A Christian Viewpoint

The Traitor’s Sword by Amanda Hemingway
publisher: Harper Collins

As you may have noticed in the past I do enjoy Sci-fi and Fantasy novels. Linda knows this as well. So for Christmas she bought me a wide selection of books. One of them is called “The Traitor’s Sword.” She did not know this at the time that the story is a trilogy, a set of three books, and that “The Traitor’s Sword” was the second in the series. It didn’t take me long to figure out that there must have been a previous book and this one was later in the series. Normally I would just set the book aside until I got the first and then read them in order. First though, I wanted to read enough to tell me if I wanted the series or not.

I read the first chapter. This was an introduction to characters. Who they were, what they did, and how the story was generally set up. The premise of the book is that magic is real. The hero, a thirteen year old boy, is the champion of the story. His unique ability is to dream himself into an alternate universe. He can take part in the activities there. In the first book he obtained an artifact. There are two other artifacts that need to be gathered together so that an enchantment can break the curse in one of the alternate universes.

This book is aimed primarily at younger teens. In one part it is to educate the young mind into the possibility that magic is real. The second chapter opens up on practicing magic and the hero taking his own trips. All of this is rather so-so and doesn’t really go very far… so far… into the occult. Of course it is written so that the fertile imagination of young adults can begin to enter into the reality, if only in fantasy. I found the book rather tame and a bit boring. I was wondering as I was coming to the close of chapter two whether I should continue reading the story. Then came the third last paragraph.

The paragraph starts out with the mother thinking back on when she became pregnant. You see, she didn’t have sex with a man but with some form of spiritual being. She talks about Mary, the mother of Jesus, also becoming pregnant by some spiritual being. Understand, the woman was raped by this malevolent(?) spirit and she wonders if Mary also was raped against her will. Then there is a slap at Gods who need to be worshipped. I can just imagine what would be going through the mind of a young girl as she read this passage.

I stopped reading and looked over to Linda. I read out the paragraph. She became very upset and wanted to destroy the book immediately. I told her I would get rid of it after I wrote this book review. It is rare that I don’t finish a book once I start. Even when I read “Mein Kamph” by Hitler I finished the book… but it took many months of returning to it after putting down numerous times. As a story I could finish the book yet on this rare occasion I will simply drop it in the trash.

The titles of the books in this series are: The Green Stone Grail, The Traitor’s Sword, The Poisoned Crown.

I have no opinion of her other books.

Alaska by: James A Mitchener

Oooohhhh… that was a long read. Paperback book, over a thousand pages, small print and a billion years in the making. Well not the writing of the book took a billion years but it is the time frame that the book covers. True to form in his writing style and method Mitchener goes to the dawn of time and weaves a history from the forming of continental plates, land bridges, mastodons, mammoths, first humans, etc.

It was interesting to read how the first humans came to Alaska and settled the islands and coast lines. Then the Athapascans, Tlingits and later the Eskimo followed on and took up their own respective areas. He explains what life was like in those early days. Then he quickly comes to the white man’s foray (Russian) into this vast wilderness. The story then continues to the modern era. Sale of Alaska to the U.S., two gold rushes, salmon fisheries, Japanese invasion, statehood and on and on it goes.

This book took me four months to get through. There came points where it was just a tiring read. Eventually I read the book only during those late night episodes of sleeplessness or doctor’s visits. Ha! My wife started the book before me, she is a faster reader, but still hasn’t finished the book. She stalled about 800 pages into the book. She is currently devouring other books and reader’s digest condensed stories. I enjoyed the story but like the Lord of the Rings trilogy it needs to be broken up and read at different times. This book in one straight read is just way too long. It seems to me to be one of his longest.

About his method. One giant story filled with smaller stories for each era covered. Most of the characters are fictional and are simply a representation of the types of people in the circumstances you could have come across if you were there. The story ends rather abrutly sometime in the late 1980’s.

If you are not much of a reader you should avoid this book. If you like historical fiction and don’t mind stretching your reading over a couple of months you will enjoy this book.

Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert
published by: Ace Books, New York

This book is the sequel to “Dune”. It is a science fiction story based 10,000+ years into the future of mankind. The planet Arrakis is the major location of this story and plays a prominant role in all of the books in the series. The first book tells the story of Paul Atreides, a young man of a noble family, who became the foretold leader of the known universe. In this sequel we learn that this government/religious leader isn’t as all powerful as was pictured in the first book.

Dune Messiah sets the stage for the second generation. It is filled with intrigue and sub plots. The story will keep you guessing what comes next… right to the end. Most of the characters from the first book make an appearence in this sequel. If you have not read “Dune” I recommend doing so before reading “Dune Messiah”. If you like sci-fi then this book, as well as the whole series of “Dune” books, will be a good read.

American Soldier by General Tommy Franks w/Malcolm McConnell
published by 10 Regan Books

This is the personal story of General Tommy Franks, leader of the coalition forces that lead the battles in Afghanistan and Iraq. The book is broken into four sections:

1. birth and going through to his tour in Vietnam.
2. Decission to stay in the military to his promotion to four star general
3. 9/11 and the Afghanistan campaign
4. The Iraq Campaign

It was interesting to read about his early life. The formation of his character. Not only factual but also entertaining. His tour of duty in Vietnam explains the formation of an innovative mind. That mind lead to the tactical decisions that were played out on the battle fields of Afghanistan and Iraq. Reading the history of the strategic developement of forces showed a clear and decisive change of tactics that would result in a totally different campaign from the first gulf war.

The strength of the book is historical information. The timeline of events and decisions that lead to the formation and execution of the battles. The book also reveals how the press, for good and for bad, reported the news and how in some cases hurt the cause. There are also many explanations to why certain things were done; such as keeping the 4th Div on the ships just off the coast of Turkey until well after the conflict began; the “mission accomplished” press fiasco after phase three operations were completed. There are many examples of behind the scenes events that need to be known to understand the battle plans.

Tommy Franks explains his personal philosophy and plays a bit of the prophet. He warns of the consequences that would face the U.S. and the rest of the world if we fail to gain a full victory in the gulf. A sustainable Iraq government must be in place before the coalition forces leave.

Though this book is primarily a military history it also is a non-partisan political history and a biography. I recommend this book for those who are interested in history and war.

 The War of Ideas by Walid Phares
published by Palgrave MacMillan

Here is a book that should be a must read for all people who want an understanding of the forces of terrorism now engulfing the world. Phares describes who the enemy is and those who directly and indirectly support them. He lays out their motives. He blows aside the common misconceptions that prevent the west from getting a good grasp of the religious political forces at work in societies from Baghdad to Washington and out to the world.

He describes three different periods of this war starting in the early to mid 20th century, how it changed focus in the 1990’s and finally the adjustments to strategy they are using after 9/11. This struggle is between Islamic Jihadism and the Democratic principles and ideals of the West. He goes further to explain why controlled societies such as Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia and others not only give tacit approval but financial and material support to the Islamic Jihadists.

During the mid 20th Century in the United States there was the embarrassment of the McCarthy hearings. The fifth column that never materialized as the broad threat that was being painted. However, in our world today there is a fifth column at work in the US and other western nations. It is being fuelled by petro dollars. There is an agenda to misdirect governments, institutions and the general public. Mr Phares does an admiral job explaining this threat to world peace.

To come up with viable workable solutions misconceptions must be cleared up. Only then can we hope to apply the correct actions to resolve the situations faced by freedom loving people. Only then can we understand the enemy and only then as a people stand firm against a common foe. For many Mr Phares book, the War of Ideas, will be a likely and beneficial start; on our road to understanding what lays before us and how to defend the Democratic principles and ideals we have come to cherish.