Beauties and eyesores

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To call him a polymath would be a gross slander. Alain de Botton knows everything. Sim- ple as that. He’s just far too modest to admit it. And I’m happy to report that his great mission to turn every facet of civilisation into a coffee-table book continues. Philosophy, art, travel — all done. Buildings are next. His approach is studiously unhurried. He gives the impression that he didn’t set out to write a book at all. It just sort of happened. He apparently spends his life flitting from continent to continent, staying in fancy hotels, roaming capital cities, noticing things and examining the condition of his temperament. The charm, the good taste, the erudite sophistication and the generosity of spirit all get a bit irritating after a while. He writes like a wise and beautiful old matriarch rocking by the fireside, sipping mint tea and reminiscing about the passions that troubled her distant youth.