No comments about Magic Johnson (The Smart Reader Book and AudioCassette, Level Two).

5 comments about Moses: A Life.

1. As someone who was raised in a multi-faith home (Buddhist mother, Catholic father) and who was always intrigued by Cecil B. DeMille's rendition of Charlton Heston as Moses, as well as Ben Kingsley's and Burt Lancaster's respective title roles, I wanted to find something less Hollywood about my favorite biblical hero in written form. This book was it, and very thought-provoking. I didn't find it offensive, but instead, found it was something along the lines of a written History Channel biography about Moses. This book moved me so much, I gave it to an Islamic co-worker as a gift, because Moses does transcend all faiths and appeals to us all. This is the 2nd book I've purchased from this author. Another good read, Harlot By The Side of the Road is highly-recommended.



2. There's a flippancy and glibness to Jonathan Kirsch's Moses that detracts from what one must assume "A Life" would seek to achieve. Kirsch's title implies a biography, but it's the rare biography that denies the historicity of its subject. Citing a bevy of bible scholars, Kirsch presents each view in a manner couched to suit a poorly disguised agenda. Thus, Martin Buber (cited repeatedly) "sniffs", "snaps", and "huffs" when it behooves the author to portray him as foolish, but merely "writes" and matter-of-factly "points out" when his views suit Kirsch's needs.
   
   Though the Pentateuch serves as his main source, Kirsch fairly delights in Talmudic and Midrashic elaborations that push the Torah further toward the fantastic. While this might prove entertaining, it is no different than dismissing Moses because Cecil B. DeMille was over the top. Indeed, given the foundational arguement created by the multiplicity of Torah authors proposed and, therefore, the legitimate contradictions of the text itself, one wonders why Kirsch feels the need to stretch for additional ammunition.
   
   Though I found Kirsch's Torah narrative a decent refresher, the endless parade of revisionist scholars - Sigmund Freud not least among them - whose outlandish theories test the bounds of credulity, (not to mention the wise application of time), ultimately becomes annoying. Indeed, Kirsch's scholars present suppositions to deny the historicity of Moses far more fanciful than anything that might affirm it. The intent here is not to present a life, but to deny one, and the touchy-feely, "embrace the concept" message at its end does nothing to dissuade the reader that Moses: A Fairy Tale was presented despite the "Life" that was proclaimed. 3 stars.



3. Moses: A Life is a book by Jonathan Kirsch, an author, attorney, and book review columnist. This book is an argument against who the biblical Moses was. As Kirsch states, "Yet much of what we think we know about Moses is simply made up, and much of what the Bible does say about him is left out of both sacred and secular art"(Moses: A Life, p.1). Kirsch seems to not believe that Moses was a real person and that what we are left with is the deep wonder of who the real Moses was, if he did exist. In the book, there are many accounts of the biblical Moses that may be never spoken of to the common sermon hearer. Examples are that "Moses is shown to act in timid and even cowardly ways, throw temper tantrums, dabble in magic, carry out purges and inquisitions and conduct wars of extermination, and talk back to God" (Moses: A Life p.2).
   Unfortunately, Kirsch's book is filled with many mistakes in his argument. One of the problems is that Kirsch writes "It was Jethro, not Moses, who offered the very first sacrifice to Yahweh" (Moses: A Life p.8). This is incorrect. The Passover was the earlier sacrifice to Yahweh and it was done first by Moses and the Israelites. Next, Kirsch writes "According to a slightly revisionist reading of the Bible, Jethro was a sorcerer and Moses was his apprentice-an apprentice who eventually replaced his master" (Moses: A Life p.8, 9). There is no account in the Bible of Jethro, in any instance, being a worker of any magic or sorcery. Another poor sentence that Kirsch uses is "Only an eerie blood ritual performed by Moses' wife, Zipporah, managed to turn away the divine assault at the last moment and save his life" (Moses: A Life p.12) It seems to be neglected that all of the males of Abraham were to take part in the circumcision or be cut off from the people by divine judgment (Genesis 17 NASB). Here, Moses was saved from that judgment. Kirsch later states "And Moses wrote this law [torah], and delivered it unto the priests and the elders of Israel" (Moses: A Life p.14). Regrettably, Kirsch takes advantage of the meaning of the word torah. Torah can mean law and the Five Books of Moses. Here he uses the law form of torah to be used as the Five Books of Moses in this statement, thus taking a gain on the casual reader who is not carefully studying the text. It is not stated that Moses wrote the torah/five books. It is written that Moses wrote the torah/law. On the next page, Kirsch makes one more error before the reader. Moses' "father-in-law is identified as Reuel in one passage, Jethro in another, and Hobab in a third!" (Moses: A Life p.15). Again, after a quick study, the Bible reader will learn that Hobab is actually Jethro's son and not Jethro himself.
   Later in chapter seven, Kirsch expresses disagreement with the amount of people that were apart of the Exodus journey. He comments that the number of Israelites is not accurate because two different number amounts are given. One of the numbers is given in Exodus 12:37 and a smaller number in the Song of Deborah in Judges 5:8. When reading the Bible though, the reader will take into account that by the time that the Israelites left the desert excursion, all of the adults, except Joshua and Caleb, had died, leaving a much smaller amount of people as noted in Judges. Sadly, these adults died because they would not believe Yahweh (Numbers 14:29). Furthermore in the chapter, Kirsch writes that Yahweh "would punish and humble the Egyptians in a display of divine flash-and-dazzle. God even went to the trouble of `hardening' Pharaoh's heart yet again to make sure that the Egyptians played their appointed role in the set-piece battle at the Red Sea" (Moses: A Life pgs. 184, 185). Here too, Kirsch is ignoring that Pharaoh, as head and sovereign of the Egyptians, repeatedly chose to disobey God's commands that were spoken through Moses and the plagues that ensued as a result. This continual defiance brought about the consequence of death. One reaps what one sows.
   Afterward, in chapter twelve, Kirsch alludes that "Moses was now only a talismanic name and a faint memory, not a living presence" and "we find that Hosea could not bring himself to mention Moses by name when he recalled the events of the Exodus"(Moses: A Life p.360). Disappointingly, Kirsch uses the wrong verse. It is actually Hosea 12:13 that he means and in that verse, Hosea addresses Moses by his God-given title of prophet instead. The next inaccurate declaration that Kirsch makes is "and ultimately he is wholly discarded" (Moses: A Life p.360). Jonathan Kirsch does note that Moses is mentioned in Matthew 17:3, but he does not allow the reader to know that Moses is mentioned and referenced two more times in the Tanakh - Old Testament and seventy-seven times in the entire New Testament. A Bible reader may wonder what Kirsch means when he proclaims that Moses is "wholly discarded" after Hosea's words in light of this evidence.
   Finally, in the next four paragraphs, Kirsch proclaims his own liberalistic beliefs. He wants the reader to view Moses as a dictating barbarian and also as a "kinder, gentler" man (Moses: A Life pgs. 362-363). Kirsch states that "some narrow-minded people rely on the Bible to condemn their fellow human beings for the most intimate aspects of their private lives" and "some zealots claim to find a warrant in biblical law for the maiming and murder of their fellow human beings" (Moses: A Life p.362). Because Kirsch is using the term Bible and referencing portions from the New Testament, it can be assumed that he is referring to those who call themselves Christians. Christians have no right or justification to condemn any person. Christians are called to love, as when Jesus Christ stated "love your neighbor as you love yourself" (Matthew 19:19 NASB). The Apostle Paul too, refers back to Jesus, when he writes "For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, `You shall Love your neighbor as yourself" (Galatians 5:14 NASB). Kirsch is seemingly trying to convince the reader that Christians are foolish for believing on the biblical text when speaking on or referring Moses. Christians are free from the Mosaic Law. This is stated several times by the Apostle Paul in his epistles. Examples are "you are not under law but under grace" (Romans 6:14 NASB) and "nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified" (Galatians 2:16 NASB). Lastly, Kirsch does not even attempt to mention the Muslim belief upon the existence of Moses, which is rather sad. The greatest part of the reading is on page 15, when Kirsch informs the reader "The image of Moses that emerges from the Bible itself is a mosaic of odd biographical fragments, and we cannot know with certainty which of these pieces of a life are authentic" (Moses: A Life p.15). Here the reader learns that the premise of Kirsch's work relies upon "a mosaic of odd biographical fragments". This is not a justifiable and logical approach for subjecting a reader. An author, attorney, and book review columnist, as Kirsch is, needs to consider this when creating a book to be sold to and read by the public.



4. Objective and comprehensive. I enjoyed it as much if not more than his other work. Mr. Kirsch does not embellish Moses nor does he demean him. He makes him human. It is a biography compilled from numerous sources, rich in detail and broad in scope. The story of a man with all his human strenghs and weaknesses convinced by God to undertake a task he did not want and did not feel capable of.
   
   This work might be objectionable and unsettling to the faith based, but read with an open mind it rewards the reader with insight and new appreciation. A great tale in every regard that can nurture your spirit
   and reinforce your faith if read with an open heart and an open mind.



5. Good book overall. I especially like the author's analysis of the several distinct styles of writing contained in the first 5 books of the Bible. I feel, however, he misses several archeological facts to support the historical Moses (like the Ten Plagues). I don't think the author set out with an objective mission while doing his research, but the book is still worth a look.

No comments about Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr..

5 comments about Of Water and the Spirit: Ritual, Magic, and Initiation in the Life of an African Shaman.

1. Patrice Some's fascinating account of his life, against the backdrop of his native culture (the Dugara people) and the infiltration of Western missionaries, is visionary, liberating, and mind-expanding.
   
   His initiation into shamanism is a journey into the underworld, powerful spirits of the ancestors, dead men walking, other dimensions, and is as mystical and otherworldly as it gets.
   
   Some's experiences reveal a profound cultural chasm between Western and African cultures, and gives one an insight into the current state of Africa, and the reasons for that. Patrice Some is also a great commentator as he has lived in both worlds. Highly recommended for people with an open mind about other cultures, shamanism, mysticism, colonialism, and african spirituality.



2. Reading about this man's spiritual journey in a different culture completely changed my perspective on life as we live it here in the US. I would highly recommned this book to anyone interested in learning about the Dagara culture and interested in a new personal paradigm.



3. One of the best books ever written...In fact I've read none better...It is a book I buy for friends and strangers alike...I think I've bought it 5 times now



4. I am an advocate reader of anything pertaining to African culture and spirituality. I had heard of the many reviews of this book from many people, and all of them being positive. But what stood out in all those reviews is the fact that those who read it admitted "I couldn't put the book down". Well, I read the book and just by reading the introduction alone made me not want to put the book down. I knew that i was in for a reading that would be mind-boggling, thought provoking, powerful and profound. Brother Malidoma did not disappointment me at all.
   
   Every chapter had a lesson behind it. The most impressive and powerful was when Malidoma returned to his village and his elders sanctioned him to be initiated. Eventhough he couldn't go into great detail, the experience that he could share was priceless. This is one of those "rare" books in which you use as a basis to measure the quality against others. Honestly, 5 stars is not enough to rate this book.



5. I read this book in the midst of discovering the myriad of hidden truths about african history. Being African American myself I have spent many years trying to undo the backwards education that I was subjected to about my culture in this country by doing extensive research.
   
   If for anything, read this book alone to gain an inside experience of what horrors Africans suffered at the hands of missionaries who felt it was their duty to "save" african children from their "barbaric" roots. They stole these children away from their villages to bring them up in seminary schools where they were subject to brutal treatment and the brainwashing of their religion. I feel it is people's duty to understand the raw effects of these events as it has also happened to indigenous cultures all over the world.
   
   As some reviewers say below, there is a lot about this book that seems fantastical. Malidoma takes us far into the magic and ritual of his culture. It takes an open mind, one that recognizes that the destructive path of colonialism was not only physical but emotional and spiritual. Take time if you will to reflect that if you think colonialism was a destructive force, it also took it's toll on our openess to the possibility of realities other than our own. There isn't hocus pocus in this book, Malidoma a very grounded, extremely well educated gentlemen who has experienced the western world and his traditional one inside out. What he offers in this book is an invaluable opportunity to see the remnants of a culture that we have lost touch with and just how important it is to reconnect to the possibility that what we experience as solid reality is only that which we have been brought up to believe in. It does not mean that it is the only one.
   
   Malidoma's writing is also beautiful and engrossing, I couldn't put it down. I was left with a more solid sense of who I was as an African American, I have learned about the advanced architecture and maths that africans had but I had never had a chance to look this deeply into our spiritual history.

No comments about Roger Maris.

5 comments about The Diaries of Kenneth Tynan.

1. I suggest reading this as a cautionary tale: how a man with so much promise, talent and intelligence, saddled with insecurities and a taste for hedonism, left him broke and feeling like a failure at the end of his life. How terribly tragic. But this book is definitely not a downer.
   
   However, knowing that Kenneth Tynan was a British literary critic, I had reservations about delving into this. I thought it could be a very dry read. Instead, it turned out to be laugh out loud funny, with some serious dish about famous people (the man knew EVERYBODY) and at the same time introspective and melancholic. This book is not for everybody, but for those with a love of brilliant prose and serious wit, the rewards are rich. - Susan Sayles



2. From THE DIARIES OF KENNETH TYNAN: "Whenever we solve the problem of dreams, we shall not be far from solving the root problems of human identity and creativity. Has anyone noticed the really inexplicable thing about our nightly narrative tapes? They have suspense. This occurred to me last night, when I was involved in a Hitchcock-type chase dream---in which, I suddenly realised, I did not know what was going to happen next. I did not know who would be lurking behind the next door; and I wanted desperately to know. What part of one's mind is it that harbours secrets unknown even to the unconscious? (For in dreams we are surely privy to the unconscious in full flood.) The theory that in dreams we tap a source of energy outside the individual psyche is powerfully reinforced by the presence of suspense."
   
   After Tynan left his job as dramaturg at the National Theatre, he pretty much floundered around for the rest of his life. I wish he had gone back to doing theater reviews. But I guess he was burned out on theater. Maybe he grew bored with the very medium of theater. He said he was profoundly bored with everything ("I shall die writhing in apathy"), but I'm not too convinced of that claim. I wish he had felt an artistic duty to his audience and had then carried out that duty. While reading this thing, I had an overwhelming urge to slap that cigarette out of his mouth and that hairbrush out of his hand and to sternly command him to "do do that voodoo that you do so well".



3. I remember Kenneth Tynan from an appearance on The Dick Cavett Show shortly before his 1980 death. Until this book, I was unfamiliar with his work. Now I see what I was missing.
   
   Not only was Tynan a highly skilled writer of prose, but as a critic he saw things for what they were, even if the majority disagreed. He gives Warren Beatty's pretentious and mystifyingly overrated film Shampoo the swift kick to the rear that it deserves, and even finds a fault with Paddy Cheyefsky's Network that I had not detected prior to reading his assessment of the film in his diaries. Tynan also has his say on economics ("Inflation rides high and I believe intentionally" he writes in 1973) and a myriad of other subjects including his preoccupation with spanking.
   
   Overall, these diaries reveal a melancholy soul who found some solace in writing about his life and its disappointments in his journal. Most published diaries promise more than they deliver. Not Tynan's. His diaries are a compelling read.



4. Kenneth Tynan was a marvellous journalist. There is no-one writing for magazines or newspapers today (perhaps with the exception of Christopher Hitchens) who can so readily draw upon an apparently limitless well of wit, and do so in perfect sentences. All of his books are worth reading if you can find them second-hand: his early collection of drama criticism, 'Curtains', and the collection 'Profiles', are probably the places to start. For devotees of Tynan, who bemoan the paucity of his output in the last fifteen years of his life, the Diaries, splendidly introduced by John Lahr, can prove very frustrating. It seems everything conspired against Ken sitting in front of the typewriter and working his magic. His health was abysmal -- emphysema worsened by a heavy cigarette habit; he was preoccupied by a strange strain of socialism, which allows him to finish one entry with a call for action on the part of the workers and begin the next with an account of a tour through France, eating at three-star Michelin restaurants all the way; and he was rather excessively waylaid by a spanking-based dalliance with a mistress. That he managed to eke out portions of 'The Sound of Two Hands Clapping' and the profiles collected in 'Show People' is, on the evidence of the diaries, something of a miracle.

   The diaries themselves make for very entertaining reading. There is plenty of celebrity gossip and, as befits writing not meant for public consumption, a good deal of invective. Sir Peter Hall, referred to throughout as 'P. Hall' is dealt with particularly harshly, and the relationship between Laurence Olivier and Tynan is fraught with ambiguity. There is also Tynan's almost comical political naivete; while there is certainly much that can be said for socialism and sexual liberation, Tynan's blatant hypocrisy (there are several references to his employing servants and nannies) and his very middle-class hatred of anything at all tainted by being middle-class, does not make for a convincing advertisement. I can only imagine how awful his 'spanking film', which he spends several years trying to find backers for, would have been. But these are, believe it or not, minor cavils, and actually add to the enjoyment of looking over Tynan's shoulder as he unburdens himself of his daily thoughts. (He certainly does not let himself off lightly, frequently despairing over his lassitude.) And the concluding entries, shadowed as they are by the reader's (and Tynan's) knowledge of his imminent death, are genuinely moving. I trust and hope there is more Tynan to be reissued soon. He's a fine companion.




5. To paraphrase another wit: This is some of the best fun you can have with your clothes still on. Was Kenneth Tynan the most sophisticated and intelligent critic of his generation? It's hard to think that he wasn't, especially after reading these diaries. Not only does he give you a grand notion of what theater can be, but he also gives you a guided tour of the international theater scene in the late twentieth century. What a grand tonic his intellectually sharp viper tongue is in these days of spineless critics. Bravo!

No comments about Puppermaster: The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover.

2 comments about Elizabeth Taylor: A Tribute.

1. This book is too self-obsorbing. Not much sustance. Mostly entertaining fun.



2. This tribute is a mastermind to all thanks. It is great! It tells of her works, and just, well I am speachless. It is just great. Get the real thing, get this. The real Liz that we should all pay homage to.

   Thanks Geoffrey for such a wonderful recording.

3 comments about Trapped at Pearl Harbor: Escape from Battleship Oklahoma ("Now Hear This).

1. The author-Stephen Bower Young-served as a gunner on one of the main turrets of the battleship U.S.S. Oklahoma. He was aboard the ship when she was torpeodoed during the surprise Japanese attack. This story is about his personal experiences during the December 7, 1941 attack and the escape from the ship when it rolled over.
   Young offers recollections about the life aboard the battleship and the sailors he served with. Many of these sailors would not survive the attack (448 died).
   The majority of the book was about the attack and the subsequent escape. I was most interested in Young's successful escape, when other sailors drilled holes into the bottom of the ship so those trapped could escape. A most interesting read.



2. This book is absolutely spellbinding. Once you open this book, you won't be able to put it down. The impact of this first-hand account of being trapped inside the capsized hull of the battleship USS Oklahoma at Pearl Harbor is resounding. Buy it for yourself but share it with anyone upon whom you wish to impress the courage of what has come to be called the Greatest Generation. The next time you hear someone complaining about how tough they have it (perhaps your kids or grandkids whining about not having the coolest sneakers or the latest Nintendo), give them this book to read. Perhaps the reality of how pampered our current lifestyle really is will sink in. I suspect this book will also help you put your own problems in perspective as well.



3. The author recounts his days in the pre-WWII navy with candor and affection. Honest without being coarse or too sentimental, he talks of his experiences and shipmates, good and bad. The account of USS Oklahoma's sinking and his later rescue is thrilling. I read it in one sitting.

2 comments about Over Hill and Dale.

1. I enjoyed this book from the first word. It moves along with a very upbeat approach to life, pointing out the lovely, the poignant, and the humorous as the author goes about his interesting job inspecting village schools. As a teacher, I can verify the truth of his experiences, and he tells them in an engaging manner.
   
   The book does compare with James Herriot. If you enjoy Jan Karon,or Miss Read, Gervase Phinn will be pleasant reading, too.



2. This book will be enjoyed by anyone who has a love of children. In particular anyone with any contact with the teaching profession will recognise immediately the situations recounted in great depth by the author.

   As an HMI inspector visiting countless schools, Mr Phinn's perfectly captured descriptions of the children, their teachers and the everyday school activities were a joy to read. His exquisite perceptions of the children put the reader into the classroom observing the joys, laughter and at times touching moments which managed to put a lump into my throat. I was there stifling my laughter as a young boy covers him with paint, I was embarrassed as a harrassed young teacher mistaking him for a care worker asks if he has seen the inspectors yet? and I was reaching for my handkerchief as a young blind child recounts a touching version of her understanding of sight.

   A thoroughly charming read, which you won't want to put down.