Signposts to Elsewhere

In homage to a tradition advanced by philosophers and pundits from Confucius to Oscar Wilde to Dr. Seuss, Jane Street Press is pleased to release the electronic version of Signposts to Elsewhere: a book of aphorisms & other tailored thoughts, by Egyptian-Lebanese author Yahia Lababidi. Aphorisms, by the author’s own definition, are ‘complete fragments.’ Witty, resonant, and precise, they capture the contradictory nature of human truths and sentiments, reflecting ‘the soul’s dialogue with itself.’Signposts to Elsewhere is sorbet sharp, always leaving the palate clean for another, and another…Mark Simpson, The Independent (UK) ‘Books of the Year,’ 2008Signposts to Elsewhere is a succulent, stunning collection of images and thoughts more well-lit than the old swinging torches of the lamplighters. I find myself pausing everywhere among these wisdoms, wondering why the world stumbles and staggers through such a dark and greedy time when there are people alive with such keen, caring insight. This is a book to live with for the long run, to return to again and again, as one returns to a favorite corner for reading and thinking. If Yahia Samir Lababidi were in charge of a country, I would want to live there.Naomi Shihab NyeWisdom for Lababidi is on the move, a matter of suppleness rather than rigor, of insights and angles rather than rules... As intense as his conversation with himself is, it is also kind, tolerant of his own limits and of ours… I give you that expert self-listener, that excellent writer, Yahia Lababidi.James Richardson (from the Foreword)Lababidi knows that fables and metaphors overcome resistance more readily than facts and position papers. His half smile becomes our own, changing our self-estimate, and then—who knows?—the choices we make as well. Alfred CornYahia Lababidi's aphorisms are elegant, thoughtful and wise, written proof that the art of the aphorism is still very much alive.James Geary, author of Geary’s Guide to the World’s Great Aphorists