Gerald Everett Jones's Blog: Gerald Everett Jones - Author, page 15
June 23, 2024
The Eye of the Needle
In a previous post, I wondered about Bible translator George M. Lamsa’s footnote stating that the Aramaic word for camel might be more correctly rendered as rope.
In both Matthew 19:24 and Mark 10:25, Jesus proclaims that a rich man will have more difficulty getting into heaven than a camel (or rope) could pass through the eye of a needle.
In either sense, the point would seem to be that it’s simply impossible.
But some interpretations of this saying imply that there is a way - if the rich man can pass a test.
June 19, 2024
Here's What I'm Wondering About
There is a Syriac edition of the Holy Bible (the Peshitta) translated by linguistic scholar George M. Lamsa and published in English in 1933. The ancient Syriac language was a written version of the Aramaic that Jesus is believed to have spoken. The oldest manuscripts of most if not all of the New Testament were written in Koine Greek. Writings in Koine were widely read among scholars in the Eastern Mediterranean at the time. Bible scholars through the ages have assumed that the authors of the gospels chose to write in Greek so the message could be distributed and read as widely as possible throughout the known world. But those writers must necessarily have worked from the original Aramaic sayings and accounts.
It’s an old saying that youth is wasted on the young. Can the same be said of curiosity?
June 16, 2024
Ever wonder about your father's love stories?
What? Did you think I was talking about side hustles? Not necessarily. But surely he had crushes and teases and flirtations before he and your mother got together.
June 12, 2024
Perplexed? Confused?
Is this Christian fiction?
My cautious answer would be No, not if you’re talking about the typical meaning of the term as a genre in the publishing world and as a category in a bookstore. The Evan Wycliff mysteries don’t assume or even encourage fervent faith. And the stories don’t claim to deliver inspiration, motivation, or epiphany.
But I’d just as cautiously answer Yes to the extent that the stories explore the challenges of holding to faith and hope when dealing with tragedy, especially profound loss.
On many days, Evan Wycliff is a doubter.
June 9, 2024
Book Review - 'The Mission Song' by John le Carré
This le Carré spy thriller is the first-person account of a multilingual interpreter who is drafted by the British Secret Service to both translate during and eavesdrop on a clandestine meeting. Bruno Salvador is a loyal UK subject residing in London. His mixed-race background is Irish and Congolese. His father was a Catholic missionary priest and his mother was a nun. In the coverup of his shameful birth in Congo, his mother was banished into obscurity and his father turned him over to a mission orphanage. The title refers to a hymn of praise sung by schoolchildren and will become a significant plot element.
The secret meeting gathers an unlikely band of conspirators. They are planning a false-flag operation at the airport in Kivu. That mission’s objective is to overthrow the corrupt national government in Kinshasa and install a revered populist leader, one Mwangaza, whose motives might or might not also be corrupt.
The Mission Song: A Novel by John le Carré (Little, Brown)
June 5, 2024
Book Review - 'State of Wonder' by Ann Patchett
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett is undoubtedly literary fiction, albeit with elements of thriller and mystery.
Research biochemist Dr. Marina Singh has been dispatched by Vogel Pharmaceuticals, her Big Pharma employer, on a mission to the Amazon jungle in Brazil. Her lab partner Anders Eckman had been sent there to support pioneering fieldwork undertaken by Dr. Annick Swenson, a blustery, eccentric, and secretive older woman who had mentored Marina in medical school.
State of Wonder: A Novel by Ann Patchett (Harper)
June 4, 2024
How to Lie with Charts
Supplementary CoursewareFull-length seminars stream on Vimeo.Get the Kindle here. The book is also available in paperback and hardcover.
View the seminar videos here.
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June 2, 2024
Book Review - 'Invisible' by Paul Auster
I lament the recent passing of Paul Auster, who fought lung cancer for the past two years. He was 77.
I may have commented here that years ago I spotted him having breakfast in a Brooklyn coffee shop. He was reading a newspaper - emphasis on paper. I thought about approaching him and simply saying I admired him. I wouldn’t have been so brash as to ask him to read any of my work. But I might have been bold enough to suggest he give my regards to Harvey Keitel. I didn’t know the actor, but I’d had several conversations with his assistant and submitted a couple of scripts. I knew they were close friends, dating at least as far back as Keitel’s starring role in the indie movie Smoke, adapted by Auster from his novel and co-produced with Wayne Wang.
Here’s my review of Invisible.
First off, there are many books with the title Invisible. Make sure you get the right one. Paul Auster writes fascinating literary novels, which are often baffling. This book presents four interwoven versions of the same story as told by different narrators.
Invisible by Paul Auster (Henry Holt). Perhaps confusing, the book has been published in multiple editions, all with different covers, and there are books by other authors with the same title.
May 29, 2024
Living the Next Chapter - Podcast with Dave Campbell
This spirited chinwag with perpetually curious Dave wanders all over the place. Perhaps as much fun as you can have with your clothes on.
Feed your curiosity with a paid subscription to this Thinking About Thinking blog. With a paid subscription, you’ll gain access to all the content that’s here, including podcasts, and you’ll be helping us build our worldwide community through storytelling and self-expression. $5 / month or $30 / year
May 26, 2024
Book Review - 'Raven Black' by Ann Cleeves
One of the AI tools I use - not for generating prose but as a writing aid - is Marlowe.ai. This bot serves as a beta reader. I submitted my manuscript of Preacher Stalls the Second Coming, and within 15 minutes the app generated a comprehensive written evaluation. It showed me graphs of reading-level metrics, plot highs and lows, and too-frequent occurrences of words such as apparently. The report also cited authors and titles of books found to be closely comparable.
One of the mystery authors was Ann Cleeves. I hadn’t read her, so naturally I was curious to find similarities. Cleeves has a large body of work and a distinctive voice. Almost all of her books are mysteries. Raven Black might be considered among her best. It won the Duncan Laurie Dagger Award in 2007.
Raven Black: A Thriller by Ann Cleeves (Thomas Dunne Books)
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