J's Pages

For the second time in my life, I have officially stopped buying new comics. To commemorate the event, on my last trip to the Grumpy Old Man's Comics, I purchased this volume. This was a collection I had checked out of the library numerous times back in the 1970s, and when I first saw it at the store I figured I'd eventually buy it and put it on my shelf. (I had picked up its companion volume Batman from the 30's to the 70's years earlier because I'm more of a Batman guy than a Superman guy.) It's mostly a black and white book, with a few color sections, reprinting a selection of stories from the first 33 years of Superman's run. Since it has been over 40 years since I last read it, it was almost like reading a new collection.

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Labels: DCComics, OnMyShelf

// posted by John @ 6:15 PM 0 Comments

This is another history book I picked up on my trip to Syracuse, NY. My great-great-grandparents didn't live in Baldwinsville itself, but farmed in one of the outlying hamlets. It's a nice little glimpse on places they might have seen and how they might have lived.

check it out 
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Labels: ArcadiaPublishing, CheckItOut

// posted by John @ 6:09 PM 0 Comments

This book is one of the many volumes of local history published by Arcadia Publishing. (My wife calls them "the sepia books".) It's a collection of photos of the city of Syracuse, NY from the Onondaga Historical Association's collection. I picked it up earlier this month as I too a trip to visit my ancestral lands. I don't know how many of these buildings and places my multi-great grandparents actually saw in their life, but it's fun to peruse and imagine.

check it out
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Labels: ArcadiaPublishing, CheckItOut

// posted by John @ 5:56 PM 0 Comments

waiting room material
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Labels: AlexanderMcCallSmith, WaitingRoomMaterial

// posted by John @ 5:47 PM 0 Comments

I recently listened to an interview with Dr. Rohl on the Humble Skeptic podcast, and wanted to read his book, Exodus: Myth or History? to dig a bit deeper. Unfortunately, that book was not in the local library systems and the asking price for the paper copy was way out of my price range. However, SPL did have a copy of this earlier book by Dr. Rohl, which covers a lot of the stuff he talked about. 

In Pharaohs and Kings: A Biblical Quest, Dr. Rohl challenges the standard chronology of ancient Egypt and ancient Israel that had been established by scholars. He describes how that chronology is based on four key anchor points, then explains why he thinks three of those four are erroneous. Next Dr. Rohl establishes the basis for revising that chronology, based on linguistic and archaeological evidence. Finally, he presents archaeological discoveries that, now dated with the new chronology, fit in with historical accounts from the Bible of Solomon, Saul, David, Moses, and Joseph. (This is the part that grabbed my interest when I listened to the podcast.) 

Not being that much into history, many details presented in the book went over my head. But the gist of his logic and arguments were fairly well presented. In the discussion, Dr. Rohl pointed out a number of assumptions that went into establishing the old chronology. Then, as he presented his new chronology and the physical evidence of the Biblical narrative, I noticed that he was making his own educated guesses. Having played historian with researching my family tree, I recognize that those guesses are a legitimate tool in trying to piece together history. 

All in all, I enjoyed reading the book. I recognize I'm very willing to accept Dr. Rohl's conclusions, as they would corroborate my own beliefs. But the book also offered a picture of how people were living "back in Bible times". Go check it out.

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Labels: CheckItOut

// posted by John @ 10:42 AM 0 Comments

check it out
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// posted by John @ 5:41 PM 0 Comments

First read in July of 2006.

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Labels: CheckItOut, OrsonScottCard

// posted by John @ 5:31 PM 0 Comments