As the subtitle explains, this book is an historical view of Jesus' death, not a theological one.
"... this book differs from other books. It comes froAs the subtitle explains, this book is an historical view of Jesus' death, not a theological one.
"... this book differs from other books. It comes from the pen of a classical historian and from the perspective of ancient Roman culture, both of which promise a different, richer, more nuanced understanding of the people and issues at play that make the Passover of AD 33 so compelling and endlessly fascinating." [Loc 162]
In an early chapter Smith provides a short review of the scholastic historical approach. "In particular, we will discuss five [principles]: proximity [in time], corroboration, consistency, cui bono ('to whose good'), and authorial intent" [Loc 575] He likens classical history to building a 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle with only 100 pieces - many of which are broken and scuffed - and with no picture to guide the process. A Classical historian puts the pieces in place to his/her best ability and details the rationale.
Smith explains how three people came together over the Passover to change history: Pontius Pilate - a "marginally competent governor of an obscure Roman province: Judea"; Chanin ben Seth - known in the New Testament as Annas - "a self-made man from a minor priestly family who had risen to the position of high priest of Israel from AD 6 to 15"; and Jesus - "an obscure itinerant Jewish teacher ... far from the urban bustle of Jerusalem" [ Locs 151 -156]
"Pilate appears int he pages of [the chronicles of] Josephus more a an oaf than an ogre." [Loc 1460]. He had gotten crosswise with the Jews over three problems: "Affair of the Standards, the Aqueduct Riot, and the Affair of the Shields" [Loc 1353]. In addition, Pilate's mentor had been executed for treason. Therefore, Pilate couldn't afford many more problems without raising a red flag with the emperor. By AD 33 Pilate knew he needed to support the priestly families in order to have their support.
Smith - using the historical approach outlined above - pays close attention to Jesus' cleansing of the temple. Jesus was not against animal sacrifice nor the presence of money changers "but the ruthless profiteering and exploitation perpetrated by the high-priestly establishment in the name of God." [Loc 229] Jesus was threatening the lucrative business of the Jewish leaders. "From Jesus, perspective, if there was anything that needed cleansing (or perhaps purging is a better word), it was the leadership of the house of Annas." [Loc 2308]
The high priestly families were cognizant of the large group that followed Jesus, so they had to act carefully. In order to prevent a scene, Annas had Jesus arrested at night and brought before a small private gathering of Annas' loyal supporters in his home. Annas needed to share the responsibility with the Roman leadership, so he charged Jesus with "the specific charge, 'King of the Jews', [which] carried with it an implicit threat" against the Roman Empire. [Loc 3048]
Smith makes the point that
"for the trial under Pilate, our evidence is even stronger that the very strong evidence for the high priests' inquest. Our evidence is early, multiple, includes both strong and weak corroboration, and provides opportunity for cross-examination. That there was a trial of Jesus before Pontius Pilate is supported by at least six different sources. It is the highest probability event of anything under consideration in this study and one of the most probable events in all ancient history." [Loc 3337]
Pilate had learned from his earlier problems with the Jewish priestly families. He made sure that Annas and his compatriots expressed themselves clearly that they wanted Jesus to be executed. "[he] forced Annas and his supporters to declare themselves with the utmost clarity" [Loc 3581] ... "For all his blunderings in this early years, from the perspective of Roman governance this was PIlate's finest hour." [Loc 3591]
The book is much more detailed than this (lengthy) summary provides. Smith expertly lays out his evidence in reconstructing the events.
So, of course, Jesus was crucified. Smith is an expert on Roman capital punishment and provides extensive evidence on the methods employed. He warns that this part of the book is grim. He isn't kidding. Smith addresses the topic of whether Jesus was buried.
"[John Dominic] Crossan's [argues] that it is unlikely that Jesus was ever buried after the Roman's crucified him, for, he asserted, denial of burial was part of the standard punishment the Romans meted out to those they executed."[Loc 121]
In fact, Smith argues
"According to Roman law, criminals condemned to death must be buried. Only in the case of the highest form of treason ... was denial of burial permitted (but not required."[Loc 4105
I came upon this book because the author is a history professor where I earned my B.A. - The College of Idaho. With Easter approaching and this being related to one of my areas of interest, reading it was a no-brainer. Mark D. Smith outlines the rules of classical scholarship and shows how he uses them in his study. I hope this doesn't need to be said - but it can be a crazy word sometimes, Smith is not making the case that Jews bear the responsibility for Jesus' crucifixion. So, let's not go there.
My review and rating - as for all my reports - reflects how I react to the book and should not be seen some sort of objective score. I did not love thMy review and rating - as for all my reports - reflects how I react to the book and should not be seen some sort of objective score. I did not love this book but it won the Pulitzer Prize in 2011 - so obviously the experts see it differently from me.
When I first picked out a couple of Jennifer Egan's novels to read I decided to start with Manhattan Beach because the structure of this one sounded daunting - if flashes back and forth from past to present to future focusing on different characters of a loosely bound group. Additionally the point of view switches between first, second, and third person. So, you have to be on your mental toes while reading - I wasn't.
The two main characters are Bernie - a music producer and Sasha - his one time assistant. The books starts with Sasha then jumps to other people who know her or Bernie. It is like a set of short stories rather than a novel - except the chapters all revolve around the two main characters and couldn't stand on their own. In other words - exactly like a book of short stories except they aren't.
When one of the characters - who earlier tried to commit suicide - is high he points to the central point of the book:
"...and the question is, which one is really 'you', the one saying and doing whatever it is, or the one watching?" [Loc 2718]
As we work our way through the story, that is our job: which version of this person is the "real" version. But of course we change through our lives and we are the accumulation of all our history.
We read a couple of direct references to the goon squad; I'll leave it to you to read so I won't spoil it here.
This book really never grabbed me; as a result I'd put it aside for a few days and when I picked it up again the next chapter was in a different time with different characters and a different point of view. As a result I had to keep going back to remind myself who is/was who. My advice is dive in and swim through it quickly. That way it will likely hang together more may resonate better. The stories and characters themselves are interesting and the writing saves this from being a two star book - for me. The story about La Doll - Dolly's - fall, comeback, and retreat is especially good....more
As in Little Fires Everywhere the driving event of the novel is on the first page:
"Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet."[p 1]
Lydia is a highAs in Little Fires Everywhere the driving event of the novel is on the first page:
"Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet."[p 1]
Lydia is a high school teen who is caught in the web of conflicting expectations. Her family is the only Asian town in their midwest community; her mother has put her own lapsed dreams onto Lydia; and her father has done the same - hoping Lydia will be popular.
"And Lydia herself - the reluctant center of their universe - every day, she held the world together. She absorbed her parents' dreams, quieting the reluctance that bubbled within."[p 160]
Yet this is so much more than a novel about a teen's death. We see the dynamics between the mother and father, the three siblings, and the neighbor, Jack. The pressures of life can bring families together or break them apart. And though family members share a lot with one another, it just isn't everything. This novel explores the pressures, consequences, and efforts of the family. It is a detailed and nuanced look into their lives. .
It's fun reading two novels from the same author back-to-back - even though I read them in reverse order of their publication. There are common themes; primarily parents pushing their kids because of their own frustrations. There are common structures - notably starting the story with the climax then circling back from the beginning. But we also get to enjoy the differences and Celeste Ng's beautiful prose style....more
An intricate story about mother and daughter relationships and the tension between following rules or dreams. As the story opens we see the RichardsonAn intricate story about mother and daughter relationships and the tension between following rules or dreams. As the story opens we see the Richardson’s house is burning down. Everyone suspects Izzy, the rebellious younger daughter is to blame.
We then drop back a year – with side trips even earlier – to watch what led up to the fire. Izzy had health problems when she was born and her mother – usually referred to in the book as Mrs. Richardson in the story rather than by here given name of Elena – focused on Izzy with intense passion.
“As time went on, the concern unhooked itself from the fear and took on a life of its own.” [p 110]
Mrs. Richardson is a rule follower; if you learn and follow the rules good things will happen.
“Rules existed for a reason: if you followed them, you would succeed; if you didn’t, you might burn the world to the ground.” [p 161]
She is confronted by another mother/child of Mia – an artist – and her daughter Pearl who challenge this view. The tension in this dynamic is the driving energy of the novel. It is riveting to read how Izzy sees another way to live. But there are other mother/daughter relationships at play. Mia and her daughter, Pearl. Mia and her mother; Mia’s work friend Bebe and her daughter. Mrs. McCullough and her adopted baby. I especially like chapters 8 and 9 about a Madonna and child image in a museum which is affects those relationships.
Although I wanted to dismiss Mrs. Richardson’s pressure on Izzy as terrible; it is also understandable. Mrs. Richardson never saw the poster on the hospital wall that says “Anger is Fear’s Bodyguard.” [p 110] As a parent I know that anger and fear.
Finally, the art work Mia leaves for the Richardson family is beautiful and meaningful to each in a personal way.
I always enjoy reading some beautiful turns of phrase; and this book has plenty of them.
“Half an hour later, the dancing and the liquor and the sweet, heady rush of being eighteen had filled them both with a feverish flush” [p 44] “The silence seemed to stretch itself out like taffy” [p 87] “Beauty rolled off her in waves, like heat” [p 94] “The roots of her irritation were long and many branched and deep.” [p 107] “She had seen Pearl watching Tripp for months, like a mouse watching a cat, longing to be eaten.” [p 317]
Celeste Ng masterfully weaves the many story lines and the associated themes into a wonderful story....more
Sometimes in life you find yourself lost and alone. If you are fortunate, you get another chance. That second chance gives you a better appreciation oSometimes in life you find yourself lost and alone. If you are fortunate, you get another chance. That second chance gives you a better appreciation of your luck. The old bachelor McPheron brothers played a secondary role in Plainsong - the first book in this series. The twins are the center of this book. They became ranchers of their place at 17 when their parents were killed. They'd been together ever since with no wives or girlfriends. Ranching is all they know. In Plainsong they take in an abandoned teen, Victoria Roubideaux. When Eventide picks up the story she is ready to move to Ft Collins for college. She will leave them more lonely than they were when she came into their lives: Raymond tells her "'We're going to miss you too, he said. We'll be about like old played-out workhorses once you're gone. Standing around lonesome, always looking over the fence.'" [p 4] Later Raymond and Victoria are talking on the phone when Victoria is feeling a little homesick. Raymond tells her how much his brother misses Victoria and her daughter "and as he went on in this vein it was clear to the girl that he was talking as much about himself as he was his brother and she felt so moved by this knowledge she was afraid she was going to cry." [p 43] I admit I teared up at this. Haruf knows ranching; his set pieces are clear and dramatic. I love the chapter about the cattle auction with the brothers bringing their cattle in for sale and then sitting through all the auction waiting to see how well they will come out. In another scene they are separating the cows from their calves. It's like we are there. Later, Tom Guthrie and his sons help out at the ranch and once the cattle are separated, one of the sons notes how the cows and calves, separated by a fence: "They make an awful amount of noise, Ike said. They don't seem to like it much." [p 153] The father responded "they never do like it, he said. I can't imagine anything or anybody that would like it. But every living thing in this world gets weaned eventually." [p 153] This theme of loneliness reaches every part of the story; even cows and calves end up alone. Raymond and Harold were the best part of the excellent Plainsong; they get a thorough treatment in this book. Sometimes in fiction you have various characters who all sound the same - not here. They have a collective distinctive voice (if that makes sense) sounding nothing like the other characters in the book. All the characters are distinct. Similar to Plainsong we follow different families in snapshot fashion as they work their ways through problems. It opens with two ineffective parents trying to manage life while being beset and overmatched by their relative Hoyt. There is also DJ a middle school student taking care of his grandfather; and the neighbor girl he bonds with. I can't say more without revealing too much. The book was a bit slow the first few pages as we are dropped into these lives with little in the way of introduction. But once Haruf gets out on the ranch with the McPheron brothers I was hooked. I read all but the first 30 pages in one day - I sat in my chair and read; took a break for lunch, then read some ore; later tore myself away to swim some laps but came right back to read more; then we had to take a break to have dinner with friends. Finally I got back home and read until I finished about midnight. Without being extensively plot driven, this is an exquisite book with realistic characters dealing with what life doles out. I love this book; it takes me back to Terms of Endearment which I read in the early 1980s. I count that novel as one of the best/favorite books I've ever read; Eventide matches it. Come for the McPheron brothers and stay for the whole story. Read it....more
Some spoilers here - "Dad's" death doesn't count as a spoiler because we see it on page 1.
In the first page "Dad" Lewis learns his cancer can't be stoSome spoilers here - "Dad's" death doesn't count as a spoiler because we see it on page 1.
In the first page "Dad" Lewis learns his cancer can't be stopped. We watch him reflect on some key relationships as he fades. Although there is death and broken relationships in the first two books of the Plain Song trilogy, this last book is the darkest.
"By the beginning of September the dirt would be piled over what was leftof him out at the cemetery three miles east of town, Someone would cut his name into the face of a tombstone and it would be as if he nevel was." [p 5]
In Plainsong and Eventide we mostly see people who have chances at relationship with others and take them - or at least move toward the new. Dad won't be able to do that. His one true love, his wife was his luck and allowed him to build a better life after leaving an abusive home as a young teen. The husband and wife relationship is all we expect from the Kent Haruf novels. Even though she ends up in the hospital with exhaustion, she walks away and miles back home to take care of her dying husband.
Although everyone calls him "Dad" he hasn't always been the loving dad - but more the stern dad. Talking with his daughter, Lorraine we see the situation in a nutshell.
You know how much they think of you. Well, I think a lot of them too. But they never say much, do they, They never say much to me. You don't let people, Daddy. You never have. You think that's what it is? Yes, I do. [p 160]
Like the other two books in the series we also get looks into the lives of other inhabitants of Holt, Colorado; many of whom have parallel struggles: mother and daughter Alene; the little girl Alice across the street, and the the new minister and his troubled family. Some take the opportunity for relationship regardless of the cost; others pass.
In the three novels, Haruf urges us to take chances on opening our hearts with other people. In the two earlier stories the McPheron brothers opened their lives to Victoria and her daughter; later Raymond McPheron finds romantic love. Dad Lewis found love and luck with his wife but unfortunately not in some of the other big relationship events in his life. We do see him trying to change; which is hopeful.
Benediction is a nice counterpoint to the other two novels. I don't recommend starting here; work your way through the series from the start....more
Note: I'm not trying to be coy in this review; I'm trying to describe it without spoiling the story for you. Jennifer Egan won the Pulitzer Prize for hNote: I'm not trying to be coy in this review; I'm trying to describe it without spoiling the story for you. Jennifer Egan won the Pulitzer Prize for her novel "A Visit From the Goon Squad". I read the reviews and thought the plot structure might be a little confusing so I picked up "Manhattan Beach" to become accustomed to her style.
Before World War II young Anna accompanied her father on his errands and quick meetings members of the underworld. But when he switched employers he stopped inviting her along. And then he disappeared. "How could he stay away when she was waiting so hard? She had never cried. When she'd believed he was about to return, there had been nothing to cry about, and when at last she'd stopped believing, it was too late. His absence had calcified." [p59] Then we find her a few years later when she is working on the New York navy docks during the war. We follow an excellent tale of her growing up and moving on after her sick sister dies and her mother leaves for Minnesota. As a single woman she is disliked by "the marrieds" at her job: "they treated her with bruised politeness, as if their husbands had whispered her name in their sleep." [p 129] Anna is a strong willed woman who, against all odds, is determined to be a diver - in the old suits and brass helmets with air supplied from an overhead barge - to repair ships. Eventually Anna connects with one of the men whom she visited with her father and gets closer to the secret of what happened to him. The book is a bit slow at the beginning but from this point forward is a riveting page turner full of drama and suspense. This novel has a beautiful structure. We see foreshadowing and parallel relationships throughout. During one visit with her dad Anna helps some kids who are having a hard time putting together a train set. "They always looked [at the pieces], which was as useless when assembling things as studying a picture by touching it." [p 5] I originally highlighted this because I loved the description but later found it was a foreshadow of her first test in a diving suit. There is also a parallel between and exhausted Anna climbing the ladder in her diving suit and a difficulty another character had. Both found "there was just enough each time for one more [movement]." [p 359] We also find a parallel relationship between the Third Mate on a tramp steamer and the bosun; and Anna with the Lieutenant in charge of the diving program. It's not all about the diving; Anna has other struggles through her efforts to find out what happened to her father. But she continues to adjust and move forward with every challenge. This is an excellent book with great characters and a tense well-paced plot. It's easy to see why the author won the Pulitzer Prize with her earlier work. I've found another seam of ore in my book mining. ...more
I work at Oregon Health Health & Science University which is comprised of hospitals, medical schools, and research facilities. Each year we are enI work at Oregon Health Health & Science University which is comprised of hospitals, medical schools, and research facilities. Each year we are encouraged to get our flu vaccines - even those of us with no clinical responsibilities. My physician also recommends I get a flu shot and I have for as long as I remember. As I was standing in line to receive my vaccine this year I got to wondering about influenza and remembered hearing about a deadly epidemic in 1918. I came across this comprehensive study of the disease. John Barry tells the story of the deadliest epidemic through three lenses: the development of modern medicine that was occurring at the time, the mechanics of the disease itself, and the impact of public health and public policy - or lack thereof. The disease is popularly known as the Spanish Influenza but Barry argues that it may have come from Kansas. As World War I was ramping up, the draft pulled thousands of young men into overcrowded camps for training. A couple of men came from an area in Kansas where people complained of influenza symptoms. "On March 4 a private at [Camp] Funston, a cook, reported ill with influenza at sick call. Within three weeks more than eleven hundred soldiers were sick enough to be admitted to the hospital, and thousands more - the precise number was not recorded - needed treatment at infirmaries scattered around the base." [Loc 1576] Within a matter of weeks "like falling dominoes, other camps erupted with influenza. In total, twenty-four of the thirty-six largest army camps experienced an influenza outbreak that spring. Thirty of the fifty largest cities in the country, most of them adjacent to military facilities, also suffered an April spike in 'excess mortality' from influenza, although that did not become clear except in hindsight." [Loc 2636] This was the first wave of the disease. Overall, through three waves "[e]pidemiologists today estimate that influenza likely caused at least fifty million deaths worldwide, and possibly as many as one hundred million."[Loc 149 ] Barry covers the technical details of the virus which invades cells that have energy and then, like some alien puppet master, subverts them, takes them over, forces them to make thousands, and in some cases hundreds of thousands, of new viruses" [Loc 1606] The influenza virus is incredibly nimble mutating very quickly. It would soon turn more deadly. "When the 1918 virus jumped from animals to people and began to spread, it may have suffered a shock of its own as it adapted to a new species. Although it always retained hints of virulence, this shock may well have weakened it, making it relatively mild; then, as it became better and better at infections its new hose, it turned lethal" [Loc 2767] It was up to humans to try to contain it. William Henry Welch led the charge. He was responsible for pulling medicine from the dark ages into the scientific era. "Welch had turned the Hopkins model into a force. He and colleagues at Michigan, at Penn, at Harvard, and at a handful of other schools had in effect first formed an elite group of senior officers of an army; then, in an amazingly brief time, they had revolutionized American medicine, created and expanded the officer corps, and begun training their army, an army of scientists and scientifically grounded physicians." [Loc 1457] Prior to modernization medical students did not perform autopsies or see patients; rather they took art of less than a year of lectures. [Loc 569]. Welch and his colleagues brought the scientific method to studying the disease. "It was the first great collision between a natural force and a society that included individuals who refused either to submit to that force or to simply call upon divine intervention to save themselves from it, individuals who instead were determined to confront this force directly, with a developing technology and with their minds." [Loc 168] This battle is the primary focus of the book; Barry does a wonderful job bringing these people to life. Although they were not immediately successful in stopping influenza, they did know how to combat its spread. Here we look through Barry's third lens on the disease. Caught up in war fever, the military and public officials paid no mind. Warned to quarantine transferring soldiers, the military changed nothing. This caused the spread of the disease to the camps and to the war in Europe. Public officials did little either. Often these officials were products of political machines such as Tammany Hall in New York who achieved their post due to connections rather than any skill. At the same time information was not published in the press for morale reasons. As a result people were fearful - they knew the disease was in their midst but there was no information on what to do - even though the scientists and provided information. "As terrifying as the disease was, the press made it more so. They terrified by making little of it, for what officials and the press said bore no relationship to what people saw and touched and smelled and endured." [Loc 5199] The head of the Public Health Service - made part of the military by Woodrow Wilson - "had done nothing ... to prepare the Public Health Service, much less the country for the onslaught." [Loc 4804] Even though the military draft was suspended, "Blue still did not organize a response to the emergency. Instead, ... [he] reiterated to the press that there was no cause for alarm." [Loc 4825] The second wave of the disease was much more lethal there were not enough doctors and nurses to treat the afflicted. Harriet Ferell recalled "an open truck came through the neighborhood and picked up the bodies. There was no place to put them, there was no room." [Loc 5082] Although the entire social system was on the verge of collapse and the industrial output of the country was in peril [Loc 5165] "no national official ever publicly acknowledged the danger of influenza." [Loc 5188] On the political front, Barry argues that Woodrow Wilson contracted influenza at the peace talks and his weakened condition caused him to give in to French demands for reparations thus setting the conditions for World War II. [Loc 6062] Influenza is serious and though we have vaccines to combat certain strains it still has the potential to kill hundreds of thousands of people in the United States. The Center for Disease Control says that the worst case scenario 422,000 Americans would die. [Loc 7064] John M. Barry deftly pulls together the three strands of history, the development of modern medicine, and the importance of public health policy to weave a fascinating story of this deadly period. Barry blames public officials for their ineptness at handling this pandemic. "Those in authority must retain the public's trust. The way to do that is to distort nothing, to put the best face on nothing, to try to manipulate no one. Lincoln said that first, and best. Leadership must make whatever horror exists concrete. Only then will people be able to break it apart."[Loc 7230] Let me stand up a little higher on my soap box here. It is clear that influenza is different from the common cold virus. It is deadly. I often hear people tell me that they got sick even though they got their flu shot. Well, they may have gotten a cold; but they probably didn't get the flu. A few years ago I called the nurse advice line thinking I had the flu. The nurse asked if I could stand up; when I said "yes" she said, you don't have the flu. If you had the flu you probably wouldn't be able to make a phone call. Do yourself a favor; get the annual flu vaccine. As long as this reading report is, you probably figure I've covered it all or even transposed it. But I've only scratched the surface. Although this is a narrow subject it is a fascinating read. ...more
What would you give up for your friend's or loved one's happiness? In the early 20th century a husband and soon-to-be father commits suicide by blowinWhat would you give up for your friend's or loved one's happiness? In the early 20th century a husband and soon-to-be father commits suicide by blowing up his apartment. A nun, Sister St Saviour, visits in the aftermath to comfort the widow and straighten things up. Later her granddaughter comments about the nuns: "For years we believed the Little Nursing Sisters of the Sick Poor, Congregation of Mary Before the Cross, appeared in every household whenever crisis or illness disrupted the routine, whenever a substitute was needed for She Who Could Not Be Replaced"[Loc 954] The mother, Sally, goes to work in the convent laundry and the daughter, Annie, grows up among the nuns. As their lives progress we see their strengths and weaknesses. On the practical side, this novel is an illuminating study of the work nuns did back before there were social programs and safety nets. They worked HARD to comfort the afflicted sacrificing so much to pursue their calling. Alice McDermott's descriptions are beautiful: "The contrast of the nun's broad black back, solid and shapeless in her veil, and the woman's thin, bare, flailing white extremities was groteque, startling. They might have been two distinct species: an ostrich in the arms of a great black bear, a grasshopper in the beak of an enormous raven."[Loc 1312] Will Sally pursue that calling? Twice we are told that love is a tonic, not a cure. And yet two of the characters do so much for this tonic. This is a beautiful novel; but if you are new to Alice McDermott, I recommend starting with "Someone".
My favorite book of the past few years. Kent Haruf has written a stunning character study of a group of loosely related people in the small town of HoMy favorite book of the past few years. Kent Haruf has written a stunning character study of a group of loosely related people in the small town of Holt, Colorado. The story follows the lives of a father and his two sons as they deal with their wife/mother drifting away from them; a struggling teenage girl kicked out of her house; and two elderly bachelor farmers. There is a bit of plot tying the narrative together but for the most part it is a study of relationships and the fierce unforgiving world of the plains. The authors writing is breathtaking with beautiful descriptions of the world: "But the air was turning sharp, with a fall feeling of loneliness coming." [p 27] Coming early in the story this line sets the tone. Everyone has struggles: "The girl looked tired ands sad, the blanket wrapped about her shoulders as though she were some survivor of a train wreck of flood, the sad remnant from some disaster that had passed through and done its damage and gone on." [p 31] But there is also plenty of wry humor; I love his descriptions of the elderly brothers which sets the stage for their characters: "They looked as stiff and motionless as if they'd been shaped out of plaster and then stood up on the porch like two lifelike statues of minor saints." [p 117] This novel is full of realistic people struggling to find rewarding relationships in an otherwise lonely world. It is beautifully written. It's difficult to provide some of the later beautiful passages without spoiling the plot. I just love this book, which was a National Book Award Finalist. Just before stumbling across it, I felt as though I'd exhausted my modern fiction mine; but discovering Kent Haruf has written at least five other novels I feel like I've hit a vein of gold. Even better, Plainsong is the first of a three book series; I can hardly wait to dive into Eventide and Benediction.
A collection of four long short stories with each capturing a moment in people's lives where relationships are changing. In "Horseman" we encounter aA collection of four long short stories with each capturing a moment in people's lives where relationships are changing. In "Horseman" we encounter a female college professor paralleling her academic life - in which she challenges a plagiarizing student with her personal life and her own history. "Voice" is a slight reworking (or maybe just straight re-publishing) of his earlier story "Nate In Venice". Nate, another academic has left teaching after a traumatic experience and his trying to reconnect with the world in general, and his obnoxious brother in particular. "Intervention" shows the relationship of two couples - one of whom needs surgery but is not facing it. It captures a terrific moment that goes a long way to show why long-term relationships can work: "He and Paula had been married for close to thirty years, thanks in large part to a mutual willingness to let an arched eyebrow do the heavy lifting of soliloquy." [p 136]. As a person married over 40 years I can say that perfectly captures a part of married life. "Milton and Marcus" shows a film writer trying to reconnect with his career while his wife is sick. As one relationship - writing - may be picking up; the other may be ending. This short but beautiful collection of stories is Russo in a nutshell, capturing people in their innermost thoughts as they work their way through the world - either successfully or not. The world just never stops: "Hanging up, I felt worse for Cassie than myself. Because this brutal world simply will not spare you - even when you're young - knowledge of the work in the apple." [p 242]
In early November 2017 I read a New York Times article of a new translation of The Odyssey – the first English translation by a woman.(NY Times “The FIn early November 2017 I read a New York Times article of a new translation of The Odyssey – the first English translation by a woman.(NY Times “The First Woman to Translate the ‘Odyssey’ into English” November 2) That got my attention – I never really thought about the fact that it has been a man’s world up to now. I was then grabbed by her account of struggling with the fifth word of the poem – “polytropos”. That word gets to the heart of describing the hero. It can be translated as either the ‘much turning’ or ‘much turned’ (NY Times November 2, 2017). “Much turning” reveals the wily side of Odysseus; the man who cleverly disguises himself and lies in order to prevail. “Much turned” describes his plight in being pursued and helped by the gods Poseidon and Athena. Watson settles on
“Tell me about a complicated man” (1:1)
I had also heard that this translation is translated into a more modern meter to make sense to our modern ears. Even though I had read the Robert Fagles translation in 2010, I knew I’d have to read this one.
Emily Watson is breaking new ground here; I love her unapologetic take on this work:
“It is traditional in statements like this Translator’s Note to bewail one’s own inadequacy when trying to be faithful to the original. Like many contemporary translation theorists, I believe that we need to rethink the terms in which we talk about translation. My translation is, like all translations, an entirely different text from the original poem. Translation always, necessarily, involves interpretation; there is no such thing as a translation that provides anything like a transparent window through which a reader can see the original” [p 86]
This thought struck me back in the 1970’s when I studied literature and could not figure why in the world Alexander Pope would translate it into rhyming couplets. That was definitely a reflection of the times when this form was considered the way to bring order and control to the world.
This is definitely a translation for our times – it is quick-paced and clear. That being said, I understand why so many people have terrible memories of reading The Odyssey in high school. The story is quite convoluted. We get many stories within stories. In fact, the scenes we are so familiar with – the cyclops, the Lotus Eaters, the Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis, are short and not described in the normal sequence of events; but are told my Odysseus in hindsight. Because Odysseus has to carefully consider his words and actions in order to get home safely, we see him taking on other names and retelling parts of the story from that point of view. Watson’s translation helps break down some of those barriers.
Regardless, the pace is quick and I could see how it could be turned into a modern day action movie. When he throws off his last disguise to battle the suitors we get graphic descriptions of him shooting an arrow through one man’s throat and just above another man’s nipple. The violence is sometimes quite graphic. In describing the the cyclops killing his men we read:
“…, he reached his hands toward my men, seized tow, and kocked them hard against the groiund like puppies, and the floor was wet with brains.” [9: 288-290]
then later as the drunk monster slept
“… All-conquering sleep took him. In drunken heaviness, he spewed wine from his throat, and chunks of human flesh.” [9:372-374]
It totally sucks for Odysseus that Polyphemus is related to Poseidon who plagues the city-sacker for many years.
Even though Watson does away with the repeated phrases describing people and gods (a method for oral reciters to keep the listeners in the loop) she does a great job showing us who he is.
“Odysseus, with careful calculation said” [p 215]
“Odysseus, the city-sacker” [p 220]
“the clever mastermind of many schemes” [p 236]
“Wily Odysseus, the lord of lies, …” [p240]
“Odysseus, adept survivor” [p 282]
“Unflappable Odysseus” [p 395]
“Odysseus, the master of every cunning scheme.” [p493]
“Lying Odysseus” [p 516]
Watson has much more to say about the clash of cultures, the plight of slaves, women, and the like. Reading her introduction provides wonderful insight into the ancient culture and her and understanding her word choice. I’m no scholar; I suspect many experts of the Ancient Greek stories will take issue with Watson. But I loved it....more
NOTE: One of these days I'll write a short review; this is not that day. This review is unlike most of my others where I try to go point-by-point throNOTE: One of these days I'll write a short review; this is not that day. This review is unlike most of my others where I try to go point-by-point through the author's arguments, highlighting them with quotes from the book. In this book I give a broad overview of her narrative I then respond with my own opinions. So, much, if not all, of the opinions here are mine and not necessarily the author's.
Since last Fall (2016) I've been reading in an attempt to understand the rise and the gripes of the far right wing (e.g. The Tea Party). This book directly addresses the issue through the "keyhole" topic of pollution in Louisiana. Arlie Hochschild went down to Louisiana for an extended stay getting to know the people in order to understand their political and social views. The book opens with a harrowing tale of the damage done to a bayou from dumping toxic chemicals in the waterways. An old cypress tree forest is just gone. It's no longer safe to eat fish from the water or go swimming in it - or even drink it. But when warning signs went up conservatives in the area were angry at the intrusion of the government into what in their minds should be a private matter.
Fracking breached a salt cavern causing an enormous sinkhole that swallowed everything within hundreds of yards ruining property and homes. Once again, many conservatives objected to any government interference or actions against the company.
Instead, governor Bobby Jindal doubled down on this laissez-faire attitude by cutting the state's budgets for education and social services and gave that money to entice more chemical companies to the state in the hopes of creating more jobs. However, there aren't many low skill / high way jobs from these new sites. Foreign workers were brought in to build the plant, and with increasing automation there is not a much need for manual laborers. Moreover, many high skilled professionals such as engineers aren't interested in going to live in Louisiana because the infrastructure is all but gone and the natural areas are polluted beyond use. In her awesome Appendix C, the author shows that states with stronger environmental law enforcement and better infrastructure actually experience better employment growth.
Hochschild breaks the conservatives into three large, overlapping groups. Loyalists who don't want to turn against the industries that give them jobs; cowboys who just tough it out and figure they can handle anything thrown at them; and, the religious who look to God rather than government for answers. God provides the ability to abide the hard times.
Hochschild reports that some of that distrust of government comes from the south's experiences in the 1860s and 1960s. In the Civil War and Reconstruction the federal government descended on the south and took control of everything in an attempt to bring rights to the newly freed slaves. It is interesting to note that 151 years have passed since the end of the Civil War - much more time than elapsed between the founding of the country and the start of that war.
Then in the 1960s the federal government once again impinged on states' rights by passing the Civil Rights Act. This was later compounded by expanded rights for women, and eventually the LGBTQ community. The decline of church attendance in the country exacerbates the problem - making many conservatives uncomfortable in today's world. The Southern conservatives the author spoke with don't want to be told who to like. They want to like their own kind - straight white folk (though Hochschild doesn't say it as plainly as that). They only want to help their Christian friends. This, in my opinion, is flawed theology. The very heart of the New Testament calls for a new covenant. All three of the synoptic gospels quote Jesus as saying there are only two commandments. First, love God; and the "second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself". And who is your neighbor? The parable of the Good Samaritan makes it plain that our neighbors are everyone.
Hochschild developed a "deep story" metaphor of waiting in line for the American Dream. Poor, uneducated, white southerners have been standing in line waiting for their turn. Now government and society are giving other people cuts ahead of them in line. The blacks were given better places; then women; then foreigners and gay people.
That metaphor may give them reason to complain and feel like victims (though they chafe at that term) but it is fundamentally flawed. We can think of it as a line; but that line is horizontal, not vertical. I think of it like the Oklahoma land rush where people lined up horizontally at the territory border and took off at the canon shot to find their slice of the American dream. The poor, uneducated, conservative southern whites are feeling displaced not because others have received cuts in the vertical line, but because those people have been given equal place in the horizontal line. If everyone is equal, the whites lose the benefits of place. And really, those other groups aren't given an equal place in the horizontal starting line; rather, they are just moved up a bit but really are still behind whites in many ways.
Finally, the "facts" that are quoted by the people in the book are often wildly wrong. Appendix C goes through many of these so-called facts and disputes them with the real facts and figures. Certainly the poor, white, conservatives are under attack in today's world. They are being pinched by the three forces Thomas Friedman writes about in "Thank You For Being Late": Globalization, Climate Change, and Technology. These forces are causing fundamental changes in our society and if you don't keep up, you'll be left behind. The salad days of the 60s and 70s are gone; the low-skill / high-wage jobs of the past (auto workers for example) are disappearing; replaced by technology (robots) and overseas workers. No amount of complaining, wall building, tariffs, treaty-leaving, and isolation will work. The plight of the poor, unskilled, uneducated - whatever their politics or color - is only going to get worse. I don't see that the Tea Party's efforts to go back in time is going to fix that. It's up to our politicians and leaders to change that narrative. Unfortunately, the Democrats have been too focused on identity politics to really touch the hearts of the poor, uneducated white people.
This tremendous book concisely and (I think) accurately reporting the root causes of the conservative movement today. If you want to understand how Donald Trump became president, this is an excellent place to start. But just because the reporting is accurate doesn't mean the right-wing viewpoint is accurate. Their facts are often wrong (see Appendix C) and I argue their theology is wrong. And because the basis is wrong, their solutions of isolation and retrenchment are fundamentally flawed. They have the right to be wrong; I just wish they weren't so powerful. But that power means they must be addressed.
"As the subtitle says, the Tet Offensive in February 1968 was the beginning of the end of American involvement in the Vietnam War. The US top military"As the subtitle says, the Tet Offensive in February 1968 was the beginning of the end of American involvement in the Vietnam War. The US top military, led by General Westmoreland, failed to discover the build up and failed to respond appropriately once the attacks started. ""Nowhere in [Westmoreland's] understanding of the war was there room for the size an quality of the force that had taken Hue. So the MACV [headquarters] in Saigon and General LaHue in Phu Bai, simply refused to believe it had happened. Reports that contradicted this high-level understanding were dismissed as unreliable, the cries of men facing real combat for the first time, and panicking. Against the certainties of the American command, the truth never stood a chance."" [Loc 2527] Westmoreland's estimates of the enemy force was 500 ""off by a factor of twenty.""[Loc 2527"""" The result of the ignorance and denial was to send Marines and Army ""on a fool's errand immediately on arrival at the compound [of Hue]""[Loc 2010] ""Westmoreland seemed almost oblivious to the largest single battle of the Tet Offensive, if not of the entire war, under way in Hue. His forces there were badly outnumbered, struggling, and dying.""[Loc 3206] And the enemy was not what had been experienced before. ""[Marine Calvin] Hart had come to Vietnam expecting to fight amateurs, little men in black pajamas and conical hats who were no match for United States Marines. But the enemy encountered in Hue was tough and professional, every bit their match. These fighters were uniformed and well-equipped, and they set up defensive positions and fields of fire as good as anything taught by the Corps""[Loc 7421] As American deaths mounted in the face of the Army commands assurances the battle was nothing, the American public started to turn against the war. Perhaps the biggest force of change in America's understanding of war was Walter Cronkite's reporting after his visit to the war zone. If you are younger than maybe 50 you may not have an appreciation of Cronkite's impact on public opinion. He was the anchor of the CBS news when there were only three or four national networks. Cronkite's nightly newscast was the most watched. ""[W]hen he interviewed Westy in his crisp fatigues and with a chrome0-plated AK-47 in his office as a prop, the general seemed even more cocksure than usual. He repeated the official line that Tet had been a big success for his forces. He declared the battle of Hue over. He said that US forces and ARVN troops had soundly defeated ten thousand NVA and VC troops there - blithely contradicting his earlier assertion that there were no more than a few hundred enemy soldiers in the city.l Then Cronkite flew to Hue, where ten minutes on the ground was enough to show none of it was true. The battle was still raging.""[Loc 5865] When he returned to the states he delivered a pessimistic editorial on the state of the war. ""Cronkite's cautious pessimism had tremendous impact and made it much harder to dismiss those who opposed the war as 'hippies' or un-American. It was hard to image an American more conventional and authentic than Walter Cronkite.""[Loc 8118] ""Tet had exposed Westy as an untrustworthy source of information, not just to the press and public, but even in his secret communications to the White House.""[Loc 7989] One of the book's biggest strengths is the view of the battle for Hue from the North Vietnamese side. Bowden was able to interview participants from The Front and the NVA, providing a narrative of the lead up to the battle. His other strength is his gripping storytelling of the battle from the American side. The description of Lieutenant Colonel Ernie Cheatham's analysis of a battle situation where troops are pinned down by a machine gun shows the stuff heroes are made of: ""Cheatham studied the problem himself. He crawled out to a telephone pole and waited for the gun to fire. It was using green tracers, so he could see the trajectory of its rounds. He noticed that when it shot at things to its left, ... the rounds were low, but whenever the gun shot to its right ..., the aim was high. This suggested that the gunner's field of fire was obstructed by something on that side, something that forced him to aim the gun up. If he was right, Cheatham figured there was a spot near him out on the street where a man could stand up and still be too low for the machine gun.""[Loc 4543] It takes a real soldier to keep cool in the heat of battle like that. Bowden's biggest weakness is discounting the impact of the battle of Khe Sanh on the battle for Hue. Bowden continually hammers on Westmoreland for his moving forces to Khe Sanh for the coming offensive. But if my understanding is right, the battle of Khe Sanh was actually happening at the same time. The Tet Offensive and attack on Hue was February 1968 while the battle of Khe Sanh went from late January into the spring of the same year. All in all the Marines and Army officers who were leading the men in battle were made victims of the higher ups who simply refused to see the battle for what it was. ""This refusal to face facts was not just a public relations problem; it had tragic consequences for many of the marines and soldiers who fought there. If the extent of the challenge had been weighed realistically at the outset, if commanders had heeded the entirely correct CIS assessment on the first day, and if they had listened to their own field commanders, they might have held off the counterattack until they had readied an appropriate level of force and more effective tactics.""[Loc 8341] There is a lesson here for all leaders - not just military: be open to new information and act on it. ...more
This is the third book I've written by Mary Roach (the others being 'Bonk' and 'Packing for Mars') and is my favorite so far. In this book Roach coverThis is the third book I've written by Mary Roach (the others being 'Bonk' and 'Packing for Mars') and is my favorite so far. In this book Roach covers the science and technology of keeping soldiers safe and effective in war - sometimes (oftentimes) conflicting goals. [Note: In the interest of brevity, I refer to "soldiers" or "Marines" in this review interchangeably for all the military - yes, I know they refer to different branches of the military.] Some of the topics are how to protect soldiers from IEDs when riding in troop carriers; the effect of noise on soldiers; training for medics; treatment of genital mutilation as a result of battle; diarrhea; shark repellent; and the effect of irregular sleep patterns for submariners. A big problem in battle is the kicking in of the "fight or flight response" which makes one "fast, strong, and dumb"; [Loc 1294] while this response kept primitive man alive "when threats took the form of man-eating mammals, when hurling a rock superhumanly hard or climbing a tree superhumanly fast gave you the edge that might keep you alive." [Loc 1294] "The technical term for f***in' tunnel vision is attentional narrowing. It's another prehistorically helpful but now potentially disastrous feature of the survival stress response. One focuses on the threat to the exclusion of almost everything else."[Loc 1378] This can be a problem for a medic trying to help a Marine in the middle of battle. The resulting reduction of fine motor skills is a big problem for medics who are working with the "growing sophistication and miniaturization of medical equipment." Add to this the motions and vibrations of a medevac flight, and you start to gain an appreciation for the military medic's challenges." [ Loc 1294] Of course the military has a way of training medics to deal with this - which she takes part in and describes. Mary Roach sticks up for scientists' contributions to the military. When talking about a Sergeant supporting the needs of platoon; she argues that s/he needs to have a wealth of information. "I agree that squad leaders are in the best position to know what and how much their men and women need to bring on a given mission. But you want those squad leaders to be armed with knowledge, and not all knowledge comes from experience. Sometimes it comes from a pogue at USUHS who's been investigating the specific and potentially deadly consequences of a bodybuilding supplement [which is used A LOT in the military] Or an army physiologist who puts men adrift in life rafts off the dock at a Florida air base and discovers that wetting your uniform cools you enough to conserve 74 percent more of your body fluids per hour."[Loc 1705] Through it all Mary writes with her trademark dry wit. When discussing the impact of diarrhea on soldiers she talks about the venue for discussing the topic at lunch after training: "The tables in the hangar-size Dorie are arranged church-basement-style, in log rows, so there's always a friendly stranger across from you or at your elbow, someone new with whom to chat about loose bowel movements while you eat."]Loc 1772] Mary Roach usually keeps a distance from her subject (and subjects) through her irony and dry wit. But what I especially like about this book is her warmer approach to the people she is writing about; while still keeping her humor. Humor can be used to keep a subject at arm's distance; but here, she is bring them closer. "I'm adjusting to the concept of a 'casualty collection point,'to the horrible fact that there can be enough casualties for a 'collection'."l [Loc 1660] All-in-all this is my favorite of her books I've read. She brings her standard approach of tireless and detailed analysis of how science and technology is applied to critical elements of our lives."
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