Fiction
* The Devlin Diary, Christi Phillips. The Devlin Diary picks up where The Rossetti Letter left off. The story bounces between Claire Donavan, a modern scholar in Cambridge, and Hannah Devlin, an unlicensed doctor in 17th century London. Both women confront danger, prejudice, and mystery involving the powerful and unscrupulous. The historical research is superb, rendering the 17th century characters, settings, plots, politics, professions, science, morals, mind-sets, and details far more intriguing than the current ones, but both time periods held my interest. Until the last chapters, I was unsure of how either story would end but found both conclusions very satisfying. * I’ve Got Your Number, Sophie Kinsella. Kinsella is the author of the popular Shopaholic series featuring the delightful and unconsciously hilarious Rebecca Bloomwood Brandon. In I've Got Your Number, Kinsella gives us a brand new heroine, Poppy Wyatt, a physiotherapist who loses her precious vintage engagement ring and then has her equally precious cellphone stolen. Without her phone, she'll never find her ring. When she fortuitously spots a discarded cellphone in the trash, Poppy picks it up. The owner on the other end -- a stranger -- turns out to be just the man to waken her mind to the truth about her fiancé and her heart to a love that matters. Kinsella's heroines are lovable and funny, self-deprecating in the most engaging way. The author's subtle critique of the intellectual and business elite is pointed but neither preachy nor cynical. Her prose is hip and engaging, her humor infectious, her plots zany but just credible enough to maintain the illusion of reality. Even though I rarely use a cellphone and never text, I enjoyed Poppy's incessant use of the device. I read this very funny book in two days. I have yet to learn to text, however.
Non-fiction
* The Harbinger: The Ancient Mystery that Holds the Secret of America’s Future, Jonathan Cahn. Cahn is a messianic rabbi. The author's thesis is that the warning in Isaiah 9:10 given to ancient Israel to turn back to God is the same warning given to this nation by the events of 9/11. The thesis is conveyed in the form of a narrative. The nine harbingers (that is, signs or warnings of judgment to come) prophesied in Isaiah are the breach, the terrorist, the fallen bricks, the tower, the gazit stone, the sycamore, the erez tree, the utterance, and the prophecy. The parallels between God's warnings to ancient Israel and Judah and His warnings to modern America are undeniably striking. Some critics quarrel with the author's thesis that both Israel and America are countries formed under a covenant with God, but to me that's a quibble. God drew both nations to Himself, and both King Solomon and President George Washington dedicated their nations to God with a warning that His blessings would be removed if the people ever turned away from Him. The destruction of the Twin Towers and the fall of the stock market a few days later was the first shaking for America, involving all nine harbingers. The second shaking came exactly seven years later when the stock market crashed again. Both crashes occurred on a significant date in the Hebrew calendar, which Rabbi Cahn explains in detail. As a Christian and amateur student of the Bible who (alas) does not know Hebrew, I greatly appreciate Rabbi Cahn's reliance on Scripture and his knowledge of ancient history, his explanations of the Hebrew language and calendar, and his investigation of conditions at Ground Zero that were treated as peripheral rather than critical by news pundits and politicians.
I realize some pagans, humanists, rationalists, secularists, atheists, agnostics, and End Times skeptics may think this book isn't for them -- but it is so intriguing on the subjects of history and politics, even they will find it riveting and thought-provoking.
I have also watched the DVD based on this book, entitled The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment: Is There an Ancient Mystery that Foretells America's Future? Superbly narrated by Rabbi Cahn, the images are compelling and the production excellent. Until I read the book and watched this DVD, I knew next to nothing about the felling of the sycamore tree or the planting of the erez tree near Ground Zero; the quarrying and placement of the gazit stone where the new tower is being erected; the crack in the foundation of Federal Hall caused by the events of 9/11; the place of the country's dedication in 1789 after the inauguration of George Washington as the first president; the religious nature of the dedication ceremony; or the striking repetition of our national leaders' defiant speeches in reaction to 9/11. The parallels between ancient Israel and modern America are uncanny but precise and far too important to ignore, especially the chance we Americans have to heed the warnings and avoid a terrible judgment.
See Amazon for other book and DVD reviews by Johnine. Also see our web site at www.margaritestjohn.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment