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more books, some rambling
Feb. 15th, 2008 08:23 pmBooks 2008, 17-20.
17. Biting the Bullet, Jennifer Rardin.
Third book in the Jaz Parks series, of which I am fonder than I'd like to admit. Do not expect realism: do expect a very odd cross between elements of BtVS and Alias. Entertaining.
18-19. Mystic and Rider and The Thirteenth House, Sharon Shinn.
I can't remember where I first heard of Sharon Shinn, but as it turns out, I'm fairly glad I did. These books are fairly undemanding fantasy - a kingdom in turmoil, magic reviled in certain regions, a small band of not precisely well-acquainted companions on a mission from the king to find out what's going on. The first book early on suffers slightly from infodump-in-conversation, but not fatally so, and it warms up quite well, with deeds of derring-do and espionage, and some very engaging characters. The second book shares the good points of the first, with fewer of its flaws.
And that sounds perhaps too critical, but I find lately I have become much less willing to praise a book for simply being entertaining and engaging and holding my attention well. It has to do something unusual, or be out of the ordinary in some manner, before I find myself able to praise it wholeheartedly.
These were good books, though.
20. Non-fiction. Religion in the Ancient Greek City, Louise Bruit Zaidmann and Pauline Schmitt Pantel, translated by Paul Cartledge. Cambridge, 1992.
This book is exactly what it says on the cover: a discussion of religion in the ancient Greek city. It's accessible, clear, and well laid out, as well as being comprehensive in its scope. It divides itself into four parts: first, a discussion on how one should study the religions of the Greeks, and 'the necessity of cultural estrangement'; second, a survey of cult practices across the Greek world; third, a discussion of what the authors term 'systems for representing the divine', and finally the authors' reflections on the topic.
I'd have more to say about this, except I finished it about a fortnight ago and have since forgotten what I meant to say. But I do recommend it.
Learning koine Greek is one of the most interesting things, I think, that I have ever done. It opens up an entire new world of history and literature and ways of interpreting texts.
This is apropos of the fact that our lecturer this morning introduced us to a few verses from John 3. 3:3 is very interesting, he said, in terms of translating, for the word ανωθεν in Greek can mean both 'again', 'from above' or 'from the beginning', which could change the whole sense of the verse. "απεκριθη ο ιησους και ειπεν αυτω αμην αμην λεγω σοι εαν μη τις γεννηθη ανωθεν ου δυναται ιδειν την βασιλειαν του θεου" is usually translated with the sense "Jesus answered and said to him, 'Truly truly I say to you, unless someone is born again, he is not able to see the kingdom of God.'" But that word ανωθεν could make the sentence mean, "unless someone is born from the beginning" or "from above".
Or maybe it implies all three.
But the point, as the lecturer pointed out, is not to find something new in the material we have. It's to be able to make literary and historical comparisons with other texts, like the Septuagint, later non-canonical gospels, Dead Sea Scrolls, and theorise about whose influence and whose traditions shaped which writings.
Of course, I'm learning koine in order to have a leg up when I go looking for postgrad study in Classics. (Greek or Latin is an absolute requirement.) But this kind of stuff just makes the geek in me happy. And I have to say that while I've no intention of ever specialising in papyriology, I look forward to the day when I'm competant enough to attempt a translation of an original document.
Although that, of course, is a long way in the future.
I may have been too enthusiastic in the gym this morning. For lo, I ache now like an aching thing.
17. Biting the Bullet, Jennifer Rardin.
Third book in the Jaz Parks series, of which I am fonder than I'd like to admit. Do not expect realism: do expect a very odd cross between elements of BtVS and Alias. Entertaining.
18-19. Mystic and Rider and The Thirteenth House, Sharon Shinn.
I can't remember where I first heard of Sharon Shinn, but as it turns out, I'm fairly glad I did. These books are fairly undemanding fantasy - a kingdom in turmoil, magic reviled in certain regions, a small band of not precisely well-acquainted companions on a mission from the king to find out what's going on. The first book early on suffers slightly from infodump-in-conversation, but not fatally so, and it warms up quite well, with deeds of derring-do and espionage, and some very engaging characters. The second book shares the good points of the first, with fewer of its flaws.
And that sounds perhaps too critical, but I find lately I have become much less willing to praise a book for simply being entertaining and engaging and holding my attention well. It has to do something unusual, or be out of the ordinary in some manner, before I find myself able to praise it wholeheartedly.
These were good books, though.
20. Non-fiction. Religion in the Ancient Greek City, Louise Bruit Zaidmann and Pauline Schmitt Pantel, translated by Paul Cartledge. Cambridge, 1992.
This book is exactly what it says on the cover: a discussion of religion in the ancient Greek city. It's accessible, clear, and well laid out, as well as being comprehensive in its scope. It divides itself into four parts: first, a discussion on how one should study the religions of the Greeks, and 'the necessity of cultural estrangement'; second, a survey of cult practices across the Greek world; third, a discussion of what the authors term 'systems for representing the divine', and finally the authors' reflections on the topic.
I'd have more to say about this, except I finished it about a fortnight ago and have since forgotten what I meant to say. But I do recommend it.
Learning koine Greek is one of the most interesting things, I think, that I have ever done. It opens up an entire new world of history and literature and ways of interpreting texts.
This is apropos of the fact that our lecturer this morning introduced us to a few verses from John 3. 3:3 is very interesting, he said, in terms of translating, for the word ανωθεν in Greek can mean both 'again', 'from above' or 'from the beginning', which could change the whole sense of the verse. "απεκριθη ο ιησους και ειπεν αυτω αμην αμην λεγω σοι εαν μη τις γεννηθη ανωθεν ου δυναται ιδειν την βασιλειαν του θεου" is usually translated with the sense "Jesus answered and said to him, 'Truly truly I say to you, unless someone is born again, he is not able to see the kingdom of God.'" But that word ανωθεν could make the sentence mean, "unless someone is born from the beginning" or "from above".
Or maybe it implies all three.
But the point, as the lecturer pointed out, is not to find something new in the material we have. It's to be able to make literary and historical comparisons with other texts, like the Septuagint, later non-canonical gospels, Dead Sea Scrolls, and theorise about whose influence and whose traditions shaped which writings.
Of course, I'm learning koine in order to have a leg up when I go looking for postgrad study in Classics. (Greek or Latin is an absolute requirement.) But this kind of stuff just makes the geek in me happy. And I have to say that while I've no intention of ever specialising in papyriology, I look forward to the day when I'm competant enough to attempt a translation of an original document.
Although that, of course, is a long way in the future.
I may have been too enthusiastic in the gym this morning. For lo, I ache now like an aching thing.
