Books

So, a couple of books I finished reading . . .

I like history. Primarily American history. So I picked up this book at the used book store. It was a good and easy read. I especially liked learning about all the planning, build-up, and training that went into D-Day. I wished the book had continued into the next few days after D-Day and what happened then, but that was beyond the scope of this book. That was very similar to the book 1776 - at the end, I wanted to keep reading about what happened next, in 1777. But again, beyond the scope of that book. My only dislike was that the last quarter of the book also was not as good as the first 3/4. Ambrose stretched it out a bit and didn't end strong. But otherwise, an enjoyable read.

The next book I finished was this one - In the Shadow of the Temple: Jewish Influences on Early Christianity. Lots of interesting stuff in this one, especially regarding the Intertestamental Period and the development of Judaism in that period and then into the time of Jesus. Also, about the interaction of Jews and the early Christians in both primarily Jewish areas and primarily Gentile areas. The author, Oskar Skarsaune, is a good historian. That is his strength. But he is not as good a liturgical scholar. Therein lies the weakness of this book. The last bit of the book, when he tries to examine Christian liturgical documents and Jewish influences, he is out of his lane. Granted, he tries to be brief and gives a lot of references for further reading. But if you are ever of a mind to read this book, stick to the first 3/4 and then skip to the Epilogue.