The Vanished Library. A Wonder of the Ancient World by Luciano Canfora
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Vanished Library is about ancient libraries, specifically the one located in the famous city of Alexandria as well as one located in the tomb of Ramses II. It also talks about a contemporary, antagonistic library in Pergamum several times. There were many historical figures mentioned including Alexander the Great, Aristotle, and many of the members of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Tons of old writings were also referenced.
This book was not what I thought it was going to be. It touched on many other things and I thought the focus would be on the Library of Alexandria. Luciano Canfora brought in a bunch of additional information that seemed to have a peripheral association with the library. From what I notice, the first use of the phrase “library of Alexandria” was on page 74. The threads of connection were weak in my mind and I was hoping for a deeper focus on the actual place. Instead, we were exposed to other works that mention the library to try to deduce what happened to it. This is a deeply scholarly work. It read like a textbook and it was extremely dense. There were tons of names, places, and events that were divulged. As a result of this I, as a person who likes to google everything that interests me, spent a lot of time getting additional information on a lot of pieces. As a person who loves antiquity and history in general, there were moments of shock and dismay. It is still uncertain what actually happened to the library, but there is a legend that Caliph Omar ordered the destruction of its contents. In this book, there was a supposed letter that stated “proceed, then, and destroy them.” I was just apoplectic at the mention of the destruction of any written word, let alone any historical artifact. I get sad and it just hurts to imagine all that has been lost to history. I recently just finished the show Rome, years after starting, and I love how I could make connections between that and what I just read. There was mention of Caesar, Antony, and Cleopatra as well as battles that I could relate to the show. This is what intrigued me about the book, the history and how things correlate with each other. I ended up learning a ton, more than I ever thought I could ever want. I just wish it was presented in a more cohesive and direct manner.
View all my reviews
Tag: library
The Charred Corpse Of An Overwritten Novel
The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
I found this book to be overwritten, long, and convoluted. It was over complicated for no reason and it could be about 200 pages shorter. The writing should be more concise as the subject of a sentence was hard to identify in places. There were many connections made throughout the novel, harkening back to earlier moments but a majority didn’t have the impact that maybe the author thought they would. It was an ok cool reveal but many times I did not really care. There were several nods and winks to real world things which was cute as well as some phrases that struck me as thought provoking. I did take note of several while I was reading including “an ocean of knowledge is apt to drown you long before it educates you. The art of learning was in selection.” Many caused me to smile while reading. I also think there was too much left open and unresolved. There were too many things that didn’t have clear explanation, and it left me unsatisfied while reading. I like world building books but if they are drastically different than ours then some things need to pointed out directly. There was just too much that was invented that was left unsaid. I did like many of the characters and there were well developed as the main ones each felt distinct. I did like the little quotes before each chapter as well. There was a light pull to see what would happen next but I think it was more to do with searching for a reason why I was reading this tome versus dying to know what happened. Yes, this novel was about books and a library (which drew me to it) but I don’t think I would call it literary. The overall theme and concept was not clear and I don’t think I could really explain the point of the book. It wasn’t that big words were used but that the sentences were, at times, needlessly unclear. The Book That Wouldn’t Burn was a monumental undertaking that collapsed under its own weight. There was like this cloud was hanging around in my brain the entire time I was reading and I couldn’t get into it. While reading, I was not hit by any strong emotions including any reaction to what was pushed as a love story. It was almost like reading a textbook.
View all my reviews