Book Review: The Secret History of the World

After being nearly three months without regular internet access, it is a wonderful feeling to be 'back in the saddle' so to speak, and able to blog and communicate again. Without the distractions of email, internet etc I managed to catch up on a lot of reading and would like to share my views on a fascinating book.

Secrets and mysteries ... don't we just love them! Well, I do and always bypass the romance or drama for the ultimate adventure or archaeological thriller. I happened upon a book just at the time I was trying to give Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol a second chance. I read it once and got bored about middle to nearly the end. I found myself skimming over the very details that are usually meat and drink to me - mysteries and secrets of the world, the explanations of the unexplained and inexplicable that tease and tickle our minds and imaginations. Browsing the book store, I purchased Jonathan Black's The Secret History of the World. Now, granted, this book is by no means perfect and there are a few spellos that kind of jump out, but for the reader interested in esotercia and world mysteries ... read on!

For anyone interested in esoteric matters, mysteries, legends and many of the "is it true?" questions that haunt the world's myths and legends, this book is a must. From the world's beginnings, back in the mists of time, right through to present day, the author unfolds an ideology that many will find riveting, but equally as many will find either incomprehensible or down right unacceptable. True, some of the ideas tease the imagination and here the author warns sceptical readers to skip certain portions. For my part, I would advise them to press on. The cover copy suggests that Dan Brown may have used this as his reference guide to The Lost Symbol. I would agree, and also say that The Secret History of the World is far more intriguing and exciting than The Lost Symbol. The author delves into Freemason matters, and offers a balanced view of their not-secret secret society. But that's not the main thrust of this work. He also links many of the ideas of the world's superheroes of legend, science, the arts and literature in an incredible way. His ideas on why certain individuals have emerged in world history as charismatic forces either for good or evil are thought provoking. To say more would be to spoil the book for potential readers. My only complaint was that the book could have been double in size. The author tends to skim over areas that really begged for more explanation and I can only think this is because the author assumes the readers already have a knowledge of such matters. Fascinating topic and equally fascinating book!

Why I Read Clive Cussler

This sounds like a really strange title for a blog post: Why I Read Clive Cussler. Well, maybe you’re wondering why I do read his books, now that I’ve said (almost guiltily) that I do. That remark and this blog post were inspired by an interesting article in the Guardian (UK) by Cormac McCarthy, about bad books and bad writing. He questions whether some of the supposedly ‘good’ writers were all that good in the end. I guess many people who went to college and university have (like me) read just about every ‘good book’ that the English Lit courses had to offer. How many people continued to read those good books after graduation? How many of those people sashay into a bookshop and immediately head for the (Whatever) Prize winners of the year? How many of those same people sidle to the ‘commercial fiction’ section, shelves groaning under the weight of yet another bestseller that the critics have panned but has been flying off the shelves, copies bought by secret (avid) commercial fiction aficionados?


Confess! How many readers have snuck a wonderful ‘bad fiction’ book into their ‘good books’ shopping? I began to think long and hard about what constitutes a good book. A few years ago, while running a personnel agency, I was interviewing a woman who told me emphatically that she never, ever read ‘rubbish,’ and that she only ever read ‘fine literature.’ Shame. Sounds like torture. The problem is, when you consider fine literature like Jane Austen, she wasn’t writing for the literary snobs of the day: she was writing for the readers of the day. So was Dickens. His weekly installments had readers panting for the next chapter in his novels.

I then formulated my theory that a book is as good as its reader perceives it to be. I am not talking about poorly written, badly constructed novels with excruciating dialogue and pathetic grammar, desperately in need of merciless editing. I am talking about popular fiction. The businessman who wants a throw-away spy thriller to read on the plane, the housewife who languishes in the arms of an imaginary Mills & Boon lover while washing socks, the computer buff who craves sci-fi above all else; the kid who devours comics … what they read is good for them because it satisfies a need and makes them happy.

Philistine! I hear the shrieks already. But hear me out. At university my book shelves bulged with the fruits of fantastic writers: Austen, Bronte, Waugh, Poe, Tolkien, Dickens … you name it, I had it, and I still have them now. And yes, I do still read them. My mother was much addicted to frivolous romances (she still is!) and when I would try to persuade her to wade though some tome or other, she would shudder and tell me that at her stage in life she wanted to read for enjoyment. Young and naïve, wrestling with James Joyce and other ‘good writers’ who were actually sometimes completely obscure, I thought she had sunk quite low in the field of literary tastes. Her behavior was made all the more reprehensible by the fact that my mother did English Lit at university and many of my good books were hers originally.

Actually, I have also fallen somewhat from my ivory tower of literary correctness. I love reading Clive Cussler because he tells such ripping good yarns. Of course, being a complete tomboy with four brothers may just have contributed to my loving adventure stories. I now realize that one can have good books that may only be good to an individual. It might be character, plot, or descriptions; whatever counts the most for that reader. My adopted daughter agrees with many opinions that Bella of the Twilight sagas  is annoying. Maybe as a heroine she is, but my daughter has devoured all the books many times over already and the series transformed her from being a reluctant reader into an avid reader. Obviously Edward's charms have made up for Bella's deficiencies...

I have heard J.K. Rowling, Dan Brown, and Stephenie Meyer’s writing skills being criticized. Despite all that, they’ve sold more books and earned more money than many a ‘good’ writer. So, how does one measure the success of a writer? Katie Price (er … Jordan, for those not in the know) has published yet another bestselling autobiography. I thought a person could only write one, and that technically it should at the end of a long, meaningful, and fruitful life, but apparently that’s not true. So, if she sells more books than a ‘good’ writer, does that make her a better writer?

The public is fickle. Writers have to give readers what they want. With the evolution of society and the novels that reflect society’s tastes, values, morals (or lack thereof), habits, and desires, more themes are becoming available. The sky is the limit when it comes to topics and, especially since the explosion of print on demand and e-publishing options, people ready to write about them. A hundred years ago it would have been unthinkable for anyone to pen a memoir that included lovers, children out of wedlock, drugs, sensational intimate details etc. That’s why D.H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover was such a literary and social scandal way back then. Not so today. It actually seems rather tame. Reality has become more compelling than fiction, and the adage holds true: truth is stranger than fiction.

Is there a future for ‘good’ books? Of course there is! People want solid writing when they’re in the mood for it. Others want just fluff and escapism. I say give people what they want, but write what you know to be real. Read any good books lately?

This is not a rhetorical question: who has managed to read James Joyce’s Ulysses from start to finish?

Book Preview: Mice Don't Taste Like Chicken

Having just done a blog on book reviews, it seems a little strange to preview a book i.e. talk about a book that has yet to be printed and appear on the shelves. What are the benefits of a preview? Just like a movie trailer, a book preview excites reader interest (hopefully getting readers to mark their diaries as to publication date), and starts building up a following so that by the time the book hits the shelves, the author will enjoy something of a captive audience. Creating a count-down buzz also gets readers hyped and eager to purchase their copy. The Harry Potter series and Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol marketing are prime examples of wildly successful countdowns. This works best if the author aims pre-publication publicity at the specific target market for the book. Pre-publication publicity is great for an author if they can garner professional reviews in advance to use as endorsements on the cover.

Do your kids like critters? They’re gonna love the collection of reptiles that populate Mr. Cross’s classroom. Mice Don’t Taste Like Chicken isn’t an average middle-grade novel. Neither is Mr. Cross an average middle-grade teacher, as Drew Harrington soon finds out. The rules are simple…

Welcome to Sixth-grade
1. Keep away from the animals! Violators will be prosecuted.
2. Unpack your bag and make your lunch choice.
3. Meet your neighbors.
4. Keep away from the animals! Violators will be prosecuted.

Sixth grade can be a zoo. Drew Harrington sure hopes so. He and his best friend, Jackson Harris, can’t wait to join Bridgeton Elementary’s legendary teacher, Mr. Cross, in a classroom inhabited by cantankerous lizards, elusive iguanas, and a 13-foot Burmese python named Prometheus. Cootie-proof Kim Etter, Tinkle Troy Schwartz, the social outcast with an overactive bladder, and perpetual grade-schooler Joe Riaz are among Drew's classmates. Will this year be as predictable as the past five? Or will this be the year that makes Drew realize mice don't taste like chicken?

I asked author Scott Heydt a few questions about this unusual book on life in the middle grade.

1. Why your choice of subject matter re: the critters?

Back in my elementary school years, I had a teacher who longed to work in the San Diego Zoo’s Reptile House. We cared for over one dozen different reptiles and amphibians in our sixth grade classroom. Our classroom contained more than a dozen reptiles and amphibians, ranging from a thirteen-inch long gecko to thirteen-foot long Burmese python (named Prometheus). Aside from the animal atmosphere, my teacher changed the way I perceived school. He read us controversial books, played basketball with us on Fridays, and showed passion for everything we learned. It served as the spark for my love of learning to this day. It was a life-altering experience. These creatures come from my fond memories of that year. Two years ago, I participated in a writing workshop called “Tator Tots and Technique.” The presenter challenged us to think back to our school days and write about our memories. The exercises I completed at that workshop became the seed for Mice Don’t Taste Like Chicken.

2. Can you give me your view of the parallel worlds between the kids’ life in the classroom and the world of reptiles they encounter, and what you hope kids will glean from reading your book?
My hope for readers is two-fold. One, that readers will value the strong bond formed between a teacher passionate about his profession and a boy who looks up to him. Second, that readers will appreciate the subtle differences between our behavior and that of animals. We are not so different, and what we learn from the care and observation of nature can help guide our own behavioral decisions.

3. Are any of the human characters or events based on your own life?
Characters come from the behaviors we observe in those around us. All of the human characters in Mice Don’t Taste Like Chicken are a blend of people I grew up with as well as some of my current students. Sure, some characters are based more on one real person than others, but I’ve changed those names to protect the innocent (or guilty).

4. If mice don’t taste like chicken, what do they taste like?
The next time I catch one, I’ll let you know.

5. If you could be any animal in the book, which one would you choose? Why?

I would choose to be Iggy. I can hang on the wires of my sprawling cage most of the day. When I’m hungry, I can climb down to munch on some lettuce leafs and vegetables. If anyone messes with me, I can smack him with my long tail. I’m also a great climber, so escaping and exploring is fun.

6. Your book is certainly very educational. Is there more teachers can do in the classroom with your book?
An interesting educational slant to the book is that activities are designed specifically for teachers by a certified teacher (i.e. me). My goal is to provide lessons fully developed with attached resources available so teachers can easily integrate Mice Don’t Taste Like Chicken into their Reading curriculum.)

Lesson plans include:
• Discussion Questions about Mice Don’t Taste Like Chicken e.g. Using websites provided within the “Mr. Cross’ Critters” link of http://www.micedonttastelikechicken.com/, groups of students will identify the natural habitat of the iguana, Burmese python, boa constrictor, gecko, salamander, Nile monitor, Savannah monitor, milk snake, toad, and painted turtle.
• Symbolism Overview
• Social Studies Lesson: “Control Your Inner Ozzie”
• Math Lesson: “Math Don’t Taste Like Chicken”
• Vocabulary Lesson: “Introducing & Activating Word Meanings”

Mice Don’t Taste Like Chicken is published by PM Moon Publishers and is scheduled for release summer 2010. Be sure to look out for it at all good book stores.

About the Author: Scott Heydt grew up in suburban Philadelphia and resides with his wife in Chalfont, Pennsylvania. With undergraduate degrees in Elementary Education and Psychology and a Masters in Leadership and Liberal Studies, Scott attributes his passion for and knowledge of writing to the great teachers who guided him in the past. Scott's website is http://www.scotthbooks.com/.

Mice Don’t Taste Like Chicken is Scott’s second novel for children. PM Moon Publishers, LLC awarded the book an honorable mention.