[books 2016] Catching up
22. The Origins of European Dissent by RI Moore
I've been putting this off till I am un-brain-fogged enough to discuss the ideas within. Not going to happen.
A foundational text about heresy in the 11th and 12th centuries. Moore is interested less in what heretics believed than what their heresy was in reaction to. This was a period when the church was expanding rapidly, and this brought changes both to the church hierarchy and ordinary people's lives.
Moore's thesis is that for the most part, heresy was a reaction to the failure of the Catholic church to live up to the apostolic ideals of the early church, and was most prevalent where the apparatus of secular government was lacking, not where the church was weak. Absolutely packed full of fascinating stuff - definitely recommended.
23. and 27. Brass in Pocket and Worse Than Dead by Stephen Puleston
I downloaded these to the Kindle in a moment of weakness - Amazon was telling me I'd like them and were selling the trilogy for £4.
The gimmick is that they are set in north Wales, and I was about to head there for the weekend. The other gimmick is that the detective, DI Drake, has OCD. His real problem is that he's a jerk, though. It is unclear to me whether the author grasps the difference.
Anyway, they're pretty average thrillers - the prose is pretty pedestrian and the pacing occasionally odd, especially in the first book, but the action starts on the first page and the mystery is engaging enough that I wanted to know what happened next.
24. Here Lies Arthur by Phillip Reeve
A re-read for the book club. I loved it when I first read it when it came out, and it holds up to a re-reading. It's a re-telling of the King Arthur myth for a young adult audience. It's about how myths are made and where they sit in relation to truth. There are strong female characters and some gender swapping. The parts set in the ruins of the Roman baths in Bath are creepy. Still highly recommended.
25. The Hanged Man: A Story of Miracle, Memory, and Colonialism in the Middle Ages by Robert Bartlett
In the late 13th century, a man named William Cragh was hanged for rebellion in Wales. We know about this mainly because he miraculously came back to life, and was the subject of a Papal enquiry some (probably) 15 years later and there are nine surviving eyewitness accounts.
This is a short volume, but packed with interesting stuff. It would be suitable for beginners but I learned a lot from it. Bartlett talks about how medieval people perceived time, about how the process of canonisation worked, and the complicated social and political systems of medieval South Wales.
Not important in the history of ideas the way the RI Moore volume is, but a good read full of interesting bits nonetheless.
26. The Sign of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle
I actually hadn't read this one before - I would certainly have remembered the end if I had! It's one of the novella-length Holmes tales. All of the usual elements you expect from a Holmes story - hard to put down.
I read it because I'd just bought one of the modern reboots, as well as in anticipation of thew new Paul Cornell book - thought I should immerse myself in the real thing first.
I really do need to get my hands on the annotated version.
27. See above
I've been putting this off till I am un-brain-fogged enough to discuss the ideas within. Not going to happen.
A foundational text about heresy in the 11th and 12th centuries. Moore is interested less in what heretics believed than what their heresy was in reaction to. This was a period when the church was expanding rapidly, and this brought changes both to the church hierarchy and ordinary people's lives.
Moore's thesis is that for the most part, heresy was a reaction to the failure of the Catholic church to live up to the apostolic ideals of the early church, and was most prevalent where the apparatus of secular government was lacking, not where the church was weak. Absolutely packed full of fascinating stuff - definitely recommended.
23. and 27. Brass in Pocket and Worse Than Dead by Stephen Puleston
I downloaded these to the Kindle in a moment of weakness - Amazon was telling me I'd like them and were selling the trilogy for £4.
The gimmick is that they are set in north Wales, and I was about to head there for the weekend. The other gimmick is that the detective, DI Drake, has OCD. His real problem is that he's a jerk, though. It is unclear to me whether the author grasps the difference.
Anyway, they're pretty average thrillers - the prose is pretty pedestrian and the pacing occasionally odd, especially in the first book, but the action starts on the first page and the mystery is engaging enough that I wanted to know what happened next.
24. Here Lies Arthur by Phillip Reeve
A re-read for the book club. I loved it when I first read it when it came out, and it holds up to a re-reading. It's a re-telling of the King Arthur myth for a young adult audience. It's about how myths are made and where they sit in relation to truth. There are strong female characters and some gender swapping. The parts set in the ruins of the Roman baths in Bath are creepy. Still highly recommended.
25. The Hanged Man: A Story of Miracle, Memory, and Colonialism in the Middle Ages by Robert Bartlett
In the late 13th century, a man named William Cragh was hanged for rebellion in Wales. We know about this mainly because he miraculously came back to life, and was the subject of a Papal enquiry some (probably) 15 years later and there are nine surviving eyewitness accounts.
This is a short volume, but packed with interesting stuff. It would be suitable for beginners but I learned a lot from it. Bartlett talks about how medieval people perceived time, about how the process of canonisation worked, and the complicated social and political systems of medieval South Wales.
Not important in the history of ideas the way the RI Moore volume is, but a good read full of interesting bits nonetheless.
26. The Sign of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle
I actually hadn't read this one before - I would certainly have remembered the end if I had! It's one of the novella-length Holmes tales. All of the usual elements you expect from a Holmes story - hard to put down.
I read it because I'd just bought one of the modern reboots, as well as in anticipation of thew new Paul Cornell book - thought I should immerse myself in the real thing first.
I really do need to get my hands on the annotated version.
27. See above