Michael Ainsworth

A base level primer poorly done

Revisado: 07-17-24

Plato made boring in a condescending style featuring sections of exegesis that border on the ridiculous.

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An apologetic- not a history

Revisado: 01-12-23

The author is a sociologist, not a historian, and it shows. The book has one major and seemingly valid point to make regarding the successful rise of Christianity. It is that mass conversions did not play a major role, but the influence of small groups and social networks did. In this, the role of women has been vastly underrated. Moving forward the book mainly tries to to show how Christianity became dominant, but to justify Christianity and Catholicism by doing such things as denying the Dark Ages (by using a definition no historian would countenance) and arguing the Pope was correct to try and imprison Galileo. A far better book on this subject is Dominion by Tom Holland, a real historian.

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A Readers Digest version of Biblical Books

Revisado: 12-16-21

This is nothing more or less than a short summary of actions in the Biblical books covering the period between the Late Bronze Age collapse and the Babylonian Exile. If you are already familiar with Biblical text, you will learn almost nothing. If not or you just want a short reminder of key actions, it is probably worth the book’s low price of about $5.00. However, be aware this is a summary of the Bible narrative only. The veracity of that narrative is neither supported nor denied. This book provides almost no insights into recent archeological and historical discoveries that have expanded understanding of the period, and when it attempts to do so the information is misleading . For instance, the book suggests Solomon’s declining power resulted from his weakening dedication to Jewish monotheism despite modern scholarship indicating Jewish ritual during this period was largely henotheistic and strong monotheism was only a subsequent development.

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Very poorly edited

Revisado: 10-19-20

I did not find the narrator as objectionable as other reviewers. The main problem is how this anthology was edited, particularly the section containing Books of Enoch. Long sections of references to other ancient texts continually interrupt the narrative. These are often extraneous and of greater length than the core text in the book you bought to listen to. Worse, there are no discernible breaks between these and the main book, so you don’t know when you are listening to the titled text or something else. Very frustrating. Fortunately Audible made exchange for a better version easy.

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Interesting tidbits poorly organized

Revisado: 08-14-19

The author has spent decades researching the book and has found a number of items casting new light on the Manson case. Unfortunately his efforts are not framed in a way that tells a coherent story. It is like his research papers fell on the floor and we read them in the random order we pick them up. A ghostwriter or editor might have improved it greatly.

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An Extraordinary and Challenging Book

Revisado: 06-15-17

A solid "big history" book that spans the entirety of mankind, Sapiens contains concepts that will challenge your thinking about fundamental issues. It doesn't matter if you view yourself as a theist or atheist, as a liberal or conservative, or as a scientist or artist - there are sections of this book that will refute some of your long held beliefs. If you are into confirmation bias, this book is not for you. If you are willing to look at the world from a series of different viewpoints, this is one you should not miss.

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Interesting concepts but ultimately a boring story

Revisado: 06-13-17

An ambassador from an intergalactic Federation approaches a new world. The world is filled with androgynous beings. That's the interesting part. Otherwise it is a rather boring story story of a bureaucratic regulations followed by a wilderness trek.

The story is told by two primary new narrators. The reader does not do much to distinguish the difference between these speakers. As a result several passages may go by without certainty as to who is talking

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An implausible and sadistic tale

Revisado: 07-14-14

The worst book I've ever purchased from Audible. For it to work you would have to believe a preposterous story of smart, well educated people making evil and improbably dumb decisions . Every other section is a tedious and repetitious series of sadistic acts inflicted by a secret government program so brutal it would make a Nazi prison guard blush. The sections in between are boring threadbare narrative about implausible actions and the lives of characters who are poorly described and completely inauthentic. I'll be asking for a refund on this one.

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A most unusual Coming to America story

Revisado: 04-22-14

Don't usually make recommendations, but I've really enjoyed, "The Golem and the Jinni." Set primarily in the Jewish and Syrian immigrant communities of New York in the 1890's, this debut novel by Helene Wecker draws on the mythologies of those people. I found it a most unusual "Coming to America" / "Odd Couple" story - an interesting blend of historical fiction and fantasy. The narration is superior. I recommend it as a "beach book" and as great entertainment during travel or exercise. I listened to it while taking my daily walks - and almost always ended up with a couple of thousand more steps than intended.

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