Intermisso - Essential Reading

Ok, well, I thought I would take a break and let you all know what book I am going to be reading while I am away in Jordan. Even though we work 6 days a week when we are in the field, there is plenty of opportunity to do some pleasure reading. Usually everyone will bring one book and leave it behind to add to the project "library" for future seasons. So - in this spirit, here is the book that I am going to bring and donate. I found out about it from a friend who works down in the Department of Near & Middle Eastern Civilizations at UofT St. George campus (thanks J.). Since I haven't read it yet - I thought I would just quote what the Publishers Weekly (courtesy of Amazon.ca) has to say about it:

"International bestseller Navarro (The Brotherhood of the Holy Shroud) wades back into the religious artifact suspense pond, but this time she's pretty much dead in the water with too many unpleasant characters, repetitive exposition, a plodding plot and flat unimaginative prose (perhaps the fault of the translator?). In Iraq, shortly before the current war, Iraqi archeologist Clara Tannenberg announces an incredible find: two cuneiform clay tablets that refer to another set of tablets that record the biblical patriarch Abraham's story of the creation of the earth. The twist is that this clay bible with Abraham's narrative was written a thousand years before the papyrus version we know today. This discovery, one character asserts, will "change history, with repercussions in religion and even politics." How this will happen and what the repercussions will be are never really explained, as a group of off-the-shelf evil Nazis vie with C lara's thuggish grandfather and a few other interested parties to find, seize, steal or sell the clay tablets."

I don't know what else to add - other than I am looking forward to reading this book - I mean its got all the cliches associated with archaeology - the bible, tablets and even the vile Nazi's (for another example of Nazi's and archaeology see Indiana Jones - Raiders of the Lost Ark) - how could it be bad? If only our own work at Kharaneh would have similar "repercussions" (sigh). I have also been busy copying DVD's onto my PSP for viewing pleasure (especially on the long plane rides to and from Jordan). I have been fortunate to be able to get my hand on the first 7 episodes of "The Tudors" and look forward to watching Henry.....well.......be Henry! Its apparently good to be the king!

Ok - enough levity. I will return with a new post in due course on another "desert castle" of Jordan - but which one exactly I will leave as a suprise. 11 days until I depart - but who's counting.