"If one knew nothing else about Jesus of Nazareth save that he was crucified by Rome, one would know practically all that was needed to uncover who he was, what he was, and why he ended up nailed to a cross. His offense, in the eyes of Rome, is self-evident. It was etched upon a plaque and placed above his head for all to see: Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews. His crime was daring to assume kingly ambitions."
-from the book
I really didn't know what I was getting into selecting this book! I thought it was historical fiction but it reads like nonfiction (and has a 232 call number) and the book jacket calls it a biography. Whatever it is, it is unique!
The author's main theme is presenting Jesus of Nazareth in contrast to the Jesus Christ of the New Testament. Now I am not one who takes the whole Bible literally and in fact, am pretty open-minded, but I was truly shocked by much of what Mr. Aslan brings out in this book! He reminds the reader that the gospel writers told their stories well after Jesus death and resurrection and strongly hints at how they probably "embellished" their narratives to fit both Old Testament prophecies and expectations of their readers. I wasn't expecting that! For example, at the time of Jesus' birth people would not have had to travel to their birthplaces to register for the tax roles so it is more likely Jesus was born in Nazareth. However the Hebrew Bible prophesied the messiah would be born in the same city as David, so the story had to "relocate" the nativity scene. There were many other events in the NT which I have always accepted as "gospel" but in this book their historicity is questioned. The author also brings up many inconsistencies in the stories of Jesus' trials and crucifixion.
Mr. Aslan's point is that to the writers of these accounts Christology mattered more than history.
One very surprising thing to me is the conflict, even animosity, between Paul and other important leaders of the early church such as James the Just, brother of Jesus, Peter and John. I did not realize that James was the accepted head of the movement begun by his brother. It seems odd, even to the author, that he has one book in the NT attributed to him while Paul has so many.
I have to admit I did not read the 50+ pages of notes where the author explained some of his research and described some other expert opinions; I scanned them and read bits and pieces. It is an impressive amount of research---the author says two decades worth! I am in awe of that much dedication! I did not love the book, however. I am rating it a 3. It gave me a lot of food for thought but I am not sure I like having so many of my bubbles burst! And when I finished reading, I still couldn't tell if this author is a Christian or not. That bothered me.
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Friday, May 23, 2014
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
"He was such an enigma, really---fine and strong and weak and cruel. An incomparable friend and a son of a bitch. In the end, there wasn't one thing about him that was truer than the rest. It was all true."
-Hadley, describing Ernest, from the novel
I chose this title for our book club with some input from members and because we could get multiple copies from our public library. Though I don't really like Hemingway's work, I did enjoy this work of fiction about him and his first wife, Hadley. And for the record, after reading it I not only don't like his writing, I don't have much respect for him as a man either! I gave the book a rating of 4 and the group average was 3.7.
When Hadley meets Ernest Hemingway in 1920, even after being warned by her friend, Kate, she falls madly in love. She had not had the best of family life and when Ernest was obviously crazy about her and so young and energetic, she was quite susceptible to his charms. She agrees to marry him and they go to Paris, where he feels he can take off with his writing. As it turns out, Jazz-Age Paris was probably the wrong place to build a lasting marriage. Their Paris life might remind one of The Great Gatsby with the drinking and self-indulgence and conflicting egos. In fact, Ernest and Hadley meet many others of the so-called "Lost Generation" including F.Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, John Dos Passos, and Archibald McLeish.
Ernest becomes somewhat obsessed by bullfighting and begins the novel which will become The Sun Also Rises. Truly I have never understood the attraction for that sport, if it can be called that. Being excited over seeing an animal taunted and killed----really? Of course, Ernest loved boxing and fishing, too, so some would call him a man's man.
Some in our group thought Hadley was a bit shallow and should have been stronger but I think we all liked her MUCH more than Hem. And I would venture to say all the women had strong empathy for Hadley. Pauline...well, let's just say she wouldn't want to meet us in a dark alley!
I just noticed there is a quote on the cover of The Paris Wife from Nancy Horan, author of Loving Frank, the last novel I read. What a coincidence! I did find myself thinking of that story and comparing the two, such things as homes in Oak Park and working abroad. Nancy Horan says, "This remarkable novel about Ernest Hemingway's first marriage is mesmerizing. I loved this book."
-Hadley, describing Ernest, from the novel
I chose this title for our book club with some input from members and because we could get multiple copies from our public library. Though I don't really like Hemingway's work, I did enjoy this work of fiction about him and his first wife, Hadley. And for the record, after reading it I not only don't like his writing, I don't have much respect for him as a man either! I gave the book a rating of 4 and the group average was 3.7.
When Hadley meets Ernest Hemingway in 1920, even after being warned by her friend, Kate, she falls madly in love. She had not had the best of family life and when Ernest was obviously crazy about her and so young and energetic, she was quite susceptible to his charms. She agrees to marry him and they go to Paris, where he feels he can take off with his writing. As it turns out, Jazz-Age Paris was probably the wrong place to build a lasting marriage. Their Paris life might remind one of The Great Gatsby with the drinking and self-indulgence and conflicting egos. In fact, Ernest and Hadley meet many others of the so-called "Lost Generation" including F.Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, John Dos Passos, and Archibald McLeish.
Ernest becomes somewhat obsessed by bullfighting and begins the novel which will become The Sun Also Rises. Truly I have never understood the attraction for that sport, if it can be called that. Being excited over seeing an animal taunted and killed----really? Of course, Ernest loved boxing and fishing, too, so some would call him a man's man.
Some in our group thought Hadley was a bit shallow and should have been stronger but I think we all liked her MUCH more than Hem. And I would venture to say all the women had strong empathy for Hadley. Pauline...well, let's just say she wouldn't want to meet us in a dark alley!
I just noticed there is a quote on the cover of The Paris Wife from Nancy Horan, author of Loving Frank, the last novel I read. What a coincidence! I did find myself thinking of that story and comparing the two, such things as homes in Oak Park and working abroad. Nancy Horan says, "This remarkable novel about Ernest Hemingway's first marriage is mesmerizing. I loved this book."
Marjorie Harris Carr Defender of Florida's Environment by Peggy Macdonald
"Please allow me to eat humble pie...with all the others who thought that trying to stop the Cross Florida Barge Canal was akin to one of Don Quixote's impossible dreams."
-Herbert Kale II, a noted ecologist in a commendation of Marjorie Harris Carr
My readers know I'm not much on biographies. So how did I come to select this one? The simple answer is the subject's name is Marjorie and she is an environmental hero of mine. Now for the more complete answer:
Several years ago I took on a cameo acting role of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, author of the Pulitzer-winning The Yearling. Through this portrayal I became very interested in Rawlings, who did her best work while living in Florida and using it as a setting for many short stories and novels. At some point during this time I became interested in Marjory Stoneman Douglas, known as the "Guardian of the Glades," probably due to my fondness for Florida history and curiosity about environmental issues. The more I read about Douglas (The Everglades, River of Grass and Voice of the River, her autobiography) the more I found myself drawing comparisons to Rawlings, the other Florida Marjorie. More recently I came across another Marjorie---Marjorie Harris Carr, who led the fight to stop the Cross Florida Barge Canal, a huge environmental fiasco. I read Ditch of Dreams, subtitled The Cross Florida Barge Canal and the Struggle for Florida's Future by Steven Noll and David Tegeder, a year or so ago and although credit was given to Carr for being a real force in the anti-canal movement, it left me wanting to know more of her story. So when I saw this biography at the Marjorie Rawlings Society conference I happily purchased it.
Marjorie Harris Carr became a scientist at a time when she had to fight for the right to study the "hard sciences" which were thought to be too intellectual for a female mind! Her story is inspiring as she struggles to succeed in a male-dominated world. She would even use that prevailing chauvinism to her advantage by calling herself a "poor little housewife from Micanopy" in something of sneak attack on the proponents of the canal.
Her early activism consisted of fighting to stop highways that would harm the environment in North Central Florida and in efforts to preserve Paines Prairie, now a state park. Some of this work she led through her membership in the Gainesville Garden Club and the Alachua Audubon Society. She believed there was strength in numbers and inspired groups like these to help in the fight. Later she would co found Florida Defenders of the Environment and also appeal to local and national media to fire up more citizens. Of course, it helped that she had married Archie Carr, a University of Florida professor, sea turtle expert and a renowned environmental activist in his own right. The Carrs came to be called the "dynamic duo" in ecology circles.
Marjorie first got into the Barge Canal battle in just trying to save the Ocklawaha River which was near her home and involved in the route of the canal. She worked for 35 years to save the river and stop the canal, even being called "Our Lady of the Rivers." She lived to see the deauthorization of the canal but not the restoration of the Ocklawaha. She died in 1997 but efforts to restore the river are ongoing. After her death the Cross Florida Greenway which had been built along the proposed canal right-of-way was renamed the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway.
A couple of things I learned that surprised me were that Nixon was quite the environmental president in his first years in office. He signed the Endangered Species Conservation Act and established the Environmental Protection Agency, and was the one to stop the building of the Cross Florida Barge Canal by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1971. Also, it was interesting that in the 1950's the conservation movement meant saving nature pretty much for man's use. By the next decade, environmentalism came to the forefront and focused on saving nature for its own beauty and value.
I would give this book a 5. It definitely is not for everyone but if you like knowing more about Florida history and strong female leaders, you may enjoy it. Marjorie Harris Carr was smart, persistent, determined, creative and optimistic about her mission. An article about her in Christian Science Monitor was titled "The Housewife Who Roared."
Now I can get started on my Three Marjories of Florida project!
-Herbert Kale II, a noted ecologist in a commendation of Marjorie Harris Carr
My readers know I'm not much on biographies. So how did I come to select this one? The simple answer is the subject's name is Marjorie and she is an environmental hero of mine. Now for the more complete answer:
Several years ago I took on a cameo acting role of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, author of the Pulitzer-winning The Yearling. Through this portrayal I became very interested in Rawlings, who did her best work while living in Florida and using it as a setting for many short stories and novels. At some point during this time I became interested in Marjory Stoneman Douglas, known as the "Guardian of the Glades," probably due to my fondness for Florida history and curiosity about environmental issues. The more I read about Douglas (The Everglades, River of Grass and Voice of the River, her autobiography) the more I found myself drawing comparisons to Rawlings, the other Florida Marjorie. More recently I came across another Marjorie---Marjorie Harris Carr, who led the fight to stop the Cross Florida Barge Canal, a huge environmental fiasco. I read Ditch of Dreams, subtitled The Cross Florida Barge Canal and the Struggle for Florida's Future by Steven Noll and David Tegeder, a year or so ago and although credit was given to Carr for being a real force in the anti-canal movement, it left me wanting to know more of her story. So when I saw this biography at the Marjorie Rawlings Society conference I happily purchased it.
Marjorie Harris Carr became a scientist at a time when she had to fight for the right to study the "hard sciences" which were thought to be too intellectual for a female mind! Her story is inspiring as she struggles to succeed in a male-dominated world. She would even use that prevailing chauvinism to her advantage by calling herself a "poor little housewife from Micanopy" in something of sneak attack on the proponents of the canal.
Her early activism consisted of fighting to stop highways that would harm the environment in North Central Florida and in efforts to preserve Paines Prairie, now a state park. Some of this work she led through her membership in the Gainesville Garden Club and the Alachua Audubon Society. She believed there was strength in numbers and inspired groups like these to help in the fight. Later she would co found Florida Defenders of the Environment and also appeal to local and national media to fire up more citizens. Of course, it helped that she had married Archie Carr, a University of Florida professor, sea turtle expert and a renowned environmental activist in his own right. The Carrs came to be called the "dynamic duo" in ecology circles.
Marjorie first got into the Barge Canal battle in just trying to save the Ocklawaha River which was near her home and involved in the route of the canal. She worked for 35 years to save the river and stop the canal, even being called "Our Lady of the Rivers." She lived to see the deauthorization of the canal but not the restoration of the Ocklawaha. She died in 1997 but efforts to restore the river are ongoing. After her death the Cross Florida Greenway which had been built along the proposed canal right-of-way was renamed the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway.
A couple of things I learned that surprised me were that Nixon was quite the environmental president in his first years in office. He signed the Endangered Species Conservation Act and established the Environmental Protection Agency, and was the one to stop the building of the Cross Florida Barge Canal by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1971. Also, it was interesting that in the 1950's the conservation movement meant saving nature pretty much for man's use. By the next decade, environmentalism came to the forefront and focused on saving nature for its own beauty and value.
I would give this book a 5. It definitely is not for everyone but if you like knowing more about Florida history and strong female leaders, you may enjoy it. Marjorie Harris Carr was smart, persistent, determined, creative and optimistic about her mission. An article about her in Christian Science Monitor was titled "The Housewife Who Roared."
Now I can get started on my Three Marjories of Florida project!
Friday, May 9, 2014
Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
"You see, I started out to give expression to certain ideals in architecture. I wanted to create something organic---something sound and wholesome. American in spirit and beautiful it might be. I think I have succeeded in that. In a way, my buildings are my children."
-Frank Lloyd Wright, quoted in the novel
I chose to read this book because our day trip group was planning to go to Florida Southern College for a tour of Frank Lloyd Wright buildings on the campus. In the reading I learned more of the architect's personal life than his work and I can't say I was impressed by it.
The novel which is set in the early 1900's essentially tracks the affair Wright had with a client, Mamah (pronounced May' mah) Cheney, a married woman with two children. When Wright decides to work in Europe for a while, Mamah leaves her family with her husband and her sister and joins him. While there, she heartily adopts the philosophy of Ellen Key, a Swedish author/speaker who hires Mamah to translate her work. More and more she becomes a feminist before her time. Though she is sorrowful when her dearest friend, Mattie, dies back in the states, and when she misses her children terribly, I had little sympathy for her since it was the life she chose for herself.
When Frank decides to return to the states and build a home in Wisconsin, Mamah reluctantly agrees to go with him though she knows the press is relentless in their pursuit of the "dirty details" of the affair. Frank builds Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin, where he and Mamah find some happiness until some financial problems crop up and then---a tragic occurrence that suddenly turned the book into a "page turner" for me!
Apparently this was Nancy Horan's first novel and I thought her writing was good. I didn't care for the self-indulgence of the main characters and, for that reason didn't enjoy it much, so I am rating it a 3. I have ordered another novel by this author and anticipate liking it more.
Our group did go to Florida Southern College and the tour guide had much to share about the talents and genius of Frank Lloyd Wright. I definitely could appreciate that side of the man in seeing these amazing structures he designed! However, there was no evidence in what I heard that he had a humble bone in his body!
-Frank Lloyd Wright, quoted in the novel
I chose to read this book because our day trip group was planning to go to Florida Southern College for a tour of Frank Lloyd Wright buildings on the campus. In the reading I learned more of the architect's personal life than his work and I can't say I was impressed by it.
The novel which is set in the early 1900's essentially tracks the affair Wright had with a client, Mamah (pronounced May' mah) Cheney, a married woman with two children. When Wright decides to work in Europe for a while, Mamah leaves her family with her husband and her sister and joins him. While there, she heartily adopts the philosophy of Ellen Key, a Swedish author/speaker who hires Mamah to translate her work. More and more she becomes a feminist before her time. Though she is sorrowful when her dearest friend, Mattie, dies back in the states, and when she misses her children terribly, I had little sympathy for her since it was the life she chose for herself.
When Frank decides to return to the states and build a home in Wisconsin, Mamah reluctantly agrees to go with him though she knows the press is relentless in their pursuit of the "dirty details" of the affair. Frank builds Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin, where he and Mamah find some happiness until some financial problems crop up and then---a tragic occurrence that suddenly turned the book into a "page turner" for me!
Apparently this was Nancy Horan's first novel and I thought her writing was good. I didn't care for the self-indulgence of the main characters and, for that reason didn't enjoy it much, so I am rating it a 3. I have ordered another novel by this author and anticipate liking it more.
Our group did go to Florida Southern College and the tour guide had much to share about the talents and genius of Frank Lloyd Wright. I definitely could appreciate that side of the man in seeing these amazing structures he designed! However, there was no evidence in what I heard that he had a humble bone in his body!
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