Mysterious, mind-boggling collection of ancient genealogies.
The general reader meets Starr’s work with a sense of being an outsider to the author’s world. From the very first pages there is simply no way of understanding Starr’s frame of reference, which is apparently hidden in some manner of secret society. Starr talks about the training of a knight and the various secrets with which knights are entrusted. He is clearly speaking of the present day and yet the reader is left wondering, from beginning to end, what kind of knighthood Starr is discussing. There are hints that Starr might be referencing the Knights of Columbus, a Roman Catholic fraternal organization, but his material is in many ways non-Christian. The vast bulk of the book consists of elaborate genealogical charts covering major figures from the Bible, European history and mythology. The reader’s eyebrow is immediately raised when Starr explains that “Almost all of the content of the book is from the internet, so the ideas may or may not be true.” Additionally, nowhere does Starr provide citations or attributions for his information. The reader knows only that he found most of it somewhere online. The author utilizes a number of unusual, even confusing, terms and references, such as “the priestess the Virgin Mary” or “Saint Judas Iscariot.” The reader will be confused, or bemused, by some of the elaborate connections made between characters of European history and of the Bible—King Arthur comes from the line of David, for instance. Yet most perplexing is his inclusion—without explanation—of genealogies linked to mythological characters. Hector and Aeneas are descended from Joshua of the Old Testament. The wife of the Norse god Odin can be traced back to Joseph of Arimathea. The reader will also be surprised to find out that Cain and Abel both had twin siblings, or even more shocking, that God himself is placed into a genealogy, having apparently descended from other ancient gods such as Anu and Enlil. Undermined by esotericism.
Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2011
ISBN: 978-1466233911
Page Count: 213
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Nov. 28, 2011
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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