"The Storytelling Animal: How Stores Make Us Human" by Jonathan Gottschall

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Copyright: 2012
ISBN: 9780547391403

The Storytelling Animal provides readers with a good overview of how stories and important to humans. It examines how stories are such a major part of our lives that we routinely ignore them as such, and simply assume that's the way life is. It also examines the way television, video games, and other activities are both part of our life's story, and in fact the story itself.

The author goes on to examine the realms of stories that are not exactly fiction, but that aren't true either such as reality television, commercials, etc. He also looks at the play both for children and adults can shape our worlds. Play in the children's sense is make-believe, pretend worlds, and how when you put a group of small children into a room they will pretty much spontaneously create a world in which they are both the writer, actors, protagonists, antagonists, directors, and virtually all other roles you can imagine.

Play in the adult sense is examined by looking a movies, theatre, live action role playing, Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), and such. The latter two of these could easily be translated into books on their own as there is so much to consider.

I found this book to be quite informative, and I think it would be a good suggested read especially for anybody who is interested in creative writing, or who is studying psychology.

"The Greatest Show on Earth" by Richard Dawkins

Publisher:New York ; Toronto : Free Press, 2009.
Edition:First Free Press hardcover edition.
ISBN:9781416594789
Characteristics: ix, 470 pages, 30 pages of plates :,illustrations (some colour) ;,24 cm

This book examines the scientific evidence behind the theory of evolution, and why it has gained acceptance throughout all the interrelated disciplines of science as the only logical explanation for how all the various flora and fauna on this planet came into being.

In the first part of the book Dr. Dawkins' delves into the details that explain why evolution is the only acceptable answer, and he does this by producing evidence based on plant biology, the breeding of dogs, and various other animals which have been done by humans for thousands of years. In proceeding this way it makes the evidence for human evolution all the more compelling, as we are animals too.

Following this he takes us on an examination of the various branches of biology, such as palaeontology, anthropology, etc. and shows how these fields have benefitted by their acceptance of evolution, and sub sequentially how each of these fields have confirmed the theory.

Unfortunately most of the hard-core believers in creation will be unlikely to be swayed by these well thought out and logically presented arguments, but then again it is unlikely anything would be able to turn them.

An enjoyable read, and one that is recommended to all.

"The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins

Publisher:Boston : Houghton Mifflin Co., 2006.

ISBN: 9780618680009 

Characteristics: 406 pages ;,24 cm

This is the first book of Richard Dawkins' that I've read, and I found it to be very well written, and informative. Dr. Dawkins poses his arguments logically, and follow them through to their logical conclusions. He does tend to goober things a number of times, but when you consider how ingrained some of the beliefs in religion are this is likely a good technique as not all people will see the relevance with only one example.

I have read other authors on the subject of atheism, and the vast majority follow the same general format, however Dr. Dawkins goes into much greater detail and gives more examples of why certain beliefs may have arisen, why they are regarded as unchallengeable truths, and what non-believers can do to attempt to understand where proponents of the beliefs in question come from.

I believe this is a good book for the general reader, and would also make a good addition to most anthropology, sociology and possibly even history courses.

"Loot for the Taking" by Don Levers

Publisher:[Victoria, British Columbia] : Tellwell, [2017]
Copyright Date:©2017
ISBN: 9781773027142
Characteristics: 297 pages

"Loot for the Taking" revolves around the real life robbery in 1977 of the Vancouver Safety Deposit Vault in Vancouver, British Columbia. It tells the tale of four average friends who decide to rob the vault of a fortune in money, jewels, and bonds.

The author has produced a cohesive story that is extremely well written, and keeps you reading to the very end. The characters are intricately developed, and their motivations are believable. The explaination of how the robbery was carried out is very detailed, and gives the story a life of it own that keeps you turning the pages.

Historical fiction is a growing genre, that more authors should investigate, as the rewards are substantial. These include such a thing as a targeted audience, which is something very few other genres can boast. On the down side of this genre there is the research that the author has to do to support the story, which most authors are unwilling or unable to do. Mr. Levers has definitely succeeded in this and has produced a story that should delight all readers. In addition, his interweaving of the dream sequences was an interesting plot twist that definitely kept me interested.

The only thing I found missing in this novel - and it's a minor thing that likely only matters to very few readers - is the lack of a bibliography. As an author myself, when I read a historical fiction piece I frequently like to read more on the subject, and would have appreciated the reference material.

I'm very much looking forward to the next book by this author.

"Don't Know Much About Mythology" by Kenneth C. Davis

ISBN: 9780060194604

This was an absolutely fascinating book that goes into a lot of detail about the world's various mythologies. What I found most interesting was that it didn't deal simply with the Greeks and Romans myths but also included the Egyptians, Mesopotamians, Celts & Norse, India, China & Japan, African, and finally the America's & Pacific Islands.

What most people either purposefully ignore, or fail to realize is that these myths were historically  the religions of these various civilizations, just as other myths are the basis of today's religions: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and others. Most people are only taught the about the Greeks and Romans in school, and if they are very lucky might hear something about the Norse. But the rest are rarely if every taught in any grade school. When I had the opportunity to teach a class on Norse mythology, the students were quite fascinated, as it was something they'd never heard before.

Why don't they teach this? Who knows! My guess would be that it is because these mythologies are never taught in a University's Education faculty (or at least I never encountered them), or possibly because a given teacher believes they are simply stories, or don't want to offend someone. Mind you I can't totally blame teacher training, as I was never introduced to much of this even when taking anthropology courses either.

In any case this book is highly recommended, and should be in all school libraries.

"Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold" by Stephen Fry

Publisher:[London] : Michael Joseph, 2017.
ISBN: 9780718188740
Characteristics: ix, 416 pages :,colour illustrations, maps

This book is an excellent retelling of the Greek myths, that mainly focuses on the ones that you typically don't hear too often. In his introduction Mr. Fry says:

"Mythos begins at the beginning, but does no end at the end. Had I included heroes like Oedipus, Perseus, Theseus, Jason and Herakles and the details of the Trojan War this book would have been too heavy for a Titan to pick up."

With numerous footnotes this book gives a fantastic overview of Greek mythology, and points out the numerous links to our current myths, and legends. In addition Mr. Fry's famous sense of humour comes shining through in his prose, and this makes this book a delight to read.

I sincerely hope that he will consider expanding this book into a second volume that includes some, if not all of the above mentioned tales that he purposely omitted. This is a book well worth reading, that would make a great addition to any collection that focuses on history, anthropology, and numerous other social sciences.

"The Adventure of English" hosted by Melvyn Bragg

Publisher:[Silver Spring, Md.] : Athena, [2009]
Edition:Widescreen edition.
Copyright Date:©2009
ISBN: 9781598282207
Characteristics: 4 videodiscs (405 min.) :,sound, black & white ;,4 3/4 in. +,1 booklet.

This is an absolutely fascinating look at the history of the English language and how it developed over the last 1500 years from its roots into the language as we hear and use it today. The host Melvyn Bragg asks and answered questions such as where did English start, how did it grow, what were it's influences, and what hampered its development.

A unique feature of this series is actually hearing scholars speaking Old English, and other versions of the language as it developed and changed over the centuries.

Mr. Bragg has written a book under a similar title "The Adventure of English: The Biography of a Language" which while not listed as a companion to the video series sounds like it would make an excellent read, and if I can obtain a copy of it I will review it here as well.

"Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

Publisher:[Toronto] : Signal, 2014.

Copyright Date:©2014

ISBN: 9780771038518 

9780771038501 

Characteristics: 443 pages :,illustrations, maps

This is an excellent book that is well worth the praise that it has garnered to date. It covers areas as diverse as politics, history, religion, economics, and much more in a well researched and very understandable format.

The author's writing style is very refreshing with the odd bit of humour thrown in to keep the reader interested. Even though the style is easy to read, the topics covered are quite complex, but this will hopefully not dissuade anybody from reading it.

I would recommend this book to anybody who is looking for a good overview of human history, and what we've managed to accomplish in the 100,000 years or so. It would also I believe make a good addition to a senior level courses in anthropology or sociology as it analyses their disciplines from a layperson's standpoint.

Definitely a book I'll be adding to my collection!

"Lagoon" by Nnedi Okorafor

Publisher:London : Hodder & Stoughton, 2014.

ISBN:9781444762761

Characteristics:301 pages :,illustrations

Lagoon tells the story of the arrival of extraterrestrials on Earth in Lagos, Nigeria. It is interesting to note that unlike a lot of books and primarily all movies these aliens arrived in peace. In addition, it was nice to see another place on the Earth be featured as the primary location for contact (as opposed to the United States). 
According to the author of this book was written in response to her having seen the movie "District 9" and I assume her anger at how the aftermath of contact was portrayed:
"Thanks to the South African science-fiction film District 9 for both intriguing and pissing me off so much that I started daydreaming about what aliens would do in Nigeria. This novel was birthed from my anger at District 9, but it quickly became something else entirely."
This is an understandable reaction, because this movie was in my opinion essentially a commentary on the practise of Apartheid and the after effects which I'm sure are still being felt in Africa.
The author's take on what an alien first contact would be like is extremely refreshing, and unique. But it is unique not just because it is set in Lagos,  but also because of the realistic way in which the people react. Some panic, some turn to religion, the military gets involved, as well as celebrities, gangs, etc. All these facets are explored, and all are well considered.
The only minor issue I had with this book was the authors use of dialect when certain characters spoke. However, this was easily overcome after reading only one or two chapters, and in the end proved to be a great addition to the story as it gave it an authentic flavour.

"Being A Scot" by Sir Sean Connery & Murray Grigor

Publisher:London [England] : Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2008.
ISBN: 9780297855408
Characteristics: 311 pages :,illustrations (chiefly color), portraits (some color) ;,27 cm

This was an extremely interesting book to read, that takes the reader on a journey through the life of Sir Sean Connery, from his beginning in Edinburgh where he delivered milk door-to-door to world wide fame as a celebrity.

With 93 films to his credit,  most people would recognize him as the original James Bond, but his acting credits are far more wide ranging than that.

But this book is much more than an autobiography "Being A Scot" is a portrait of what Scotland is really like, and looks at some of the famous achievements (and failures) that have graced it's history. In addition, Sir Sean Connery looks into the history of the country and examines why the Scottish people are the way they are. The history lesson itself was extremely interesting, and well written.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in Scottish history.

"Red Sparrow" by Jason Matthews

Publisher:New York : Scribner, [2013]
Edition:First Scribner hardcover edition.
Copyright Date:©2013
ISBN: 9781501171574
General fiction M PBK
Characteristics: 434 pages ;,24 cm

This was without a doubt one of the better espionage novels I have read for quite some time. The  author is an retired CIA member, and this added a lot to the story as he was able to infuse the plot with lots of details that general author would not be able to do, even if they did a lot of research. This book is the first in a trilogy, and the next two books will be reviewed relatively soon.

The story is set in contemporary Russia, and revolves around a young ballet dancer (Dominika Egorova) who is in line for a position in the Bolshoi Ballet until an accident sidelines her career. She elects to become a intelligence operator, and is then sent to what is known as Sparrow school to become trained in the art of seduction. Upon graduation she is assigned to a CIA agent (Nathaniel Nash) who handles the biggest informer inside Russian intelligence.

President Putin even appears briefly in the novel in a couple of places, and I couldn't help but wonder if he's read the book, and if so what he thought about it. Not that I'm ever likely to find out.

This story is well crafted, very difficult to put down. I recommend it to anyone who considers themselves to be a fan of espionage novels and especially to fans of John le Carré.

Hollywood has recently released a movie adaption of this novel, and I am interested in seeing how they have handled the storyline, but at the same time quite apprehensive as they have a reputation for generally making a mess of things when they try to do this. Here's hoping the script writer, director, etc. actually read the book, and not just a back cover blurb.

"God is Not Great" by Christopher Hitchens

Publisher:Toronto, Ont. : McClelland & Steward, [2007]
Copyright Date:©2007
ISBN: 9780771041433
Characteristics: 307 pages ;,25 cm

This book was extremely well written and researched, but when you consider that Christopher Hitchens (1949-2011) was an award winning journalist then this is to be expected. In this book he took on the subject of religion, and defends the secular viewpoint with well chosen arguments, numerous facts that support his viewpoints with clarity and that are historically accurate.

Mr. Hitchens gives numerous example of how one religion has borrowed from another, and that one borrowed from earlier ones simply to perpetuate the belief system that they wanted people to subscribe to. He does not pull any punches, and this in itself makes the book worth reading.

With examples from history of how the Catholic church supported fascism, and assisted in smuggling members of the Nazi party out of Germany to South America (as well as supporting them in other ways, including such things as celebrating Hitler's birthday). He also goes into a lot of detail that looks at historical reports that expose the Islam, Judism, as well as others.

It doesn't matter whether you consider yourself to be religious or not. I believe that this book is one that everyone should read.

"52 Things You Should Know About Palaeontology" edited by Alex Callum & Allard W. Martinius

Publisher:[Mahone Bay] Nova Scotia : Agile Libre, 2015.
ISBN: 9780987959447
Characteristics: 137 pages :,illustrations, map ;,23 cm.
Additional Contributors:Martinius, Allard W. 1963-
Cullum, Alex 1969-

When I first came across this title*, I was doing some research for a book on palaeontology, it's historical roots and interaction with anthropology. It looked interesting, and based solely on the title I assumed it was a book directed towards young people (which my research was sorely lacking at the time). When I finally got my hands on a copy I was both a little sad that this wasn't what it was about, but also very much happier when I read the table of contents and found out that this was a compilation of 52 short papers by leading palaeontologists and others in the field from around the world describing their work.

This book gives the reader a basic introduction to the basic science of palaeontology, it's history, and many other related topics. Each of the papers is two pages long, and should whet your appetite to look into the subject areas in more detail.

The various papers in this book touch on the fundamentals of palaeontology, its biology, applying what is learned, teaching the science, stratigraphy, methodology, fossils, and culture with a given paper typically talking about more than one of these subject areas and showing how they all interrelate.

As someone who works in the field and gives tours to school groups and other visitors to our lab (University of Alberta) I believe this book would be quite a valuable resource to any high school library, public library, college or university as it is very complete.

The authors have also published a follow-up to this book entitled "52 More things You Should Know About Palaeontology" which I have yet to read, but will be doing so shortly.

*  Kudos to the editors by the way for spelling palaeontology correctly - this is one of my nit-picky complaints as the people who work with me can attest to.

"The Discoverers" by Daniel J. Boorstin

Daniel J. Boorstin (1914-2004)
Publisher:New York : Random House, [1983]
Copyright Date:©1983
ISBN: 9780394726250
Characteristics: xvi, 745 pages ;,24 cm

The overview of this book says that it is "An original history of man's greatest adventure: his search to discover the world around him. In the compendious history, Boorstin not only traces man's insatiable need to know, but also the obstacles to discovery and the illusion that knowledge can also put in our way. Covering time, the earth and the seas, nature and society, he gathers and analyzes stories of the man's profound quest to understand his world and the cosmos."

This book is one of three Mr. Boorstin wrote in this same vein, the others being "The Creators" and "The Seekers".I haven't read either of these yet, but they are on my list, and will be reviewed in time.

The Discoverers was a fascinating book, and even thought it took me a long time to read it (684 pages of text) it was well worth the time. I believe this book (and possibly the other two mentioned above as well) would make fantastic texts for a history or anthropology class at the University level. Granted that the majority of students might not read them, but those that did would benefit immensely from the information to be gained.

The book is separated into four major divisions Time, The Earth and the Seas, Nature, and finally Society. Within each of these are sub sections that breakdown the divisions into more manageable works. These are sub sequentially separated into chapters dealing with a specific idea.

The detail with which Mr. Boorstin was able to present this information is wonderful. An example of this from the section of Time is: "Part I: The Heavenly Empire" which deals with rudimentary astronomy and it relation to astrology and how it was connected with religion and how they all influenced various historical events.

"Part II: From Sun Time to Clock Time" traces the development of time keeping through its many phases. Including Calendars, Sun Dials, Clocks, Time Keeping at Sea which allowed for the determination of longitude, etc.

I could go on and give an overview of the entire book, but then you wouldn't have to read it, which is something you should definitely do! All in all this was a great book, and I'm looking forward to reading the next ones in the series, however I won't be reading them right away as it will take me a while to digest all the information presented in this volume.

"American Gods" by Neil Gaiman

Publisher:New York : William Morrow an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2011]

Edition:Tenth anniversary edition.

Copyright Date:©2011

ISBN:9780062059888 

Characteristics:xiv, 541 pages ;,24 cm

American Gods was a very interesting story, that was well crafted, a very good read and kept you turning the pages. This is only the second of Neil Gaiman's books that I've read (the first being "Norse Mythology" which was reviewed back on July 17, 2017.
There were a couple of times in this story where I was a little confused as Mr. Gaiman does bring in a lot of his back story from Norse and other mythologies, but this lack of understanding was totally my fault as I simply had never heard of some of the other deities that were introduced.
Mr. Wednesday (who I knew to be Odin) from the very first time he was mentioned was a good character to have the story revolving around (yes, I did listen in my Norse Mythology class at University), even though he isn't the main character (that's Shadow). With the antagonists being more modern gods (credit cards, television, etc.), you get an automatic conflict that produces some interesting twists.
Throughout the book Shadow (who is now Wednesday's bodyguard, is introduced to a number of Wednesday's friends (and a few enemies) who turn out to be other gods that have been brought to North America in the minds of immigrants. There are some strictly American gods as well such as Johnny Appleseed, too that he encounters. The antagonists as mentioned above are the newest gods on the scene, and are what people worship today the internet, television, unending credit, etc. - don't believe me just look around you everybody has got their nose pointed at a little screen.
All in all this is a very good read. I recently noticed that there was a television series made of it, but whether I get around to watching is will be another story entirely as one thing I don't do is worship the idiot box.

"The Ancient Engineers" by L. Sprague de Camp

Published:

New York, NY: Ballantine Books

Year:

1986

Other Physical Details:

450 p. : illus

ISBN:

0345320298

Bibliography Note:

Includes bibliography and index.

Back when I first read this book (or at least portions of it), I was an undergrad student at the University of Alberta. The class I was assigned this in was a overview of classical technology. I don't remember the actual course designation anything but it was a very good course and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

At the time I did not know L. Sprague de Camp as anything other than a science-fiction writer. I was soon to find out that he worked alongside other great authors such as Robert A. Heinlein and Isaac Asimov and numerous others who also became famous science-fiction authors.

This book is an overview of the history of engineering from pretty much the very beginning until approximately the 1960s. It was written in 1960 and this therefore limited the author in what he could talk about. In some places I felt Mr. de Camp tended to skip over or at least gloss over some of the pertinent details that led to the invention being discussed but for the most part he gives a very good review of how engineering developed, the people in involved and the historical events that were occurring at that time.

The only major criticism I have of this book (which quite likely may be a minor one for many readers) is that they were nowhere near enough illustrations and other graphical forms of information to allow the reader to understand what is being explained. However, if these were included the book would need to be expanded to multiple volumes.

The book itself is organized by time period, and this does cause some confusion when speaking about certain types of inventions, as there is significant overlap in most of these sciences. I believe it might've been easier to read if the book was to be organized based on the given type of invention and proceeded from the very beginning street to the modern times.

It would be great to see a new edition of this book be published that takes up where Mr. de Camp left off, unfortunately he died in 2000 so it will have to be by someone else.

"Unmentionable The Victorian Lady's Guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners" by Therese Oneill

Publisher:New York : Little, Brown and Company, 2016.

Edition:First edition.

Copyright Date:©2016

ISBN:9780316357913 

Characteristics:viii, 307 pages :,illustrations
Unmentionable is a fascinating look at what the Victorian Age. Ms. Oneill gives you the unvarnished truth behind what life back then was really like. The premise behind this book is that a modern woman takes a trip back in time, and lives in the 19th century, with Ms. Oneill as her guide. She does the whole thing with a humorous twist that keeps you reading, long after the light should have been out.
Many people believe they know what the 19th century was like from watching movies, and reading popular novels, and romances. However reality was much different, as the author reveals interesting items such as bathing habits (pretty much none), using arsenic as a facial cleanser, lead based cosmetics made from lead and lard (that isn't a typo), diets, courtship, what a woman should expect on her wedding night, birth control (or lack thereof in most cases), public behaviour, how to be a good wife, etc.
Now as a male, I was not the intended audience for this book, but I still found it absolutely fascinating. It is true my conceptions of the 19th century were totally skewed, but now I have seen the light. While I haven't written any historical fiction set in the the 19th century, I believe I would like to give it a try someday, but the amount of research needed to make it authentic would be mind blowing. Luckily, Ms. Oneill gives a detailed bibliography.
This book would be a fantastic resource for any writer of historical fiction, historical commentary, science-fiction (for those into time travel). In addition to this you can add students of history, anthropology, politics, gender studies, etc.