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A review by bucketoffish
Life in Year One: What the World Was Like in First-Century Palestine by Scott Korb
3.0
This book was a very interesting look at a way of life in a time and place which I didn't know very much about. I felt like the book was written with just enough detail for me to understand how the common people lived and what they did, where the important cities were and who they pledged allegiance to, how cities were laid out, and what the political and cultural struggles of the time were. I learned very interesting facts about the money system, temples, and public baths, but these details were not presented as trivia, but rather given context within the political and social structures of the world.
My only problem with the book is that the first few chapters were a little confusing on a first read, since they cover events both before and after year 1, jumping back and forth in time. Events during the Maccabean Revolt, the reign of Herod the Great, the reign of Herod Antipas, and the destruction of Jerusalem were mentioned in somewhat jumbled order. However, when I read the book a second time I had context for all of these events and was able to read and understand everything much easier.
I particularly liked the map on the cover of this edition of the book, and looked at it often while reading. The mapless edition would probably have been much more confusing.
My only problem with the book is that the first few chapters were a little confusing on a first read, since they cover events both before and after year 1, jumping back and forth in time. Events during the Maccabean Revolt, the reign of Herod the Great, the reign of Herod Antipas, and the destruction of Jerusalem were mentioned in somewhat jumbled order. However, when I read the book a second time I had context for all of these events and was able to read and understand everything much easier.
I particularly liked the map on the cover of this edition of the book, and looked at it often while reading. The mapless edition would probably have been much more confusing.