly worth the time invested. If passion is your thing, maybe Henry is your guy.
January 23, 2024
Easily one of the most dear books I own. I carry it w me in my handbag almost everywhere. I’ve probably underlined every sentence in this book & read it nonstop. First, second & third read, insatiably. Please don’t overlook this book, it is a treasure
July 9, 2024
This was such a great read. Some stories and essays were better than others, but for the most part, Miller's voice is one that should be heard by everyone. My personal favorite is "The Immorality of Morality." Great read and highly recommend!
December 18, 2024
I loved some of the articles and could not connect with others, however, the ones I enjoyed were so good, it still warrants a 5 star. My favorites were “the hour of man� “stand still like the hummingbird � and “to read out not to read�.
March 30, 2020
"El tiempo no interviene en la aceleración del espíritu. La puerta está siempre abierta. Hoy es como todos los días. Solo existe el hoy"
July 23, 2020
One of my all time favorites; great Miller collection.
August 30, 2022
3.5 stars
August 9, 2023
At various points: long-winded, rambling, vivid, compelling...
August 7, 2024
one of my favorite collections of essays.
April 29, 2020
Henry Miller on Thoreau: “He lost nothing by not mingling with the crowd, by not devouring the newspapers, by not enjoying the radio or the movies, by not having an automobile, a refrigerator, or a vacuum cleaner. He actually enriched himself in a way far beyond the ability of the man of today who is glided with these dubious comforts inconveniences.�
October 18, 2016
I really like Henry Miller's writing - and I really like Henry Miller's view on life. Not the view that is there in the dark hours or that people think they see in his banned stories - but in the exhilaration he feels for action. So, I should have really loved this book, right? But it was real life and not the life he imagined...and not very exhilarating.
The best lines come from the introduction...while they're great, this fact isn't a great sign.
When you find you can go neither backward nor forward, when you discover that you are no longer able to stand, sit or lie down, when your children have died of malnutrition and your aged parents have been sent to the poorhouse or the gas chamber, when you realize that you can neither write nor not write, when you are convinced that all the exits are blocked, either you take to believing in miracles or you stand still like the hummingbird. The miracle is that the honey is always there, right under your nose, only you were too busy searching elsewhere to realize it. The worst is not death but being blind, blind to the fact that everything about life is in the nature of the miraculous.
The best lines come from the introduction...while they're great, this fact isn't a great sign.
When you find you can go neither backward nor forward, when you discover that you are no longer able to stand, sit or lie down, when your children have died of malnutrition and your aged parents have been sent to the poorhouse or the gas chamber, when you realize that you can neither write nor not write, when you are convinced that all the exits are blocked, either you take to believing in miracles or you stand still like the hummingbird. The miracle is that the honey is always there, right under your nose, only you were too busy searching elsewhere to realize it. The worst is not death but being blind, blind to the fact that everything about life is in the nature of the miraculous.
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