Chapter Ninety

It's December so the weather has been a little erratic. We've had some days that were above average temperature-wise and days like today (and for the rest of the year) that are below freezing. We've had a few snow falls but nothing too bad, and I had a stomach virus that kept me home for a week. It's a good thing that I can always rely on my TBR pile and my bookshelves.

Miscellaneous

Ben Hur - Lew Wallace ($.50/$1.99,copyright 1996, 382 pages, Paperback)
I'm pretty sure that I picked this up at a Library sale in Woodbridge about 2 or 3 years ago along with several other books. It wound up in my TBR (To Be Read) pile because the other books I bought were more interesting. Being stuck at home, it caught my attention. It was published in the 1880's but I think it really became popular after the 1960 release of the Charleton Heston movie. It is the story of two childhood friends who become enemies. Judah Ben-Hur and Messala spent their younger days trying to outdo each other. As tensions grew they parted ways only to meet one day - years later - under very bad circumstances.  Wallace does a great job depicting how Ben-Hur's life long quest for redemption leads to salvation and conversion to Christianity and how the restoration of his name and life comes on the day Christ Himself is crucified. I enjoyed it.


Off The Shelf

The Source - James A. Michener ($3.95/$3.95, copyright 1965, 1088 pages, Paperback)

This book has been with me for a long time. It was an assignment for an English Class back in the mid-'60's and I've carried it with me through several moves over two different states. It's a fascinating, fictitious history of Makor, a city in Israel, from prehistory to modern times. The intro takes us to an archeological dig in the '60's that turns up artifacts in an ancient mound. Then, starting with the deepest, oldest artifact and moving forward in time, in successive chapters , Michener chronologically describes the inhabitants (who are often descendants of characters in earlier chapters) and events in and around the city over thousands of years. In this way, he tells the fascinating story of the people who populated that particular area and delves a bit into the interaction of the various, diverse religious groups. I enjoyed it.

It's cold here so I just turned up the thermostat. I've thrown another blanket on the bed and stacked up a few extra books on the night table. There's snow in the forecast but I hope it won't be bad.

The New Year starts next Monday. I hope you all have a great one and that you find some time to ..

Keep reading.