Fun, charming, evocative of (I assume) the Ottoman Empire but still light enough for a beach read. Did I say fun? I think I must now read the prequel.Fun, charming, evocative of (I assume) the Ottoman Empire but still light enough for a beach read. Did I say fun? I think I must now read the prequel......more
Academic in tone but accessible in tone and language. The word TIMES in the subtitle is the operative word, which worked for me. I found it fascinatinAcademic in tone but accessible in tone and language. The word TIMES in the subtitle is the operative word, which worked for me. I found it fascinating. Makes me want to reread Josephus and find more (if there is any) about the historical James....more
I truly debated how to rate this book. Partly because recently I have rated so many books 5 stars. Is the rating based on the empirical (as if there wI truly debated how to rate this book. Partly because recently I have rated so many books 5 stars. Is the rating based on the empirical (as if there were such an objective thing...well, maybe there is. Nah) quality of the writing, the plot, the editing? Or is it my personal reaction to it? In this case, it is the latter. I could not wait to get to this book. Had it belonged to me, I would have written in it, underlined it, and begun to reread it immediately upon finishing. It took me nearly a week to read. As I approached the end, I slowed down considerably. I did not want it to end. Could it have benefitted from some editing? Refining? Yes -- not unlike this review. I will recommend it highly to some people who like this sort of thing (sweeping epic, fictionalized history/historicized fiction; existential questioning and angst, repeated many times) because, of course, that is the sort of thing they like.
Enough navel-gazing.
Ari Spinoza, the ephemeral narrator, gives the sweeping history of his family as well as the Eastern European world, in a high-brow Forest Gump sort of way. The cast of characters (helpfully appended with a purely imagined family tree) was overwhelming and, at times, too numerous to remember or keep track of from one storyline to the next, which could jump either forward or back by decades or centuries, then back again. He throws in philosophical movements, political trends and satire, Torah, Talmud, a bit of Yiddish, French and some German. Also some Russian history and language. There are some (to whom I will not recommend this book) who could justifiably say, "Too much!" to the whole morass.
Indeed, my head was spinning by the end. However, that is probably my own shortcoming, irrespective of the book. And I suspect that is the reaction the author was going for.
Not sure why I have so many five star books this summer, but I think I would give Daniel Silva 5 stars at any time of year -- this book was everythingNot sure why I have so many five star books this summer, but I think I would give Daniel Silva 5 stars at any time of year -- this book was everything a thriller should be....more
This book is brilliant. I am a deep lover of the time period, so I stand biased, but Naomi Alderman's reimagination of the period, weaving of actual hThis book is brilliant. I am a deep lover of the time period, so I stand biased, but Naomi Alderman's reimagination of the period, weaving of actual historical reports (I am hard-pressed to call anything "fact" when the experts so vehemently disagree) and novelist projections, is riveting (to me). I will think of her rendition for a long time.
I know I read her Orange Award winning book, Disobedience, when it came out, but did not record it on Goodreads. I loved how she interspersed some LGBT roots in this book as well....more
I was not interested in this book, or the story, but read it for my brick and mortar book club. I picked it up, read one page, said "I do not want to I was not interested in this book, or the story, but read it for my brick and mortar book club. I picked it up, read one page, said "I do not want to read this," then basically could not put it down again. The writing was so compelling and the characters so vivid, I was addicted from the first, and against my will at that. I never felt sorry for any of the character, because they did not feel sorry for themselves. I feel much more informed of Hurricane Katrina than I ever did from the seemingly unlimited articles I read, newscasts I saw and celebrity testimonials that endlessly assaulted us from the time it hit land. Wow....more
This book is not for everyone. When I picked it up and said, "ooooh," I am pretty sure some eyes rolled. But I love any kind of text analysis, and, whThis book is not for everyone. When I picked it up and said, "ooooh," I am pretty sure some eyes rolled. But I love any kind of text analysis, and, when added with some archaelogy, I am in heaven. It was academic in tone, but had a couple person anecdotes to spice it up. All the technical words were explained in sufficient fashion so I, the ultimate layman and novice, could follow it. I had never heard the theory that *****Spoiler Alert **** Moses and Akhenaten were the same person (not to mention Miriam and Nefertiti). I have no idea if this is a respected theory or another "Look we found Jesus' brother's grave" kind of thing. In any case, this book kept me engaged for its 164 pages (including appendices, which I read). Based on that, as well as my avid interest in the subject, I gave it 5 stars (Despite some annoying typos.)...more
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