Review: Eve, Where Are You?: Confronting Toxic Practices Against the Advancement of Women

Eve, Where Are You?: Confronting Toxic Practices Against the Advancement of Women by Nicole L. Davis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had an opportunity to read this book after reviewing another book on a similar topic: Women in the Bible: Interpretation: Resources for the Use of Scripture in the Church

In Part I, we find four (4) chapters that introduce “The Conflict” between women called to serve and the established patriarchy that frequently impedes that call. In chapter 2 the author looks at “The Struggle Between What I’m Competent to Do and What I’m Allowed to Do” before moving on the more traditional conflicts of men vs women and women vs women that I though were both interesting and insightful without being overly judgmental. Part 2, “The Explanation” takes on a bit more risk as the author uses psychological model theories to show why there might be so much resistance to change within the church. I enjoyed these four (4) chapters on identity, power, change and mental/psyche as much as the first four (4) and they seem to be solidly rooted in current theory. Up to now, the tone of the book was mostly encouragement/empowerment for women and instructional/explaining for men with something good for everybody. Part 3 may catch some a little off guard as the tone of "The Resolution" is a lot more aggressive and confrontational (especially given the bona fides of the author in conflict resolution). Perhaps that is what is needed if you are targeting people at the top of an organization ... but this part doesn't do much for those in organizations that are heavily hierarchical ... such as the Catholic Church ... and I didn't find much here that I could actually use in the trenches. While I can understand the frustration and impatience, in such organizations, the long game is needed more and that was unfortunately lacking here (I am talking generations in this case). Still, this is an important voice for understanding how we as church should evolve.

I was given this free advance reader copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

#EveWhereAreYou #Bookfunnel

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Review: The Road

The Road by Cormac McCarthy
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I read this purely on the fact that is was the selection of the month for the club. To be honest, it is not something that I would have picked up myself despite the award of a Pulitzer Prize.

I didn't like it. Sure, I recognized the sparse writing style which lent an artsy feel to the prose (and was probably what earned it the Pulitzer and is why I give it 2 stars instead of 1), but the book was an ordeal from start to finish. It had no purpose what so ever except to make the reader feel like they were in a post-apocalyptic world where hope had been completely extinguished … and it worked. Ultimately that is what doomed the book with me … at the end I sat back and simply asked a very basic question … So? Was there a message? Maybe … life goes on? Egads, even the interminable “and so it goes” from slaughter house five was better then this drekk. What about the relationship between the father and the son? Was it really love, so was it simple a reason to continue? I don’t really know, but I suspect that there really was not as much there as it would seem. The boy’s existence was simply an enabler for the father’s continued existence. Neither character showed any character development over some 287 pages so what really was the point of the story?

I have happily traded this book away on book mooch.com

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Review: Northern Wrath

Northern Wrath by Thilde Kold Holdt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was an epic norse tragedy with fantastic world building based upon norse mythology and culture that was so well researched it felt as if it could have come straight out of the Eddas (without the feeling English was not the primary langauge of the story teller). Just as important, than author appears to know just how much to change to much the world hers while at the same time keeping it familiar to anyone who has had any exposure to norse culture. Within this walk well developed characters that I can understand and even identify with (including some of the minor villians ... such a Finn. In fact, I was so invested in these characters, I was a caught a little off guard at the end: a few plot points remain open (that I assume with tie into the sequels) and, of course, it is a tragedy ... which considering the style should not have surprised me as much as it did. Thinking back on the story, I had the same reaction to the "Eaters of the Dead" by Michael Crichton ... and so they author joins a somewhat exclusive club as having provided me with one of my favorite stories. Highly recommended - looking forward to the next story.

I was given this free advance reader's copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. #NorthernWrath #NetGalley

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Review: The Translation of the Seventy: History, Reception, and Contemporary Use of the Septuagint

The Translation of the Seventy: History, Reception, and Contemporary Use of the Septuagint by Edmon L. Gallagher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a scholastic text that primarily appeals to readers with at least a passing interest in early judeo-christian texts, specifically the text known as the Septuagint that became the foundation of the Christian Old Testament in the Early Church. “This book introduces the Septuagint and explores how early Christians made use of it.” What may be surprising to some readers is the evidence supporting the variety/plurality of sacred text and the challenges inherent to translation and transmission across the ages. This was apparently illustrated early in Christian patristic commentaries from Origen, Jerome and Augustine amongst others. What was surprising to me is the evidence that the New Testament makes references to the [expanded] Septuagint (LXX), the Masoretic Text (MT) and other unknown texts and even points to an evolution of sorts where the texts may have influenced each other, depending on the message/tradition the redactor/scribe wished to convey/support. Throughout the book, the author charts a nuanced middle ground, from which I gained a much better understanding of how the Christian Bible developed.

Section I: Starting Points
1: Start: Introducing the LXX
2: Story: What the Ancient Jews Thought about LXX Origins
3: Origins: What Modern Scholars Think about LXX Origins

Section II: Canon and Text in Early Judaism and Earliest Christianity
4: Canon: The Influence of the LXX on the Size of the Bible
5: Text: Textual Pluralism in Ancient Judaism
6: Apostles: The LXX in the New Testament

Section III: The Text of the Septuagint among the Fathers
7: Varietas: Patristic Textual Criticism on the LXX
8: Theory: The Relationships between the LXX and the Hebrew Bible in Early Christian Thought
9: Jerome: The Use and Abuse of the LXX according to Jerome
10: Augustine’s Theory of Two Inspired Biblical Texts

Epilogue: The LXX for Modern Christians
Author Index
Subject Index
Scripture and Ancient Source Index

I was given this free advance reader copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

#TranslationoftheSeventy #NetGalley.

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