Byzantium.

Book Review.
Lawhead, Stephen R. Byzantium. Harper Prism. 1996.
S.L.- Born and raised in the U.S.A., moved to Great Britain to research Celtic legend. He lives in Oxford.
Comment. Henry.
It is not my intention to do a review of this novel but merely a comment of my experience as a recreational reader.
When I began my “project” of doing book reviews and sending those reviews to a group of interested readers, I received this advice from a friend in Odessa, Texas, who I have never met, who happens to be an author. “Try to avoid becoming myopic in your reading.” Reading a novel is an attempt to deal with that ‘problem’.
Here is a gripping story told by gifted story teller. The historical material is fascinating describing life in medieval times. We learn about life in an Irish monastery. The Vikings of Danish origins, the Sea Wolves, add great drama to the story. The mission of the monks takes us to the seat of power of the Holy Roman Empire, Constantinople (Byzantium) and many other interesting places.
Not only do we learn about monks and barbarians, the story line takes us deep into the devastating religious confrontation between Christianity and its militant leaders and the champions of Islam. There is ample violence, heroism, involving everything from murder to martyrdom. (These are not topics that are big on my list of things to read about.)
The reading of this novel increased my appreciation of the challenges for those who sought after justice and peace in another time and culture regardless of their religious persuasions. I.e. to hear about how people have ‘lost their faith’ is one thing, but to learn of how one’s faith has been destroyed is something else.
This experience may result in an expansion of my choice of books as I continue in one of my retirement hobbies, recreational reading.
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