Monthly Archives: February 2024

The Bible And Historical Reputation: Part Two

Posted on February 29, 2024 by nathanalbright

[Note: This is the prepared text for a Bible study given to the Portland congregation of the United Church of God on February 28, 2024.] When we last discussed the Bible and the problem of historical reputation, we began with … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Uncommon Valor

Posted on February 27, 2024 by nathanalbright

Uncommon Valor: A Story Of Race, Patriotism, And Glory In The Final Battles Of The Civil War, by Melvin Claxton And Mark Puls This book is evidence of a phenomenon that is likely not very surprising but which somewhat cuts … Continue reading →

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Book Review: British Language And Culture

Posted on February 26, 2024 by nathanalbright

British Language And Culture, by the Lonely Planet This guide is an immensely humorous and often irreverent guide to British language and culture, and so it certainly lives up to its name. Perhaps the biggest issue with the book is … Continue reading →

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Book Review: The Ungrateful Refugee

Posted on February 25, 2024 by nathanalbright

The Ungrateful Refugee: What Immigrants Never Tell You, by Dina Nayeri It is perhaps a bit ungenerous to say that a book called The Ungrateful Refugee would have been far better had it not been written by an ungrateful refugee. … Continue reading →

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Book Review: The Iranian Metaphysicals

Posted on February 24, 2024 by nathanalbright

The Iranian Metaphysicals: Explorations In Science, Islam, And The Uncanny, by Alireza Doostdar This book was not quite what I expected it to be. That does not make it a bad book by any means; I happen to think it … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Searching For Hassan

Posted on February 23, 2024 by nathanalbright

Searching For Hassan, by Terence Ward At the heart of this generally excellent book there is a giant hole of motivation. What is it that drives the Ward family to, after decades of separation, visit Iran in 1998 to search … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Iran Rising

Posted on February 22, 2024 by nathanalbright

Iran Rising: The Survival And Future Of The Islamic Republic, by Amin Saikal For some people, at least, the continued survival of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in the face of the frequent opposition of its population to the rule … Continue reading →

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Book Review: The Temporary Bride

Posted on February 21, 2024 by nathanalbright

The Temporary Bride: A Memoir Of Love And Food In Iran, by Jennifer Klinec To the credit of the author, this book does not whitewash her or her husband (spoiler alert) and make them more appealing as people or make … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Walking To Samarkand

Posted on February 20, 2024 by nathanalbright

Walking to Samarkand: The Great Silk Road From Persia To Central Asia, by Bernard Ollivier What sort of person is the author? This normally does not matter so much, because most authors do not make themselves the center of their … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Russia

Posted on February 19, 2024 by nathanalbright

Russia: The Once And Future Empire Form Pre-History To Putin, by Philip Longworth This book was published in 2005, and reading it nearly 20 years later is a somewhat strange experience, not least because the book is an unapologetic attempt to … Continue reading →

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