Pillars of the Earth & World Without End (Ken Follett)

I'm going to do something a little different today and review two books I read ~15 years ago* (before I started blogging). Both are historical fiction thrillers by Ken Follett.

The Pillars of the Earth takes place in "Kingsbridge," England over the span of decades (1123-1174) and centers the dramas of various characters (from all spheres) around the construction of a fictional Gothic cathedral.

World Without End is set in the same town two centuries later during the Black Plague (1327-1361) and, similarly, looks at the lives of various people in the area and their respective struggles.

Though my memory is fading, I recall both novels to be excellent—a sweeping historical survey intertwined with heart-pumping thriller. They were hard to put down, and you get a feel for what it must have been like in that time. Both have their graphic scenes, though, so let the reader beware, and there are some historical inaccuracies (think of this as thriller first, historical fiction second).

Rating (for both): A-

*Cleaning out my bookshelves; wanted to cover some things before I part with them.

Daredevil: Know Fear

Matt Murdock has only ever tried to do good as Daredevil. But when he accidentally kills a man during a routine takedown, he questions everything he is and has done. While others (like Punisher) think killing is fine . . . is that the right way?

This was a solid start to a story arc published in 2019. I've had Daredevil on my mind since enjoying the Born Again series in April. I'm most intrigued by his Catholic religion and how that is portrayed in the stories. Here, the writers get it largely accurate (it is easy to misrepresent Christianity). Matt's priest has the quote of the book: "God loves you, Matthew. Hold on to that and do the right thing . . . renounce this violence. Cast out the devil." Indeed.

Rating: A

Superman (2025)

Three centuries ago, metahumans arrive on Earth. Three years ago, Superman announced himself to the world. Three minutes ago, he lost his first battle. But it gets worse . . .

Superman unilaterally stopped a war. Not everyone is pleased. As the American government decides what to do, Lex Luthor raids the Fortress of Solitude and finds a Kryptonian recording that changes how the world will view 'Big Blue.' Is Superman a threat? He's always viewed himself as being sent to help humanity and make the world a better place, but what if his identity is something other? Does even he know? 

As the government brings him in, using Luthor's "Planet Watch" (Ultraman, the Engineer, plus 'Raptors'), Superman wrestles with who he is and what defines him. Lex is getting close to his goal of killing Superman . . . but the Justice Gang (Green Lantern, Mr. Terrific, and Hawkgirl) and the Daily Planet staff may have something to contribute in the age-old struggle of truth, identity, and authority.

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Overall, I really enjoyed this film. This is a vulnerable look at Superman, focusing more on his weaknesses and struggles than any other such film. It has great music, good action, and also good comedy sprinkled throughout. The actors all do a great job. 

The messages here vary, looking at authority (typical for superhero flicks), identity (who decides what we are?), and weakness. Lex is obsessed with taking down Supes, as "his strength illuminates how weak we really are." Superman is fixated on his identity and who shapes it—is it his parents? His adopted parents? Himself? His adopted father argues that it isn't your parents who define you, but "your choices . . . your actions . . . that is what makes you who you are." Is he right? Ultimately, this is a movie about what it means to be human. The film doesn't get all the right answers, but asks some good questions, and it inspired in places. 

Rating: A-

Monopoly: Pokemon Edition

Today's review is of the 2024 release, Monopoly: Pokemon Edition. For 2-4 players, it takes 45 minutes.

Overview

Race to catch Pokemon in this twist on a board game classic. Here, the basic rules of Monopoly (roll a die, move spaces, buy property or pay rent if it is already owned) hold true, but there are plenty of twists:

- your goal is to collect eight different colors of pokemon (represented by the eight property colors on the board)

- when you land on a property (regardless of ownership), you can 'explore' (roll a die to see if you get a pokemon of that color)

- you can battle other players for their properties

- there are adventure and challenge cards and enable direct player challenges or give benefits (like swiping another's pokemon)

game contents; image from here

First to collect all eight pokemon wins!

Review

Though I'm no fan of the classic Monopoly (it takes too long), I was cautiously optimistic about this variant, as I enjoyed the Monopoly Gamer twist from a few years ago. Alas, I was disappointed. There is just far too much luck here. Well, it's really all luck. You need to land on the right colors, but then also roll the exploration die to see if you collect a pokemon of that color. There's not much to it. Lots of dice rolling. The battles and challenge cards provide some respite, but not much.

Rating: C

Shouldering a Burden

A few months ago, I had shoulder surgery. Today, I 'graduated' from physical therapy (PT). This post recaps the journey.

Background

At some point, I hurt my labrum. No idea when or how. Partial tear; I could do most things. But when they evaluated it two years ago, they told me it may one day require surgery. This year, it got to the point where that was needed.

On 23 April, I had the procedure. They didn't know quite what they would find, but after the fact, I learned they:

- performed biceps tenodesis [they moved one of the two bicep anchor points near my shoulder to another location, as it was preventing the torn labrum from healing]

- removed calcification and a bone spur from the shoulder area

- reshaped my shoulder [apparently, I had a 'grade 2' shoulder from birth; they made it grade 1]

Recovery Timeline

4/23: Procedure; placed in sling with spacer for recovery, which I would wear all day long (and for sleeping)

4/29-30: days of greatest pain

5/15: first strenuous physical activity [I mowed the yard one-handed . . .]

5/19: first PT session [would go two times per week and do exercises at home three times per day]

5/20: last day of sling

5/26: first run

5/27: first time on exercise bike

6/17: first gym session with weight [light weights]

6/21: first time on road bike [short ride]

7/3: first normal-length road bike ride

7/17: last PT session

Reflections

PT works. You have to keep moving. You have to push yourself hard, but not too hard. You have to keep at it. And it was gratifying to see progress, no matter how slight, every single day. Sometimes the progress was gradual; other times, it came in 'steps.' But it happened. 

Both flexibility and strength matter. Range of motion was the first focus, but weight work was soon added, and both were needed; some of my range of motion didn't improve until I added the strengthening portions. We need to move, and we need to be strong.

The supporting muscles then needed support themselves. It's been intriguing to see which muscles (largely in my trapezius/neck area) have been sore before and during the PT journey; they were affected because they had to carry the load for the rest of the region as it recovered. There's a lesson here; in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 12 likens us to a body with many members, and we are interdependent. In the linked passage—"If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together." And we know from Ephesians 4 that "when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love," which implies when one part is *not* working properly, growth is stunted and the whole body is affected. So we're called in Galatians 6 to bear each other's burdens, so the whole body can be whole and grow. There is a time to support, and a time to be supported.

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As of today, my range of motion is almost back to normal. Some things at 'extreme' positions are still tight, but I'll keep at it, and I'll get there. Every day a little bit more.

Lila (Marilynne Robinson)

Lila had a rough upbringing as a drifter in the American Midwest. After her caretaker, Doll, passes away,  Lila spends a few years in St. Louis, then hitches a ride and ends up in Gilead, Iowa. There, she will become the wife of minister John Ames and experience peace, security, and more—"a need she only discovered when it was satisfied." Even so, it wasn't all roses, for she can't shake her past—both the bitterness, loneliness, and pain, but also the people she was with along the way—"people somebody couldn't bear to be without, no matter what they'd been up to in his life." So she spends a good deal of time pondering her "new existence while trying to make sense of the days that preceded her newfound security." 

Set a few years before Gilead and Home, Lila is yet another poignant portrait from Marilynne Robinson, wrestling with the nature of the world and existence. As Lila ponders her past—most of which she was in no way responsible for—she realizes that "there was no way to abandon guilt, no decent way to disown it. All the tangles and knots of bitterness and desperation and fear had to be pitied. No, better, grace had to fall over them."

I loved this book for two reasons:

- Lila's struggles with shame, pain, grace, and love, in both her former and present life

- Her husband's patient gentleness and grace, which was convicting and worthy of emulation

Highly recommended.

Rating: A

The Bruised Reed (Richard Sibbes)

First published in 1630, The Bruised Reed is by Puritan Richard Sibbes and discusses the passage in Matthew 12 that hearkens back to Isaiah 42, looking how Jesus treats certain types of people:

a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,

What do these words mean? A bruised reed is one who "is sensible of sin and misery . . . and, seeing no help in himself . . [turns] to Christ." Similarly, a smoldering wick [or smoking flax] is he who sees a spark of Christ's work in him, yet also much smoke [sin] that remains. In both cases, these are those who understand they bring nothing to God; that our hearts are wicked, even our righteous deeds are filthy, and thus can only cry 'be merciful to me a sinner.' 

And how does Christ respond? He will not break those who are broken; neither will he snuff out the good work He has begun. Without God we can do nothing; he is the author and finisher of our faith. So we take hope, rejoicing not in ourselves but in God. 

Sibbes spends the bulk of his book encouraging believers who know their brokenness; who see (and revile) their sin; who are tempted to despair when gazing upon the remaining evil in us (even as we recognize hints of good). To remember that a broken heart God will not despise. And behold, He is making all things new. "A holy despair in ourselves is the ground of true hope"; "none are fitter for comfort than those that think themselves furthest off."

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This is an encouraging read. Like other Puritan volumes I have read, this is a mixture of powerful and profound truths written in a style that can be very hard to follow in places. But overall, highly recommended.

- Rating: A