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Feb 25, 2007

Lee rated it:

I can remember reading this thing for hours each night curled up in bed when I was 13 years old. It basically began my career in archaeology (fingers crossed for grad school apps). Based on Tel Megiddo, it tells the story of a fictional Tel from its birth to its excavation 12,000 years later. It follows the path of a single family against many gods as it tells the story of Canaanite, Hebrew, Greek, Roman, Ottoman, and Israeli civilization. While some of the material is dated, it nevertheless rem More...

0 comments like (8 people liked it)

Mar 07, 2008

Amy rated it:

This was a book that helped me have a more complete view of world history and all the tensions surrounding the middle east. I read in in high school during the first gulf war. My high school was pretty substandard, it was a small town, and the students didn't care or try very hard. The school was struggling just to teach the basics. I wanted more than that and I read a lot of stuff. My mom had a subscription to Newsweek and I read it nearly cover to cover every week since I was 12. Despite all m More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Apr 06, 2009

Ashley rated it:

One of my favorite books ever. It's a long one, so give yourself plenty of time.

Tells the story of religion in Israel through the findings of an archaeological dig 90 miles north of Jerusalem. It's divided into stories about 100 pages long, so it doesn't feel quite like you're reading a 1,000 page book. Like all Michener novels, it is very well researched. The characters seem real and, Michener also fleshes out historical figures.

Some sex and violence (have you read t More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 29, 2007

Zach rated it:

This book is long. A very good read but long. I would recomend reading another book alongside this one to keep from becoming burnt out. Still, this is a very good book, from one of the best authors of the day. This book tells the history of ancient isreal and its religions in a very interesting way. it begins with a group of archeologists that discover the remains of an old city in modern isreal. They begin to dig and as they get deeper come across artifacts of older and older civilizatio More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 08, 2008

Melissa rated it:

If you've ever held something really old in your hands and wondered, "what was life like when this was made?" The Source is a chance to have your musings answered. Michener weaves fiction and history together seamlessly as he intertwines a narrative of an archeological dig in the 1960s (think: Indiana Jones without the bullwhip) with the stories of the artifacts and the people who created them. He traces the history of a single town in Israel/Palestine through the ages - from man's More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jan 08, 2009

April rated it:

Loved it! It's daunting since it's over 1000 pages and has been on my shelf since my mom gave it to me in high school or college. I finally picked it up in August and had a rough start with it, but once I got going, found it facinating and more of a history lesson that I feel I got in school (even though it's fiction.)

I would recommend it strongly to anyone interested in world history (any era) and world religions. It was particularly relevant to the past weeks events in Gaza. Many p More...

2 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 23, 2010

Kate rated it:

I read this book many years ago and loved it then. With my upcoming trip to Isreal I had to go back to this one and am enjoying it more the second time around. Of course I don't really remember what I read in 1969 so it's all new again. Chock full of history specifically to the area we will be visiting. Can't wait. Too bad I couldn't get it on Kindle.

6 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 21, 2007

Marsha rated it:

This book chronicles the history of the Jewish people from caveman times to the present. Actually, the caveman wasn't Jewish, but his descendants were. I kind of skipped through the caveman part (I'm not really into that) but found the bulk of the book which is based on history fascinating and compelling. How Michener tells the story is he goes through the layers at an archealogical dig site and each layer tells a story. Jewish history is amazing. Two final notes: If your sympathies lie more tow More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Dec 17, 2009

Abby rated it:

This is typical Michener, and he went on the archaeological excavations at Hazor to research it. I really loved it when I read it in junior high, which I did partly to prove that I could read such long books. I reread it several times afterwards. Now, as an archaeologist who specialized in ancient Israel, I can say that it's a fun book to read, but the interpretations are sensationalist, overtly Zionist, and now out of date. On the other hand, it probably stirs up interest in my field, and i More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 03, 2012

Connie rated it:

This is fiction! There is so much of the Biblical history of the Jews intertwined that I had to keep reminding myself - this is fiction! Three archaeologists, in dig which reveals centuries of life in the fictional city of Makor, are Jewish, Arab, and Catholic Christian. Their interactions based on the histories and the living out of their particular faiths is fascinating - a wonderful historical and contemporary review. Here are some quotes that leaped out to me:

Page 330 - “...th More...

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Jul 29, 2011

Jamie rated it:

The Source is a thing of beauty in its planning and intricacies. This books is three things at once: A novel, a collection of short stories, and a history of religion from ancient times through to the modern era, and it works wonderfully on all three levels, though it is best as a novel since every story actually ties together in the end, much like one would expect human history to do. Everything is connected, and that includes us all as people. Most of all, though, if you have any interest i More...

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Apr 13, 2011

Jessica rated it:

Another epic novel by my favorite author. This book was a beast to get through and I've been reading it off and on for months now. It was utterly fascinating. The book is about the land we now call Israel. It starts with primitive peoples and their creation of "religions". There were many difficult things to read about such as killing of 1st born sons to the God Baal. (I think) -symbolic of things to come? The Jews were of course the central characters in this story and the evolution o More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 06, 2011

Natalie rated it:

The current news of a 1,500 year old church uncovered in an archaeological dig in Israel was like déjà vu for me after reading The Source early this New Year's.

This picture above, and its story could be straight out of a movie version of The Source. I think the book's dig was based on Tel Megiddo, but Michener observed archaeologists at work at Hazor to prepare for writing this book.

As you can tell from reading the other reviews here, the confl More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 06, 2010

Dick rated it:

This book should be required reading for all students. Michener uses his historical fiction style to trace the development of the worlds three great religons (jewish, Christian and muslim) through the story of the family of UR. The UR family's orgin was in the caves of Makor in 10,000 BCE. The story is based on a dig in the Tell of Makor in 1964. Makor is a fictional place that had been refered to in the old testament. The dig is made by a group from Chicago but most of the workers are from the More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 04, 2010

Phoenix rated it:

I can't help putting five stars on this and most of Michener's novels. I read this more slowly than usual and consequently had already forgotten some things I learned at the beginning. But I get the feeling that if in my history class any teacher had handed me any Michener book, my classmates and I would not have been sleeping and acting up. This one dealt with the Holy Land, from the time when man was first a man (out of ape-stage, still living in a cave) and built the first house. And it m More...

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Oct 29, 2011

Michael rated it:

I have mixed fond and not so fond memories about "The Source." I am a huge Michener fan and have read all of his books. "The Source" is at the top of my Michener list along with "The Drifters." I started "The Source" in 1974 when I was visiting Israel, the subject of the book. Part of my visit included a bus tour of Israel. I was delighted to read about a place, then reach the actual site of which Michener was writing. The problem was that, about the More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jun 23, 2010

Oobydoo65 rated it:

I have read this torn, twenty-five year old copy three times now. No easy feet, as it is one of the thicker michener books. The first time I read it, Iwanted to convert to Judaism and go to Israel and live on a kibbutz. I wanted to dig in the dirt and find relics and artifacts that would confirm the existence of God. I wanted to be a part of the spirit that was behind the community of believers, scientists, anthropologists. The educated and strong. I wanted to get tan and lean and smart and worl More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 20, 2009

Steve rated it:

long, worth it. A trip through mideast history from the perspective of layers of archaeological dig. Way back, to 10,000 years ago, then up through Canaanites, Hebrews, Phoenicians, early Christians, Greece, Rome, Arabs, Turks, Crusaders. Michener seems to paint the Crusaders the least sympathetically, but maybe early Europe was just that dark.

Hard to know how historically accurate, but probably good enough for a deep sense of the conflicts over land, water, religion, sex. If you do More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Jun 15, 2011

Manugw rated it:

A GREAT EPIC PORTRAYAL OF THE HISTORY OF THE JEWS, BUT..

Departing from a digging in an archeological place where important ancient pieces are dug up, Michener reconstructs the whole history of the Jewish people from the early beginnings of Judaism to the contemporary sabra fighting for Israel independence in the XX century
Every chapter develops over a period in history and relates to a piece found and later traced to that specific time

Positive: Though recreated with More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 10, 2012

Walt rated it:

This is a difficult review to write. I found the characters that the author created to be pretty compelling, and that's what kept me reading the more than 1,000 pages. But the overall message of the book is disappointing, and maybe even maddening. In making this book primarily about the trevails of Jews in creating their own state, Michener pretty much dismisses the idea of God as an invention of human beings. And while one might take what is written as simply a storyline of the imagination, it More...

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Nov 13, 2011

Nancy added it

I vaguely remember reading (or skimming) The Source years ago in high school but know I never gave it the concentration it deserves. Just finished it last week and will probably re-read to organize the dates and civilizations better. I found it to be highly readable as a novel, and would appeal to a wide range of readers, interested in Middle East affairs, interested in development of Christianity, interested in enduring Judaism? I am involved in Christian education, and a nonspecialist stude More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 12, 2009

Michelle rated it:

Finally! I finished this big monster!!! Started it two years ago, got too overwhelmed with all the suffering, and finally picked it back up last month. I had to re-read about 300 pages to get back in the flow, so it made a very long book (1087 pages) even longer! Anyway, as with all Michener books, it gives a deep feel of the place over time. I was familiar with Israel's history during the Old and New Testament eras, but wanted to see the whole sweep, from the beginning (minus the caveman) More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 24, 2009

Marit rated it:

This behemoth of a book goes from pre-historical times through 1964 (when the book was actually written) focused on one main area in modern-day Israel. Michener uses the concept of an archeological shaft digging straight down through the fictionalized ruins of Makor to explore the fluxes of people and religion in Israel. While Romans, Crusaders, Turks, and Arabs influence the genealogy and culture strongly, it is the Jews that Michener is most focused on: who they are, what it means to be a Jew, More...

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Jul 07, 2009

Squidbandit rated it:

A good friend of mine gave me an old used version of this book. It's nicely bound, and it's kind of old, so I thought it was cool. However, it sat on my shelf looking old until I finally decided to read it some time later. I thought it was a darn good book, tracking the fictionalized development of religion from its presumed start in small townships up through modern Judaism (it focuses on how the Hebrew religion grows). I've not read any other Michener, but this book has made me want to at More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Sep 05, 2009

Jacki rated it:

Although it took me two tries and then a month and a half of solid read to literally tunnel through this book the past few days i find myself wanting to pick it up and read more into the story. It was an excellent book with lots of trials and tribulations that gave one an insight that is much appreciated by this reader. I think back to the wonderful person who recommended this book to me and can smile now in her memory for I understand what she couldn't convey in our briefest of conversations o More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 10, 2011

Kevin rated it:

one of my favorite books ever that i return to every few years. a long book? i hadn't remembered its length. all i know is that each time i finish it i wish there was more. as an american child living around the mediterranean fifty years ago, i lived near and ran and played in ancient cities, often tripped over partially-buried relics. to touch the fact of another person standing and living and just BEING in the exact same place as i, only thousands of years before, sparked a fasincation in More...

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Dec 30, 2010

Dean rated it:

The Source, apart from being brilliantly written, is a spectacular account of not only the evolution of religion in pre-monotheistic days, but also an account of the history and evolution of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Following a team of archaeologists working at a sight in northern Israel, the book traces back with a short story for each item found at the dig, citing a major period/event which had a significant impact on ze relig. Also read if you want to understand more about socio-econo More...

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Aug 04, 2009

Annie rated it:

One of my favorite Michener books. About an archeological dig in Israel. Tells the stories of each of the civilizations the archeologists discover, starting with the first aboriginal settlement up through canaanite, jewish, and crusader inhabitants as well as the archeologists themselves and the nearby kibbutz. I believe the story takes place around 1960s.

I love Michener's books, but I have to say they are a lot easier to read if you can get your hands on the readers' digest vers More...

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Mar 29, 2009

January rated it:

Well, I started reading this on March 17, 2006, and I finished it today. Overall, it was a great book - lots of history, and a great view into the live of one town. I enjoyed the snapshots of Makor during the various eras - they were very colourful.

One of the problems that I have with this kind of book is becoming vested in the families that are central to the area. Its always hard to follow who is from what family, and to get to care about them. I didn't feel any emotional con More...

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Nov 11, 2009

Karlheinz rated it:

It's just a genre I like. It's a novel and we can learn history. The story which forms the framework is about a group of archeologist who do field excavation in a place that is now in Israel. Digging deeper end deeper they go back in time starting with finding a bullet. The chapters are about the story around the artefacts. These stories start with "the bee eater" about a man 10000 BC, strives through the ages, covers important events like Massada and finally an episode of one of the m More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)