tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post3232808667493388899..comments2024-03-27T22:25:42.129-05:00Comments on Reading the Past: Book review: Equal of the Sun, by Anita AmirrezvaniSarah Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-9333612942853891822013-05-13T14:04:29.237-05:002013-05-13T14:04:29.237-05:00I had to turn down the opportunity to review this ...I had to turn down the opportunity to review this one due to time constraints and other commitments at the time - but I loved the idea of the setting and the story being told. Thanks for the review.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16609161113240681299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-33740115706461977982013-04-27T22:27:34.147-05:002013-04-27T22:27:34.147-05:00Your comment about Pauline Gedge struck a nerve. ...Your comment about Pauline Gedge struck a nerve. She makes plenty of factual mistakes; one of my students came up with a two-page list (single spaced). I've only read two of Gedge's novels, but I would point out, for example, that the Egyptians didn't eat oranges and didn't use desks. Egyptian women didn't paint themselves yellow all over, either (this one might have been the author's obsession with makeup coming to the fore). Her passion for melodrama and glamour leads her to write of murders for which there was absolutely no evidence (that Hatshepsut-was-poisoned nonsense--she gets an F right there) and put false elements into her settings. Marble water steps, anyone?<br />It's really hard to be drawn into a fictional world so full of blunders.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-13139987045658529432013-04-26T19:30:04.129-05:002013-04-26T19:30:04.129-05:00It's encouraging to see so much interest in th...It's encouraging to see so much interest in this book - that bodes well for other novels with similar settings!Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-52902028933066065602013-04-26T08:32:13.964-05:002013-04-26T08:32:13.964-05:00This book is on my To Read list. Great review!This book is on my To Read list. Great review!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16667341099536880000noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-3716768116573065012013-04-25T11:22:15.927-05:002013-04-25T11:22:15.927-05:00Thanks for a review that introduces me to an unusu...Thanks for a review that introduces me to an unusual environment and a country I don't usually enounter. I love reading Cecelia Holland and always seek authors who might have a similar fresh window on history.Judith Scharahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06629065670753694883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-53784984153949611182013-04-24T23:05:57.093-05:002013-04-24T23:05:57.093-05:00I'd like to read this one. There seems to be c...I'd like to read this one. There seems to be challenges for lots of people on this one but I'd still like to give it a go.Mysticahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10941269615559681014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-11173667325040725932013-04-24T18:31:01.367-05:002013-04-24T18:31:01.367-05:00Loved the authors first book and I'm looking f...Loved the authors first book and I'm looking forward to this one. I'm so glad she wrote another book. This is a must buy for me. --GinaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-38224326175347522852013-04-24T17:51:39.271-05:002013-04-24T17:51:39.271-05:00Very true on all counts. I appreciated its unconv...Very true on all counts. I appreciated its unconventionality.<br /><br />btw under (2) above, I meant court intrigue, not courtroom intrigue; I've fixed it. This is what happens, apparently, when I spent part of the day helping students with legal research.Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-66411733951900829932013-04-24T14:51:12.057-05:002013-04-24T14:51:12.057-05:00I read this, I think last summer? I liked it very...I read this, I think last summer? I liked it very much, not least for not obeying the expected conventions. The narrator in particular was very well handled, and an interesting person in his own right.<br /><br />Love, C.Foxessahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06754083123669916994noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-66029294418481569342013-04-24T13:25:04.685-05:002013-04-24T13:25:04.685-05:00I've read Blood of Flowers too, and I first ap...I've read Blood of Flowers too, and I first approached Equal of the Sun thinking the style would be similar, but it isn't really. It has the same focus on women and power, but the cast and scope are both larger, and there's a lot thrown at the reader in the beginning. It took a while for me to become accustomed to this world, though I can't say I was ever comfortable there... the court is NOT a friendly place.Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-75343453821099152382013-04-24T12:47:01.970-05:002013-04-24T12:47:01.970-05:00I enjoyed The Blood of Flowers but was not really ...I enjoyed The Blood of Flowers but was not really planning on buying Equal of the Son. Now I am re-thinking my decision because of your wonderful review! I may give it a try.mariaghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10512289009214074359noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-32587339468094574442013-04-24T10:26:47.277-05:002013-04-24T10:26:47.277-05:00Sarah: I like point no. 3. I received a review cop...Sarah: I like point no. 3. I received a review copy of this last summer and had trouble getting into it and set it down. I'll definitely give it another try after this review! Historical Fiction Notebookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17896536092966020680noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-49264958003663275602013-04-23T21:12:42.683-05:002013-04-23T21:12:42.683-05:00(1) We could use more fiction with settings like ...<i>(1) We could use more fiction with settings like this.</i><br /><br />Amen.Julie K. Rosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16482808163340645506noreply@blogger.com