Pages: 192
Pages so far: 6,121
Pages/book: 340.06
So, this was pretty bad. I mean, I fully acknowledge my biases on this particular subject, but apart from disagreeing with the majority of what William Hart had to say on the subject of evil, I just thought it was a pretty poor book.
Part of me wants to write a fairly scathing critique, because we all know negative criticism is more fun to read than positive, but I'm afraid it would just digress into being petty and biting before I got too far.
Hart's whirlwind tour on the idea of evil and its causes takes twelve quick chapters. The first tries to find a working definition of the term, the last offers some hope for the future and serves as a worthy conclusion, and the ten in the middle each take one idea relating to the origin or practice of evil and expounds on it. The bottom line for each of these chapters seems to be "Question X is not a sufficient definition for evil for Reasons Y and Z." As a result, he attempts to mash together several of the ideas into a nearly-working definition of evil in the last chapter. Splendid.
The logic doesn't quite hold up, however. As is often the problem in this discussion, the defining of one term necessitates a concrete definition of another. In this case, what is "harm," and in which cases can it be considered "extreme"? (To be fair, Hart touches on the fact that these are tricky questions in his book, but he leans heavily on them anyway)
Regardless, this is not a book whose intention is to give a concrete answer to the question of "What is evil?" (which sort of begs the question, why did he bother?) Rather, its intent is to give us a window into the shifting opinions and attitudes toward the nature of evil throughout history. And while Hart pulls out plenty of interesting quotes and sound bites, I never felt like I was getting an accurate depiction of most of the movements and ideals he was presenting. This is primarily because I know he was often grossly misinterpreting many of the biblical passages he cited and his conclusion that the world has essentially moved past the idea of Satan seems to fly in the face of a statistic he cited in the same chapter that the majority of people still believe in the existence of Satan.
Is the dominance of religion evident in Western society? Absolutely. Is that a foregone conclusion that religion is on its way out as a dominant theme in human thought? Hardly.
Do a few quotes from evolutionary psychologists spell certain doom for religious, superstitious, or or other faith-based forms of reasoning? History suggests otherwise. Nevertheless, after the third chapter, Hart strongly suggests that current perceptions of God and Satan be left out of the debate, as his impeccable expostulation has already rendered the concept obsolete.
Incidentally, I am not a firm believer in Satan as the source of evil. He didn't create it, he chose it. But that's a completely different blog for a completely different day, and according to Hart, that's not one of the options anyway.
Just a couple more quick notes, because it's taking almost as long to write this blog as it takes to read the book.
He's not as funny as he thinks he is. It felt like he had a quota of sarcastic comments and/or bizarre pop culture references he had to get in per chapter. As they old saying goes, "Reference Buffy the Vampire Slayer once, shame on you. Reference Buffy the Vampire Slayer twice, shame on...well, you again, actually."
I think Hart really spins quotes and stories to fit his own agenda. I know he does it with the Bible, so I'm pretty sure there's probably spin going on elsewhere. Take, for example, this quote in the chapter about the historical demonization of women: "Next, consider that other foundation stone of Western society, the Old Testament. 'Adam and Eve in the Garden' sounds homey enough, except that this story is a vicious slur against women and no less than a divine certification of all females as evil." O-kay....
While I could see one taking that interpretation (and admit that, through history, some have), I think it's pretty easy, scripturally, to shoot it down. He also argues that Greek mythology always presents the woman as some evil beast while creating strong masculine heroes. Right, because the male gods of Greece were constantly the virtuous ones, and there were no virtuous female characters or races (as there were clearly no villainous men).
Half truths only add up to a half-assed argument. And, more often than not, that's what you're left with in Evil: A Primer.
I could go on, but there are others who'd be far better suited and better equipped to do so. And of course, as anybody could easily and justifiably shoot back, this is just MY opinion.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Policy change, and Books 18/19 out of 62
All right, a couple things:
First, I feel the need to add "Happy Presidents Day!" to my previous post.
Second, I want to make clear that my intention is still to read through every book on my 60-book reading list. However, I have decided that I'm just going to go ahead and add to the list whenever I want to. Because it's my list. I can do that. It will make the project longer, but the project is still to read everything on my recommended reading list. As I journey down this path others have helped me set, though, I find my appetite for reading changing. Growing. New tastes arising. For the first time, I'm discovering things I want to read on my own. Things I might not have picked up on my own.
And that's good. That was the point, after all.
So when those things come about, I'm just going to add them to the pile. Cause reading is awesome.
The two books I'm currently reading were not part of the original recommended list. They're not replacing anything on the list. They're just taking us from 60 to 62 for the time being. One is a direct result of something I read earlier that I realized I just didn't want to wait another 43 books before I could get to it. The other is...um...well, I'll explain in a bit.
Here are the next two books on my plate:
Olympos, by Dan Simmons.
Olympos is the follow-up to Ilium, which has possibly been my favorite among the 17 books I've read so far on this journey. If Ilium was sort of the Iliad meets The Tempest in the future in outer space with literature-buff robots, Olympos appears to be what happens when The Iliad goes off-course and an all-out war against the Olympian gods breaks out.
'Nuff said.
The book is 691 pages long and is published by eos books (an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers). It didn't win the Locus Award like its predecessor did, but it did make the shortlist in 2006, so that's something!
Evil: A Primer, by William Hart.
This one I'm reading because...um...
Okay, actually, the only reason I picked up this book was because I went to the Library to pick up a New Avengers trade paperback I had reserved and I felt a bit silly walking out of the library with nothing but a comic book, so I went to the philosophy/religion section and thought this might be mildly interesting.
The subtitle on this book is "A History of a Bad Idea from Beelzebub to Bin Laden."
I know my biases. I know I'm probably going to disagree with just about everything William Hart says. But what good is life if you only read opinions you agree with, right?
The inside flap says of this book, "More than an explanation of why bad things happen, Evil: A Primer is a tour through the nether regions in search of what we really know."
Short tour. The book is 192 pages, double-spaced.
Here's the author bio: "William Hart is a former longtime newspaper reporter and editor who specialized in the coverage of criminal justice and mental health. He currently works as a public policy research analyst at Arizona State University and lives in Phoenix. This is his first book."
Good on you, William.
204 pages (with index), St. Martin's Press.
First, I feel the need to add "Happy Presidents Day!" to my previous post.
Second, I want to make clear that my intention is still to read through every book on my 60-book reading list. However, I have decided that I'm just going to go ahead and add to the list whenever I want to. Because it's my list. I can do that. It will make the project longer, but the project is still to read everything on my recommended reading list. As I journey down this path others have helped me set, though, I find my appetite for reading changing. Growing. New tastes arising. For the first time, I'm discovering things I want to read on my own. Things I might not have picked up on my own.
And that's good. That was the point, after all.
So when those things come about, I'm just going to add them to the pile. Cause reading is awesome.
The two books I'm currently reading were not part of the original recommended list. They're not replacing anything on the list. They're just taking us from 60 to 62 for the time being. One is a direct result of something I read earlier that I realized I just didn't want to wait another 43 books before I could get to it. The other is...um...well, I'll explain in a bit.
Here are the next two books on my plate:
Olympos, by Dan Simmons.
Olympos is the follow-up to Ilium, which has possibly been my favorite among the 17 books I've read so far on this journey. If Ilium was sort of the Iliad meets The Tempest in the future in outer space with literature-buff robots, Olympos appears to be what happens when The Iliad goes off-course and an all-out war against the Olympian gods breaks out.
'Nuff said.
The book is 691 pages long and is published by eos books (an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers). It didn't win the Locus Award like its predecessor did, but it did make the shortlist in 2006, so that's something!
Evil: A Primer, by William Hart.
This one I'm reading because...um...
Okay, actually, the only reason I picked up this book was because I went to the Library to pick up a New Avengers trade paperback I had reserved and I felt a bit silly walking out of the library with nothing but a comic book, so I went to the philosophy/religion section and thought this might be mildly interesting.
The subtitle on this book is "A History of a Bad Idea from Beelzebub to Bin Laden."
I know my biases. I know I'm probably going to disagree with just about everything William Hart says. But what good is life if you only read opinions you agree with, right?
The inside flap says of this book, "More than an explanation of why bad things happen, Evil: A Primer is a tour through the nether regions in search of what we really know."
Short tour. The book is 192 pages, double-spaced.
Here's the author bio: "William Hart is a former longtime newspaper reporter and editor who specialized in the coverage of criminal justice and mental health. He currently works as a public policy research analyst at Arizona State University and lives in Phoenix. This is his first book."
Good on you, William.
204 pages (with index), St. Martin's Press.
Closing Thoughts: Founding Brothers
All right, finally, Founding Brothers.
Pages: 248
Total pages: 5929
Total books: 17
Avg pages/book: 348.765
Average pages at almost 350? Thanks, The Stand!
Founding Brothers is really a fantastic book. I'll easily recommend it to anybody with a passing interest in American history, especially of the Revolutionary generation. Joseph Ellis is a fantastic writer who really takes these historical persons and weaves their story into an engaging read. The progression of themes and ideas was never dry nor boring. The insights to what these men thought, what they believed, how those beliefs shaped their actions, and how their actions effectively shaped over a hundred years of American history were fantastic. I began to see some of these characters--especially those I knew relatively little about, such as James Madison and John Adams--as dynamic individuals, as heroes and villains, as friends, coworkers, and bitter enemies in a way I hadn't taken the time or effort to consider.
It's easy to see why this book was the Pulitzer winner. Non-fiction has always been an area I've shied away from, the image of a dusty old textbooks sitting on a library shelf has always sprung to my mind when I consider the genre as a whole. And to be sure, I struggled through this book, most likely because I've been really, really tired when I've had time to read, and this book requires an intellectual engagement that most things I've read recently have not demanded, but I thoroughly enjoyed every step on this journey, even if it did involve multiple recheckings.
My pace has really slowed down since Christmas. Honestly, it feels like I've become sluggish in a lot of things since 2010 started. Hopefully I'll carry the momentum from getting through this one into the coming months.
Sorry if this is sort of a vague and uninteresting review; I feel kind of unqualified to give a detailed recap of a historical book. I will say the highlight of the book, from my perspective, was the recounting of personal correspondences between these juggernauts of American thought and theory. Letter-writing is truly a lost art form, and these exchanges from the late 18th century may have proved its finest hour. Definitely worth a read if for no other reason than to catch a glimpse of the way great minds used to exchange ideas. And, really, it should be a quick read for any serious reader.
I want to thank whoever it was who suggested this book for me. (I think it was old college chum Lee) I do plan to pick up more of Ellis' works in the near future.
Pages: 248
Total pages: 5929
Total books: 17
Avg pages/book: 348.765
Average pages at almost 350? Thanks, The Stand!
Founding Brothers is really a fantastic book. I'll easily recommend it to anybody with a passing interest in American history, especially of the Revolutionary generation. Joseph Ellis is a fantastic writer who really takes these historical persons and weaves their story into an engaging read. The progression of themes and ideas was never dry nor boring. The insights to what these men thought, what they believed, how those beliefs shaped their actions, and how their actions effectively shaped over a hundred years of American history were fantastic. I began to see some of these characters--especially those I knew relatively little about, such as James Madison and John Adams--as dynamic individuals, as heroes and villains, as friends, coworkers, and bitter enemies in a way I hadn't taken the time or effort to consider.
It's easy to see why this book was the Pulitzer winner. Non-fiction has always been an area I've shied away from, the image of a dusty old textbooks sitting on a library shelf has always sprung to my mind when I consider the genre as a whole. And to be sure, I struggled through this book, most likely because I've been really, really tired when I've had time to read, and this book requires an intellectual engagement that most things I've read recently have not demanded, but I thoroughly enjoyed every step on this journey, even if it did involve multiple recheckings.
My pace has really slowed down since Christmas. Honestly, it feels like I've become sluggish in a lot of things since 2010 started. Hopefully I'll carry the momentum from getting through this one into the coming months.
Sorry if this is sort of a vague and uninteresting review; I feel kind of unqualified to give a detailed recap of a historical book. I will say the highlight of the book, from my perspective, was the recounting of personal correspondences between these juggernauts of American thought and theory. Letter-writing is truly a lost art form, and these exchanges from the late 18th century may have proved its finest hour. Definitely worth a read if for no other reason than to catch a glimpse of the way great minds used to exchange ideas. And, really, it should be a quick read for any serious reader.
I want to thank whoever it was who suggested this book for me. (I think it was old college chum Lee) I do plan to pick up more of Ellis' works in the near future.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Book 17/60: Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation, by Joseph Ellis
Non-fiction alert!
Ooh, Pulitzer-winning non-fiction alert!
I am sad to admit that this is the second time I've checked this book out of the library. The first time, I didn't get through it, despite re-checking it. Twice.
It's a really good book. I enjoy reading it. It's just not a fast read, and I haven't developed the ability to read slow-readers quickly. I've also been slacking in the reading discipline lately, for various reasons. The book is about the most famous of our nation's founding fathers: Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Franklin, Hamilton, and Adams. Specifically, it looks at six of the moments that really defined what this new experiment in republican government was going to look like for the next hundred-or-so years.
I like history, and Ellis does a fantastic job of giving you the story of these conflicts and not merely the information. As I mentioned earlier, the book won a Pulitzer for non-fiction (2001), and the History Channel did a special based on it, so clearly this is quality writing.
I just sincerely hope I can get through the not-even-three-hundred pages before I have to turn it in again! How embarrassing!
Ooh, Pulitzer-winning non-fiction alert!
I am sad to admit that this is the second time I've checked this book out of the library. The first time, I didn't get through it, despite re-checking it. Twice.
It's a really good book. I enjoy reading it. It's just not a fast read, and I haven't developed the ability to read slow-readers quickly. I've also been slacking in the reading discipline lately, for various reasons. The book is about the most famous of our nation's founding fathers: Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Franklin, Hamilton, and Adams. Specifically, it looks at six of the moments that really defined what this new experiment in republican government was going to look like for the next hundred-or-so years.
I like history, and Ellis does a fantastic job of giving you the story of these conflicts and not merely the information. As I mentioned earlier, the book won a Pulitzer for non-fiction (2001), and the History Channel did a special based on it, so clearly this is quality writing.
I just sincerely hope I can get through the not-even-three-hundred pages before I have to turn it in again! How embarrassing!
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Closing Thoughts: The Secret Garden
Pages: 278
Pages so far: 5681
Books read: 16
Pages/book: 355.06
I have no idea why it took me so long to finish this book.
Oh wait, I know exactly why. It's kind of a boring book.
Which is odd, because I love the story and the characters, as I've always enjoyed the films and (most of) the plays/musicals I've seen that have been adapted from the book. As I finally read the narrative for myself, however, I was a little bit let down.
I need to reiterate that it really, really is a nice story. I can see how it's become a children's classic, but I can also see why it wasn't very popular when it was first published. The narrative style is awfully repetitive, and the author sort of belabors her point a little more than necessary. And I think the point is awesome, that the act of loving positively transforms a person, and that love has healing power, and all of those wonderful truths. Furthermore, I love the three-way juxtaposition of new life in the garden against new life in Mary against new life in Colin, and how they're all touched physically as they begin to heal and grow spiritually/emotionally. Good stuff.
And in case you miss it, the book tells you that it's happening in virtually every chapter.
"Mary was changing. The fresh air had done her good, and her muscles grew stronger as the formerly sickly-looking girl was getting fatter. She was also kinder than she had been. She was, for the first time, becoming healthy."
That's not actually in the book. Wait, maybe it is, but you get a generic paragraph (or two or three) that looks a lot like that about eight or twelve times in the book. Two chapters later, it'll be something like, "Mary realized she was changing to even a greater degree than she had been changing two chapter ago. Her muscles, once scrawny, then progressively less scrawny, were now even more progressively less scrawny, and she laughed a good bit more than she had even laughed when she last realized she had been laughing more than she had been laughing when..um...India...the fresh air was good for her!"
Et cetera.
Okay. I'm being a littler over-the-top on the snark here (not my fault; my other blog is shut down for a whole nother month!), but I stand by my point. How many times do I need to be told that fresh air and laughter were making the snotty girl and the snobby boy into better people?
Then there's all the stuff about Magic, and how the Magic is in all good things, and how love is part of the Magic, and so is growing, and beauty, etc. Then Dickon's mom shows up and says everybody prays and sings and gives thanks to the Magic, they just call it different names. Okay, obviously, this is spiritual bunk, but I won't nitpick on this issue. I wouldn't have even brought it up had the book not devoted so many of the later pages to this concept of the Magic, that which some of us call God and some of us call nature and some of us just call Magic. (They even sing the Doxology at one point, and Dickon's mom tells them they were singing to the Magic just then) When Robbie reads this book, I won't have a problem with it, and I'll use this point as a discussion starter. That said, I can understand why some folks are uneasy with the way that's handled.
Finally, the last chapter reads almost like a thesis. In case you hadn't been following anything that had happened in the prior 250 pages, here's a recap explaining all the good things that happened, and how they taught the children to be loving cousins, and how the whole manor was changed because of it. It's really long and unnecessary, as I think the kids reading the book have probably figured it all out before that point, and it would have been nice to get to the father traveling Europe, because I sure as heck wanted to know how he got home at that point.
And he comes home. And it's a really touching, beautiful ending. And then the book seems to end mid-paragraph. I thought at first my copy was missing a page. Of course, that's a really minor quibble.
Now, what I loved, and what I loved about this book as a child:
The intricacy of the secret between the children is handled really, really well. They are actually quite clever in their plotting and planning, and the reader gets to feel like a co-conspirator with the three kids and the cranky old gardener. You really want them to manage to keep it a secret under Mr. Craven comes home, and you want to see the reactions on the faces of all of the maids and servants almost as much as Mary and Colin want to. A huge part of why I think this book has become such a beloved classic is that kids love tales of clever children outwitting grown-ups. Kids also love secrets. I think adults love secrets, too, which is why we still do surprise parties and why everyone gets so excited about wedding engagements. Secrets are awesome, romantic, and exhilarating, and the secret-keeping portions of this story are compelling. The characters all have a sort of mystical quality about them, yet they remain relateable and accessible because we really want to believe these sort of people exist. The handling of the moor as a setting is solid, and it gives a sort of fantasy element to the story that allows us to buy some of the more far-fetched people and situations we're going to encounter.
Really, it's a good story. I like it. It's a story of love. It's a story of family. It's a story of change and redemption.
Unfortunately for this reader, it's also a story of repeating itself. A lot.
Pages so far: 5681
Books read: 16
Pages/book: 355.06
I have no idea why it took me so long to finish this book.
Oh wait, I know exactly why. It's kind of a boring book.
Which is odd, because I love the story and the characters, as I've always enjoyed the films and (most of) the plays/musicals I've seen that have been adapted from the book. As I finally read the narrative for myself, however, I was a little bit let down.
I need to reiterate that it really, really is a nice story. I can see how it's become a children's classic, but I can also see why it wasn't very popular when it was first published. The narrative style is awfully repetitive, and the author sort of belabors her point a little more than necessary. And I think the point is awesome, that the act of loving positively transforms a person, and that love has healing power, and all of those wonderful truths. Furthermore, I love the three-way juxtaposition of new life in the garden against new life in Mary against new life in Colin, and how they're all touched physically as they begin to heal and grow spiritually/emotionally. Good stuff.
And in case you miss it, the book tells you that it's happening in virtually every chapter.
"Mary was changing. The fresh air had done her good, and her muscles grew stronger as the formerly sickly-looking girl was getting fatter. She was also kinder than she had been. She was, for the first time, becoming healthy."
That's not actually in the book. Wait, maybe it is, but you get a generic paragraph (or two or three) that looks a lot like that about eight or twelve times in the book. Two chapters later, it'll be something like, "Mary realized she was changing to even a greater degree than she had been changing two chapter ago. Her muscles, once scrawny, then progressively less scrawny, were now even more progressively less scrawny, and she laughed a good bit more than she had even laughed when she last realized she had been laughing more than she had been laughing when..um...India...the fresh air was good for her!"
Et cetera.
Okay. I'm being a littler over-the-top on the snark here (not my fault; my other blog is shut down for a whole nother month!), but I stand by my point. How many times do I need to be told that fresh air and laughter were making the snotty girl and the snobby boy into better people?
Then there's all the stuff about Magic, and how the Magic is in all good things, and how love is part of the Magic, and so is growing, and beauty, etc. Then Dickon's mom shows up and says everybody prays and sings and gives thanks to the Magic, they just call it different names. Okay, obviously, this is spiritual bunk, but I won't nitpick on this issue. I wouldn't have even brought it up had the book not devoted so many of the later pages to this concept of the Magic, that which some of us call God and some of us call nature and some of us just call Magic. (They even sing the Doxology at one point, and Dickon's mom tells them they were singing to the Magic just then) When Robbie reads this book, I won't have a problem with it, and I'll use this point as a discussion starter. That said, I can understand why some folks are uneasy with the way that's handled.
Finally, the last chapter reads almost like a thesis. In case you hadn't been following anything that had happened in the prior 250 pages, here's a recap explaining all the good things that happened, and how they taught the children to be loving cousins, and how the whole manor was changed because of it. It's really long and unnecessary, as I think the kids reading the book have probably figured it all out before that point, and it would have been nice to get to the father traveling Europe, because I sure as heck wanted to know how he got home at that point.
And he comes home. And it's a really touching, beautiful ending. And then the book seems to end mid-paragraph. I thought at first my copy was missing a page. Of course, that's a really minor quibble.
Now, what I loved, and what I loved about this book as a child:
The intricacy of the secret between the children is handled really, really well. They are actually quite clever in their plotting and planning, and the reader gets to feel like a co-conspirator with the three kids and the cranky old gardener. You really want them to manage to keep it a secret under Mr. Craven comes home, and you want to see the reactions on the faces of all of the maids and servants almost as much as Mary and Colin want to. A huge part of why I think this book has become such a beloved classic is that kids love tales of clever children outwitting grown-ups. Kids also love secrets. I think adults love secrets, too, which is why we still do surprise parties and why everyone gets so excited about wedding engagements. Secrets are awesome, romantic, and exhilarating, and the secret-keeping portions of this story are compelling. The characters all have a sort of mystical quality about them, yet they remain relateable and accessible because we really want to believe these sort of people exist. The handling of the moor as a setting is solid, and it gives a sort of fantasy element to the story that allows us to buy some of the more far-fetched people and situations we're going to encounter.
Really, it's a good story. I like it. It's a story of love. It's a story of family. It's a story of change and redemption.
Unfortunately for this reader, it's also a story of repeating itself. A lot.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Closing Thoughts: Through Painted Deserts
Pages: 256
Pages so far: 5403
Books so far: 15
Avg pages/book: 360.2
First: this book marks the quarter-way point in the list. Whoo!
Second: I've gone from working on five books back down to one! Huzzah!
Third:
I think I mentioned this in my initial thoughts, but when I was a kid I read A Walk Across America, a book about a disillusioned young man, college-aged, who took up a challenge to walk across the country and discover what was really out there. (This was in the Cold War years, I don't remember exactly when) Along the way, he met quite a few friends, lost a dog, found peace in God through Jesus Christ, and met his wife. And that was before he hit the halfway point (which was roughly where the book ended)
Miller's book is really pretty similar. Unlike his other books, it doesn't try to give you great theological significance in each chapter; as Miller says at the end of his Acknowledgements: "I wanted to take a break from the deep theological stuff and just take you on an old journey I took once and introduce you to some wonderful people." And write run-on sentences. ;-) So first and foremost, this is a road trip book, and while it's not necessarily a great road trip book, it has some really nice moments.
The rambling, wandering feel to the book made it difficult for me to get in to. However, the rambling, wandering feel to the book was kind of the point of the whole thing, so I think that's just a matter of taste. The primary through-line of the narrative is the story of a fairly shallow 21-year-old from Houston (hey!) realizing that life is much bigger than he is and that God is good. Twenty-one-year-old Miller struggles with a lot of the same questions young Christians struggle with, and as the later chapters of the book unfold it's neat to see how God patiently unfolds Himself to Miller. What makes it work, in this case, is that the book is not a work of fiction, but a testimony. I've always enjoyed testimonies, moreso than I generally enjoy road trip books.
In my mind, the book starts kind of weak, picks up right around the time they leave the Grand Canyon, briefly loses its way again, and then ends strong both spiritually and storytelling-wise. I think, if I had discovered this book seven or eight years ago, it would probably be one of my favorites to this day. As it is, I had some trouble getting in to it at times, but it was definitely one of those books you have to smile at when you put it down at the end.
Side note, only somewhat connected to the book itself: I always read the author acknowledgments these days. Interesting how the author starts out thanking people individually for specific tasks, and then eventually there's always just a paragraph or two of names with no description, as if they realized how much space this is going to take if they thank everyone specifically. Still, I read each name knowing that, while they were as foreign to me as characters in a novel I've never read, each one represented an identity, a friendship, a history, and a series of memories. And I realized how greatly I hope to one day read one o' them acknowledgment pages and know every single face associated with every name on the printed page. That would/will be awesome.
Pages so far: 5403
Books so far: 15
Avg pages/book: 360.2
First: this book marks the quarter-way point in the list. Whoo!
Second: I've gone from working on five books back down to one! Huzzah!
Third:
I think I mentioned this in my initial thoughts, but when I was a kid I read A Walk Across America, a book about a disillusioned young man, college-aged, who took up a challenge to walk across the country and discover what was really out there. (This was in the Cold War years, I don't remember exactly when) Along the way, he met quite a few friends, lost a dog, found peace in God through Jesus Christ, and met his wife. And that was before he hit the halfway point (which was roughly where the book ended)
Miller's book is really pretty similar. Unlike his other books, it doesn't try to give you great theological significance in each chapter; as Miller says at the end of his Acknowledgements: "I wanted to take a break from the deep theological stuff and just take you on an old journey I took once and introduce you to some wonderful people." And write run-on sentences. ;-) So first and foremost, this is a road trip book, and while it's not necessarily a great road trip book, it has some really nice moments.
The rambling, wandering feel to the book made it difficult for me to get in to. However, the rambling, wandering feel to the book was kind of the point of the whole thing, so I think that's just a matter of taste. The primary through-line of the narrative is the story of a fairly shallow 21-year-old from Houston (hey!) realizing that life is much bigger than he is and that God is good. Twenty-one-year-old Miller struggles with a lot of the same questions young Christians struggle with, and as the later chapters of the book unfold it's neat to see how God patiently unfolds Himself to Miller. What makes it work, in this case, is that the book is not a work of fiction, but a testimony. I've always enjoyed testimonies, moreso than I generally enjoy road trip books.
In my mind, the book starts kind of weak, picks up right around the time they leave the Grand Canyon, briefly loses its way again, and then ends strong both spiritually and storytelling-wise. I think, if I had discovered this book seven or eight years ago, it would probably be one of my favorites to this day. As it is, I had some trouble getting in to it at times, but it was definitely one of those books you have to smile at when you put it down at the end.
Side note, only somewhat connected to the book itself: I always read the author acknowledgments these days. Interesting how the author starts out thanking people individually for specific tasks, and then eventually there's always just a paragraph or two of names with no description, as if they realized how much space this is going to take if they thank everyone specifically. Still, I read each name knowing that, while they were as foreign to me as characters in a novel I've never read, each one represented an identity, a friendship, a history, and a series of memories. And I realized how greatly I hope to one day read one o' them acknowledgment pages and know every single face associated with every name on the printed page. That would/will be awesome.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Closing Thoughts: Powers: The 25 Coolest Dead Superheroes of All Time
Pages: 200
Pages so far: 5147
Pages/book: 367.64
I tried to get the first collection in the Powers series and thought I had, but the library's online catalog was less than accurate, so instead I got Volume 12, which collects Powers #25-30 and Powers Annual 2008. So, fairly new. Fortunately, the "Previously in Powers" page at the front of the book does a great job of getting you caught up, so I was able to figure out what was going on, and I never felt particularly lost (save for a really long section of the book about cavemen. No clue what that was about)
Anyway, to review: Powers is a comic book by popular comics writer Brian Michael Bendis. This is kind of his grittier indie-esq project (as opposed to his mainstream work with Marvel). The concept is simple and intriguing: a couple of detectives who investigate superpower-related homicides. And the story for this particular book wasn't too bad, either, with one partner trying to find his on-the-lam former associate, who's been infected with something called the Powers Virus. The virus is passed from person to person and infects the victim with lightning-based super powers before eventually killing them. Add to the mix there's at least one killer targeting people with the Powers Virus, mostly young women, and the killers' victims basically disappear, and no trace is ever found.
All right, I have to admit I was pretty disappointed with the book on the whole. The story wasn't bad, and I do like the concept, but the book is really just raunchy. And I understand that you're going for the gritty crime-scene, street-level feel with this project, and sure, I can appreciate that, but come on. You've got every character in the book dropping F's and C's and GD's just for the heck of it. Obviously, if you look back on my reading list thus far, you'll discover I've really got no qualms with rough language when it fits the story of the character, but in Powers it felt like Bendis simply had no imagination and wanted to throw those words in wherever he could for the purpose of saying, "Look at me! I'm being edgy! We're cussing!" It felt juvenile and really detracted from the effectiveness of the language and the story.
My second problem was with the artwork. I liked the coloration, and I liked the textures, and I liked the angular, geometric emphasis throughout the book. Furthermore, I appreciate comic book artistic style of idealized human body shape. It's almost classical Greek in theory, and it's not meant to be realistic but fantasy, so I don't usually have a problem with it. However, the art in this book was, on occasion, practically pornographic. And not "just" in the club scene, so it can't really be argued that it's an integral part of the story. More often then not, it was completely unnecessary and, again, distracting from the story and the high caliber of the artwork.
So I hate to sound like a conservative curmudgeon, but it felt like the book lacked any semblance of good taste, and a great idea with a decent story gets lost in the process.
Pages so far: 5147
Pages/book: 367.64
I tried to get the first collection in the Powers series and thought I had, but the library's online catalog was less than accurate, so instead I got Volume 12, which collects Powers #25-30 and Powers Annual 2008. So, fairly new. Fortunately, the "Previously in Powers" page at the front of the book does a great job of getting you caught up, so I was able to figure out what was going on, and I never felt particularly lost (save for a really long section of the book about cavemen. No clue what that was about)
Anyway, to review: Powers is a comic book by popular comics writer Brian Michael Bendis. This is kind of his grittier indie-esq project (as opposed to his mainstream work with Marvel). The concept is simple and intriguing: a couple of detectives who investigate superpower-related homicides. And the story for this particular book wasn't too bad, either, with one partner trying to find his on-the-lam former associate, who's been infected with something called the Powers Virus. The virus is passed from person to person and infects the victim with lightning-based super powers before eventually killing them. Add to the mix there's at least one killer targeting people with the Powers Virus, mostly young women, and the killers' victims basically disappear, and no trace is ever found.
All right, I have to admit I was pretty disappointed with the book on the whole. The story wasn't bad, and I do like the concept, but the book is really just raunchy. And I understand that you're going for the gritty crime-scene, street-level feel with this project, and sure, I can appreciate that, but come on. You've got every character in the book dropping F's and C's and GD's just for the heck of it. Obviously, if you look back on my reading list thus far, you'll discover I've really got no qualms with rough language when it fits the story of the character, but in Powers it felt like Bendis simply had no imagination and wanted to throw those words in wherever he could for the purpose of saying, "Look at me! I'm being edgy! We're cussing!" It felt juvenile and really detracted from the effectiveness of the language and the story.
My second problem was with the artwork. I liked the coloration, and I liked the textures, and I liked the angular, geometric emphasis throughout the book. Furthermore, I appreciate comic book artistic style of idealized human body shape. It's almost classical Greek in theory, and it's not meant to be realistic but fantasy, so I don't usually have a problem with it. However, the art in this book was, on occasion, practically pornographic. And not "just" in the club scene, so it can't really be argued that it's an integral part of the story. More often then not, it was completely unnecessary and, again, distracting from the story and the high caliber of the artwork.
So I hate to sound like a conservative curmudgeon, but it felt like the book lacked any semblance of good taste, and a great idea with a decent story gets lost in the process.
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