Review of Revelation

[Michael Valentine]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Revelation" by Norman Maclean.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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This book, Revelation, by Norman Maclean is a sad tale, a memoir of sorts, of Kleitos, son of Lysis of Ceaserea, who had lived during the time of Yeshua bar Yosef, through the uprising and the fall of Judaea, and seen the enthronement of 11 emperors of Rome. The story follows the life of Kleitos as he is raised by a Greek father and a Jewish mother in Ceaserea. His rise and fall were initiated by a contrast between what he knew about Yeshua bar Yosef and what he was willing to reveal. The trials of the period are told through the eyes and ears of Kleitos.

He finds favor under the reign of Flavius. Such is shortlived, as the death of Titus plunges his life once more into uncertainty. Under Emperor Domitian, his conflicted faith almost makes him an entertainment for the Roman mob; however, he is saved at the behest of a traitor of the Jews, and he, whom he called son, is punished instead. Having lost his wife, son, and wealth, he is banished to the island of Patmos as a slave of the emperor. How does he live out the rest of his life?

I love the author Norman Maclean's use of literary devices such as foreshadowing, imagery, and symbolism. These devices will help the reader follow through with the story. For instance, the use of imagery helped me understand the extent of the sorrow of the Jews towards the desolation of the temple of Judaea. I was able to follow Kleitos with keen interest. This book details his exile to the island of Patmos, where he meets an apocalyptic by the name of Yohannan, also called John of Ephesus, who pens down the Book of Revelation as a letter to the seven churches disseminated through the help of Kleitos.

The negative aspect for me was the editing quality of the book. The absence of punctuation marks where necessary, which are known to give meaning to a sentence, made reading a lot harder than necessary. Although they were not much, I have pointed them out for the author's scrutiny and possible correction. This will offer ease of reading to readers.

This book was not professionally edited, as I found lots of errors in it. Therefore, I deduct a star from my overall rating, giving it 4 out of 5 stars.

I recommend this book to religious heretics, theologians, and theological schools that argue about the factuality of the events during the time of Jesus. I believe this book will be of great interest to them.

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Revelation
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[Amy Luman]

How interesting. I am always fascinated by the stories about people who were around during the time of Jesus. The details of what he went through and how the Jewish people felt about the ruination ofJudea are also captivating.

[Okewunmi Pelumi]

Wow, this is mind-hacking book. I also love this review, it gave details about the book.