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My Book Was Reviewed
The American Academy of Religion has a website for reviews of religion books. I (ignorant moron that I am) didn’t know about the site until I got an email announcing they’d reviewed The Conversion and Therapy of Desire, which I remind you is cheap on Kindle. A classics prof from UT Austin said some nice things:
In this fascinating and meticulously researched study of Augustine’s Cassiciacum dialogues, Mark Boone shows Augustinian scholars a productive way forward for better understanding how these philosophical texts can and should be analyzed both on their own terms and as part of Augustine’s evolving ideas about ancient philosophy and Christian theology. This is very much a book by a philosopher, about philosophy, written for philosophers. Still, its arguments will be easily comprehensible to any non-philosopher with a basic grounding in Augustinian thought. Of particular value to the general Augustinian scholar are the excellent close readings of the individual dialogues in the book’s main chapters….
Boone’s work is a valuable contribution to Augustinian studies, and especially to the study of the Cassiciacum dialogues. It is carefully researched, well-written (though, at times, the signposting of the argument seems overdone), and easy to follow even by a generalist Augustinian scholar…
Full review available here.
Hey, did I mention that this book is cheap on Kindle?
Published in General
A fine review and congratulations for a considerable achievement, won at the cost of what had to have been thousands of hours of work. On Ricochet, whether or not you and I were on the same sides of an issue, I’ve always been interested in what you had to say. Glad the outside world is getting in on it!
Thanks, man! I appreciate that.
It began as a dissertation. Non-dissertation hours were not that many, but the whole thing may well have been in the thousands.
By the way, I almost wish I could deny that “This is very much a book by a philosopher, about philosophy, written for philosophers.”
But I do wish to affirm that, if I got Augustine right and if Augustine’s early writings count as a theological topic, this is a theology book.
This is totes awesome Your Saintness. FYI: I was going to buy the Kindle version anyway but this comment of yours makes me think that I also might actually be able to understand some of it. The philosophy philosopher’s philosopher stuff had me concerned there for a minute.
I’d be honored!
You know, I tried to write it to be readable. One of the few bits of good writing advice I could actually give is: Ask yourself “How would X say this?” where X is the clearest writer you can think of.
In Augustinian studies specifically, I leaned towards Carol Harrison for X. In almost anything, C. S. Lewis is a natural choice.
Done and done.
Splendid!
Though I, too, ( like Simon) was a little worried about the over-my-head? question. Should’ve known better.
I Just now bought it for my Kindle queue. I don’t know if I’ll be able to appreciate it properly, having never even heard of the Cassiciacum dialogues before. But I wouldn’t mind learning more from Augustine. I found his Confessions fascinating when I read them years ago, and have often referred to them since then even though I haven’t gone any further in his writings.
Thank you! I am honored.
Yeah, these dialogues are not half as well-known as the Confessions. They’re the first four books he wrote which survive, and also his first Christian writings. (In one sense, an important enough one to him, he’s not even a Christian yet himself, since he has not yet been baptized and joined the church!)
The big name is just the name of the place he wrote them–now Cassiago, near Milan, Italy.
I think this book actually makes a fairly decent intro to Augustine’s corpus overall, though. These dialogues are at a pivotal moment, and more or less chart the course he sailed till the end. Deum et animam scire cupio–“I yearn to know G-d and the soul”–is from Cassiciacum, and aptly summarizes everything he wrote.
The constructor of that apt and precise noun phrase is demonstrably a philosopher.
Or is he? How can we have knowledge of that, unless we were predestined to know it? But then, would we be free to not know it?
Great! Already know the core of your theology, and haven’t even read the book yet!
Just kidding. A sincere congrats to you. We patrons of R. are blessed to have such a scholar in attendance at our hole-in-the-wall tavern.
I fully endorse this book. It was a joy to discovery what Joy really is.
This is truly a wonderful book and it helped me in my thinking, in my Christian walk and in how I think about my life. You will not regret buying this book and reading it deeply and reflecting on it wisely.
Buy it as soon as you can, your only regret will be that you did not buy it earlier. Also review it on Amazon!
Very readable. Saint Augustine was wise enough to keep the little story in his book about the time that the Real Augustine’s student was awaken by a rat and through a board it to shut up. The Real Augustine awakens from the clattering of the board and there in the absolute darkness around their bunks begins a discussion of the upmost moral and spiritual significance. Because what else do you do when awakened by a misbehaving rat but start a deep philosophical/theological discussion?
I had not heard of the dialogues before either but I loved the book! You are in for a treat Reticulator.
Congratulations!
Like the others, I was more than a little concerned the philosophy would be over my head. I bought it any way. Now I think I’ll have something wonderful to read and to learn from. Thanks, St. Augustine.
No, thank you, and you, Brian, and everyone else!
Even though I feel I am already in debt to several of you, please allow me to reiterate Brian’s request. Reviews on Amazon (Google, GoodReads, etc.) really would be appreciated.
How about the Audible version, read by the author (alas, Kindle books read on Audible, but the voice is notably nonhuman)? Got the Kindle version anyway! Congratulations!!
BTW, nice company you keep…
29 Likes @saintaugustine I am sure this is going to put you on the best seller list. Maybe even raise you up to the number one spot on the Best Seller lists!
Well at least a list that includes all the books focused on the Dialogues at Cassiciacum?
If the world does not fully discover this book it will be the world’s loss…
Wow, and you didn’t pay him to say that??! Well done!!
A her, I think. And I had no idea she even existed!
I’m quite pleased with this, actually.
But top 100 in the Kindle Christian theology section–that might be possible.
Thanks!
Reading it myself–I think I’d do a bad job. Still, it’s an interesting idea that’s never occurred to me–having it read.
Well, it actually climbed a few places. Maybe someone else bought a copy.
Or maybe it’s just a side effect of book-buying slowing down in North America after bedtime.
The Remanent Podcast with Jonah Goldberg just had a podcast called, “So you want to write a book?” It was very interesting. One of the things they mentioned was when you are below the top 100 the list doesn’t really matter five to ten books might jump you up a bunch of places. But if you make to the top 100 then you are moving some books and book publishers will notice especially with a book like yours that has been out a while.
Also I think you might have trouble reading your book. Would not reading it stimulate thoughts that you might want to add or bring up points you want to expand? It would seem like torture to have to read only the text when you would so much like to say more. Not sure that would be your problem.
I heard you on Fly Over country Podcast and your voice is perfectly pleasant so don’t let that hold you back.
Still having someone else read it would make the experience of those on audible or the like more pleasant.
I got a big smile out of this, Brian. I’ve never thought about this phenomenon, but now that you bring it up, it would surely be common.
And “not sure that would be your problem”?? We know enough about the intellectual horsepower under the hood of the Boone-mobile to be sure that he would want to pause after every spoken sentence, and write another book.
I did not want to come on too strong and seem like was insulting my friend. So, I put in little weasel room! Saint Augustine could could a short book or long essay out of nearly every word…
Good prediction.
I think that would be my problem!
I really, really couldn’t.