different place, people and moral question
930537
an unusual story.  It  makes the reader questions what they would do in that circumstancel  A different vinue.  Absorbing characters.  A book one doesn't forget quickly.
517493
Sad, yet happy, the way life goes.  These characters are religious in their own way so leaving this earth is not so bad.

A young Anglican priest, Mark Brian, is sent deep into a parish in British Columbia as a vicar.  His health is failing, he is set to leave this earth in less than three years.  He is unaware of this.  Mark will reside among Indians living along the coast.  The vicarage, located in a small village, is falling apart.  He will pastor in other small villages along the way and will need to learn to love the water and how to get back and forth.  This is an ancient culture, different ways of living, of looking at life.  I saw the story on television a long time ago, the area where this is set is beautiful, far from big cities, known civilivation.

The story introduces members of the tribe,their way of living close to the earth, the use of cedar for garments and covers.  Th Indians thank the trees, the salmon, the animals for allowing them to be used for Indians benefit.  They also apologize to them for taking their lives.  Indians love and admire the wild world.  The countryside is beautiful, much green, tall trees and vegetation, for it rains much in British Columbia.

The tribe elders hate losing young people to the white world.  Mark is confused at first, but learns to fit in with these native people.  The young go to a school upon reaching a certain age to be able to fit in with an alien culture.  but is it right to take these young people away from who they are and teach them to be ashamed of their Indian ways, to make them into who they are not.  The elders are sad and worried about their youth.  But life cannot always stay the same.  Changes must come for better and for worse.

Mark learns to love these people, to understand them, to be their vicar.  and all know that life on this earth is limited.  The owl calls everyone's name.  This is how the Indians know who will soon leave them.

This is an old library book I happened upon, possible from a bunch of books donated to a veterans hospital.
3273266
In this book life is about values and giving to the other. Its a different way to describe the atrocities that occured at this period.
This book is about a men who gave his soul to save lifes.
A different perspective .
I highly recommend reading this book and sharing.
1608074
I found this location on the world map and was able to see it in my mind's eye.  It was great to feel that other parts of the world had a small town  that was filled with families of similar faith and culture.  I grew up in a small town in Oregon that had this feeling of connectedness.
3991371
An excellent novel that presents thought-provoking questions as context for fast-paced action executed by plausible people.  Smart people and AIs screw up when outside their comfort zone, and growth is painful.  Bad people have good sides, and good people have bad sides.  What is human?  What do things like virtue, loyalty, and integrity really mean when the meaning of self is unclear?

Well worth reading!
2846062
This shows the topic from an objective view. Lets you see the criminal aspect and the personal struggle of the individuals involved in the activities. But it also asks the hard questions regarding how we treat this planet we live on and whether someone who commits these acts should be in the same category as someone in Al Queda.
2275905
There are a million reviews of Waltari's work out there already, so I won't plague the internet with yet another in-depth one.  I will, however, comment on what I perceive to be the central question that the book asks:

"Is it better to live a life shaped by ethics and compassion, and thus die alone?  Or would one rather turn a blind eye to suffering and gather all earthly wealth around oneself?"

And the book doesn't pass judgement on either form of living, even though the protagonist leans towards the ethical, and his faithful servant towards the material.  I think, from that relation between Sinuhe and Kaptah, there springs a certain analogy for the human psyche - no matter how we wish to strive for the light, for the truth, for purity, the material cannot be shafted away - it must always follow us, even through our convoluted course of the search for meanings and maintain us, sometimes unwillingly, in this life.  That is what is magical about this book - it is an epic historical adventure, spanning the entire life of Sinuhe, and the rise and fall of several pharoahs; but most importantly, it is a thoroughly profound look at the human condition, and the struggle raging in each individual.
4422193
Traveling through alternate universes, meeting people you know, but are different in different settings. can get a bit confusion, and I really began to hate the bad guy. It was interesting to read the interactions between people and their dopplegangers ( is that the right term) in unusual settings, and to find my thoughts wondering, "what if".
1264271
This book is about a Jewish doctor who is "forced" to participate in Nazi research while imprisoned in the Auschwitz death camp. In return for his participation he was rewarded with a RELATIVELY easy lifestyle when compared with existence of the prisoners who did not have his education and experience. This is where the conflict comes into play. This is what made the book a fascinating read for me.

I found myself asking the question "What would i do?" while reading this book. Here is a guy who is directly benefitting from the deaths of his fellow prisoners. Is he an evil coward? A traitor? Or should he have just hopped in to the oven, along with the other poor souls, based on some moral or ethical ideal? It's easy for me to ask this question since i was not there and have never experienced anything close to the suffering of the author and the victims of Auschwitz.

This is an excellent book and i would recommend it to a friend.
862409
Well written and presumably accurate fictional representation of how and why fascism and Hitler gained a hold. Raises questions and reminds the reader to ask "what would you have done under the circumstances?" Each character has her own response before, during and after WWII.
The ultimate question however is how relative is morality to ones place in time....or is a persons morality merely defined by their place in time and within their (perhaps insular) belief system?
1192956
After watching this film I was struck by the timeliness of Dona's message. She says we cannot look for saviors and that we must take self responsibility for the kind of life environment we create.  This reminds me of a quote by Mirabei, "If we could reach the Lord through immersion in water, I would have asked to be born a fish in this life."
Dona also points out that it is in time of stress that people begin to question old values.  When will the people of the world, to paraphrase the quote from "Eleventh Hour", begin to understand that our values are not possessions but we are like the fish who do not possess the water they swim in-it supports their life!
2134828
The struggle between Good and Evil.... God and the Devil.... Nature and Nurture. Sins of a Priest calls all of these items into question. Can evil take root in a group, a neighborhood, a society, and take over people's thoughts and actions? And can one man - devoted to God and improving the lives of others - make a difference? Change the path of others? Save the greater good? Or will his past overwhelm him and overrule his goals?

As I read this book, I found myself questioning some of the things I had been taught in church about God and the Devil. The author wrote a great story showing the struggles people face. The main character constantly battled his training and beliefs as a priest with his base desires as a man.

The characters were well developed and the storyline was thought-provoking. I thought that certain side stories would be pulled into teh main story but seemed to just linger and not come to any conclusion. They, however, were not critical parts of the story and just left some (minor) questions at the end.

Overall, I loved the book.
4900065
Immediately the author gets your attention on the first page.  The story starts in motion and continues throughout, leaving you with a feeling that you should read on.  It is easy to see that the author took what are considered very controversial moral topics and wrote this story to fit in today's society.  The book is thought provoking and might leave some people to think twice about certain issues.
4664717
A Killers Grace is Ronald Chapmans novel where Kevin, a journalist who starts to push the limits of what he thinks he knows. He is contacted by a man put away for murder, who believes his own mental state is disturbed and hopes that Kevin can work in conjunction with him to help others from becoming like him. He wants to try and prevent people from committing horrific crimes so that they can continue to live as regular people. This makes the book pretty philosophical in what can and cannot be done, for what is right and wrong. Is someone inherently evil and can be found and then prevented by helping them or do individuals grow from their environment into those with righteous or evil intentions. I like that this book makes me question my own stance on morality and how people can be shaped because of their circumstances and it is something that should be considered when something horrific occurs.
1682155
Asylum City by Liad Shoham

This is a novel set in Israel written by an Israeli.  It deals with Israel's immigrant issues while purported to be a crime novel.

The news article noted in the web site link gives a good overview of the author.  The story is different in that translated to English you find similarities and differences between an American author and an Israeli author.  The way crime is handled and the justice system is similar but different.

The political aspects of crime bear a striking similarity to any big U.S. city.  The emotions and motivations of the characters are mirrored in our own populace.  It is interesting to see how basic motivations differ so minutely regardless of culture and language.

The immigrant problem is Israel appears to be as fraught with dissent and emotion as the same problem in the U.S.

This was a very thought provoking book.
3142599
This is a very provocative work and I really appreciated being confronted with this issue:  the master of world builders takes on a timeless issue of the ages:  whose land is it?
Jack Vance had travelled extensively in southern Africa and was well acquainted with apartheid and racial bigotry.  This story is very different than his Cugel saga or the Dying Earth.  It is a world with many parallels to our own.  Ignore the skin color and other decorations, this story could almost be placed on our earth, but with an unusual twist.

Who is native?  Who owns the land?  If someone conquers a land by brute force, does he have a right to his possession more than the ones he overwhelmed?  This theme can be applied recursively:  when there has been a series of conquerors, who really has rights of ownership?  Isn't it really:  I stole it fair and square.  Possession is 90% of ownership!
2484876
A difference in culture made somethings a bit odd