Sunday, July 09, 2023

The Ferryman by Justin Cronin

The Ferryman
In terms of reader enjoyment and elegant prose, I'd give The Ferryman my highest rating. I congratulate the author on producing another fine novel that's somewhere between science fiction, fantasy and psychological thriller. 

So why is my Goodreads rating only three out of five stars? My one reservation is that Cronin's story contains a couple of wrenching plot twists. They're intriguing, but I'm still trying to reconcile some of the details. This is partly my fault, as I had to set the book aside for a couple of weeks while I attended to other priorities. To atone, I spent considerable time re-reading certain critical sections. Thank God for Kindle, which makes it easy to search for words like "Oranios" and "The Designer." Now I need a book discussion group to help me finish the task.

The theme of a "Designer"is key to this book. Readers with gnostic tendencies (a worthy lot) will recognize the concept of an artisan god separate from and subordinate to the original creator. But this book is not about theology. The Ferryman poses the question: what is real, and what is illusion? 
This brings to mind a favorite Moody Blues lyric, but let's not get bogged down in "Nights in White Satin." Instead, here are some of my favorite passages from The Ferryman
  • "...it was and always would be impossible to know what was dream and what was not... all creation was boxes within boxes within boxes, each the dream of a different god."  
  • "There is the thing... and then there is the echo of the thing, the shadow of the thing." Echoes and dreams play a large part in this book. Dreaming is almost deviant behavior in the world Cronin creates, but some people do it anyway. They can't help it.
  • "So none of this is real, is what you're saying." "Oh, I wouldn't say that. More like a reality of a certain kind. A shadow kind, if you will." Cronin provides a nice synopsis of Plato's cave parable here.
This is heady stuff. Cronin also has a point of view on current events, including climate change and the increasing disparity between the rich and everyone else. Those who seek further analysis and commentary may want to follow the links below. 

External Links


Sunday, February 05, 2023

World War II Fiction: A Partial List

My father, born in 1930, was an avid reader of fiction about World War II. Too young to participate in the war himself, I suppose this was his way of experiencing it vicariously. 

Many of the titles listed below were stored in boxes in our attic during my childhood. The rest are books I picked up here and there as an adult.  They provided me with many hours of exciting reading. 
  • The Caine Mutiny (Wouk) - one of my all-time favorites of any genre
  • Once An Eagle (Myrer)
  • Battle Cry (Uris) - I've lost track of how many times I've read it
  • The Winds of War (Wouk; a trilogy)
  • Catch-22 (Heller)
  • The Young Lions (Shaw) 
  • From Here to Eternity (Jones)
  • The Naked and the Dead (Mailer)
  • Von Ryan's Express (Westheimer)
  • King Rat (Clavell)
  • The Cruel Sea (Monserrat)
  • Landfall (Shute)
  • The Chequer Board (Shute)
  • The Good Shepherd (Forrester)
  • Tales of the South Pacific (Michener)
  • The Big War (Myrer) - I may re-read this one; I scarcely recall anything about it.
  • Don't Go Near the Water (Brinkley) - a humorous treatment
  • Where Eagles Dare (Maclean) 
  • Eye of the Needle (Follett)
  • Jackdaws (Follett)
In several cases (Wouk, Uris, Shaw, Follett) the books listed above set me on a longer-term effort to read the author's other work that has been quite rewarding. Many of these novels became films. But don't judge these books by the movies.


Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Weaponizing the Federal Government

I don't dare post this on Facebook, because it will infuriate a certain percentage of people and lead to a series of messy, exhausting online arguments. 

Divided House Approves G.O.P. Inquiry Into ‘Weaponization’ of Government

New York Times, January 11, 2023

But this is MY blog. Mine, mine, mine. So brace yourself. I'm going to open my big fat mouth and unleash hell. 

I understand the need for openness and transparency in government. But at some point, the sheer number of investigations puts our country at risk. With everybody investigating each other, our elected representatives are becoming so tangled up in their underwear that they'll have no time to govern the country. 




Wednesday, September 14, 2022

Belief in God?

I asked Nancy that question recently. Her response: "If God doesn't exist, then how did we get here?" That's a useful way to phrase the question, because it helped me to articulate my own belief: God as depicted in The Bible is not necessarily the same thing as the creator of the universe, if there was one. I'm not sure about a creator, as I'll explain. 

Begin with the question: was the universe created, or has it always existed? Some (including Plato's Timaeus) would say that it must have been created, because it exists, and nothing can exist unless it is first created. I can accept the possibility of a creator. 

But a true creator -- a force that set creation in motion but was not itself created by anything --- would be an entity totally beyond our understanding. Maybe not even an entity at all. A force that acted, but was not acted upon? It's hard to even think about it. As Timaeus said, the father of all this (if there is one) is beyond our knowledge.

But assuming there was a creator, I have difficulty reconciling that entity with the God presented in The Hebrew Bible and The New Testament. 

I refer now to the God that spoke directly to early Biblical figures and intervened in human affairs; expects us worship him ("Praise ye the Lord", as the Anglican service puts it); who expects us to obey his commandments, and punishes us if we don't; who loves us and has a plan for us all; who sent his son Jesus to us and then took him away to atone for man's sins.

I struggle with the idea that the sort of creator I'm talking about would do such things. Such a creator would be so different from us that it might not even be aware of mankind, let alone bother to watch over and judge us.

I am aware that I'm applying human concepts to something that, if it exists, is beyond our understanding. As theologians tell us, it's a mistake to try to apply logic and reasoning to what is essentially a matter of faith. 

Still, I have to believe that the God of The Bible and other monotheistic religions is a man-made concept. It must have emerged as an attempt to answer the deepest questions. Why does the world appear as it does? Intelligent design, or evolution? How did all this come to be? Was it created? I never will know the answers, nor will any human being. The questions are too vast. They are beyond our capabilities.

There is much value and wisdom to be found in The Bible and the sayings of Jesus, and The Torah, and no doubt other religions as well. As well as some very eloquent writing. But I am left with little faith, just a series of questions. As I've said before, I do pray in times of crisis. But I'm not sure anyone is listening.

Thursday, September 08, 2022

Valerie Leon: Signed Photos

This English actress is one of the reasons I like the "Carry On" films from Ealing Studios. Who could forget her in "Carry On Again Doctor?" She’s also a former Bond girl. And of course, the star of "Blood From The Mummy’s Tomb." 

For 20 pounds sterling, she’ll send you a signed photo with a “customized message" of your choice. Clever girl. Do I dare to order one of her photos? I envision it in my basement man-cave, near the pool table, bearing a customized message: “Darling…. All of my love, Val."

Valerie Leon and Jim Dale in "Carry On Again Doctor"

Monday, August 29, 2022

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles

 

The Lincoln Highway My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Every so often, I read a book simply because it has been on The New York Times bestseller list for a long time. The presumption is that if a book has been highly successful, and the capsule description doesn't put me off, there'a a better-than-average chance I'll enjoy it. This book is the exception to that rule. For reasons I can't quite put my finger on, it didn't appeal to me. It struck me as artificial, the situations and characters as contrived. I did read it to the end, though. I don't like to abandon a book partway through.

View all my reviews

Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Monkey Pox

My cold or Covid or whatever it is has turned into a deep cough that is, in clinical terms, “productive.” I had a teleconference appointment with a doctor this afternoon. It’s not my usual doctor, and not the usual way of visiting a doctor. This will be a teleconference with a “resident” who looks to be younger than our daughter. The practice is so busy that a resident is the best they can offer. 

Because of my symptoms, they wouldn’t let me come into the doctor's office. It’s not Monkey Pox. I am not plagued with itchy, scabby sores that crack open and ooze pus when you pick them. 

As I envision the pox spectrum, Monkey Pox sounds more disgusting than chicken pox, but perhaps not as dangerous as smallpox. With respect to size, I'm not sure whether a monkey pox is larger than a chicken pox. Some monkeys are smaller than chickens. Others are larger.