Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

On my quest to become better educated in American History, I recently read Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson. The Founding Fathers and their quest to have an independent nation is something that greatly intrigues me. I've already read about Thomas Jefferson, and decided I would learn about Benjamin Franklin.

This biography is extremely well written and absolutely enjoyable. It covers Franklin's entire life, from his running away from home at 17, to his death at the age of 84, with everything in between. I really enjoyed reading about his life as a printer, as a scientist, and later as a statesman. The book is nicely divided up into sections based on years. You find out many interesting facts, like that he was the toast of Paris when he was in France, with ribbons and coins with his likeness put on them. He had an illegitimate son, who had an illegitimate son, who had an illegitimate son. That's quite the family legacy. Also, he often started flirtations with younger women, but then distanced himself by acting very much the father figure through letters he would write them.

Seriously, this was such an enjoyable read. Find out more about how your country was founded and the role that Benjamin Franklin played by reading this book. I think I'm going to have to make a trip to Philadelphia now!!

A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

I apologize for the lapse of time between my last book review and this one. One reason for this was due to the Christmas holidays. I was running around quite a bit and didn't have much time to read. The second reason for this is the book itself, more in that in just a second.

First, my main motivation for reading this book was to be more informed. Many people have preconceived notions about religions other than Christianity, and this bugs the hell out of me. Most of what people know is second hand, and often incorrect knowledge, especially when it comes to Islam.

This book is written by Karen Armstrong, a former nun. She discusses the three major monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. She explains such topics as the rise of Yaweh, the controversy over the trinity, the prophet Muhammad, God as understood by philosophers and mystics, and the future of God.

The chapter that I enjoyed the most was the chapter on Islam, mostly because I learned a lot. For example, the Koran was revealed to Muhammed over a period of twenty-three years. Also, the Koran teaches that God had sent messengers to every people on the earth, such as Abraham, Noah, Moses, and Jesus, who were the prophets of the Jews and Christians (Jesus is only a prophet, not the son of God). Also, the Koran frequently addresses women explicitly, something that rarely happens in the Jewish or Christian scriptures. However, as in other religions, it was hijacked by the men, who interpreted the texts in a way that was negative for women.

Overall, this book was very informative. However, it can be extremely dense, which is partly why it took so long for me to complete it. However, if you are interested in learning about these three religions, I definitely think it is worth the time and effort to read this book.

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

My latest read is Mennonite in a Little Black Dress, a memoir by Rhoda Janzen. Rhoda Janzen was living her life as in English professor when her husband dropped a bomb on her: he was leaving her for a gay man named Bob. Within that same week, she was in a car accident. She decided to take her sabbatical and head back to California to her Mennonite family.

The book focuses on her time back at home, reconnecting with her Mennonite roots. She reflects on her life growing up Mennonite. She reminisces on such things as the food they used to have to bring to lunch at school, such as borscht, or her desire to dance while growing up. She also delves into her relationship with her ex-husband and how it came to end. Her visit home is a healing process, not only physically, but emotionally.

Overall, this is an OK read. The book starts out strong but sort of drags out towards the end. It was interesting to learn about the Mennonites, since I didn't know too much about them before reading the book. Also, it's an interesting going back home story. Though Mennonite culture was not central to her adult life, Janzen never forgot where she comes from, and speaks of her Mennonite life fondly.

So, if you are looking for a  pretty easy read, that will help teach you more about Mennonite culture, this would be a good book to read.

Barrel Fever by David Sedaris

Alright, today I bring you the second book I've read by David Sedaris, Barrel Fever, a collection of short stories and essays. This set of stories is not autobiographical like they were in Me Talk Pretty One Day. There are several amusing stories, like The Last You'll Hear From Me, a letter being read at the funeral of girl who committed suicide. Another one I like, though it had a slightly disturbing ending, was Season's Greetings to Our Friends and Family. Santaland Diaries is an autobiographical essay about David's time working as an elf at Macy's during Christmas time. There are several stories in which homosexuality is either an underlying or active theme. If you are uncomfortable with that concept, then you probably won't enjoy the book. However, if you don't care, like I do, you should find all the stories amusing on some level.

American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson

My most recent read is something I don't normally read about, history. I've never been a big history fan. I think it stems from my history class in high school. The teacher really didn't care, and therefore didn't make it something that interested me. However, living right outside of Washington D.C., you can't help but be inundated by history. I've become interested more and more by the founding fathers, especially Thomas Jefferson. The Jefferson Memorial is one of my favorites to visit. Recently, the hubby and I made a trip to Thomas Jefferson's home, Monticello. You can read about it and see  pictures of our visit at my other blog (click here). We loved our visit and learning more about our 3rd president. With our local Border's going out of business, we finally decided to pick up a biography about Jefferson.

We chose American Sphinx:  The Character of Thomas Jefferson by Joseph Ellis since it was a well known biography of Jefferson and was a National Book Award Winner. This book examines several different time periods in Jefferson's life, starting with his time in Philadelphia, examining his life in France, his tenure as president, and ending with time in Monticello.

There are so many interesting tidbits in this book. We learn about his views on slavery. He was torn about ending slavery because he wasn't sure if the slaves would be able to properly incorporate themselves into American life. We learn about the establishment of his beloved University of Virginia, where he was adamant that it have no religious affiliation. We learn about his views on government. He preferred state rights and despised the Supreme Court. We learn about his love/hate relationship with John Adams and the letters they exchanged later in life.

This book was truly interesting and I learned a lot. It can be dense at times, especially when it comes to political dealings, but then it breaks into these wonderful sections about Jefferson's personal views on different topics, and that is what I really enjoyed. So, if you want to learn more about this founding father, I think this is a good place to start.

Genesis: The Scientific Quest for Life's Origins

Today I bring to you Genesis: The Scientific Quest for Life’s Origins by Robert M. Hazen. 

Creationists always think they can stick it to evolutionary biologists by going “haha, you can’t explain how life came into existence”.  Well, quite frankly, that is not the business we are in. Evolutionary biologists think about how life has changed over time. But, that doesn’t mean an evolutionary biologist should remain uneducated about the origins of life, which is why I decided to read this book.

Hazen is an astrobiologist in the middle of the current research investigating how life arose on earth. This book is in some ways a personal account about Hazen’s life and his personal quest, along with his colleagues, to figure out how life came to exist. He touches on several different aspects of origins research. He mentions the early work of Urey and Miller, the two scientists who really pioneered origins research. He talks about the competing theories of where life began, at the ocean’s surface with waves crashing against rocks in the presence of violent early atmosphere, or in the depths of the ocean, under extreme pressures at hydrothermal vents.  He ends with talking about how self-replication might have arisen, with plenty other topics in between.

Overall, this book was O.K. I certainly leave feeling more informed about origins research. I also like how he made this book personal to his experiences. A couple things I didn’t like. One was the technicality of the book. While I could understand it pretty readily due to my background in science, I have concerns that someone from the general public might have a hard time with it. The second, he seems to be an apologist to the religious. Even though he seems against intelligent design, on page 80 of the book he states “Isn’t it more satisfying to believe in a God who created the whole shebang from the outset—a God of natural laws who stepped back and doesn’t meddle in our affairs?” Why even evoke God if there are natural laws that explain the observations? Just stick to the science, man!!

Overall, this is a good read to start with if you want to begin to understand origins research. I just wish the author had kept the science and religion separate.