This reading of the King James Version Bible by Alexander Scourby is a treasure! I own or have listened to most of the other audio Bibles out there and there just is no comparison. Scourby reads in a transparent manner that allows the Bible to come alive. With some audio Bibles I have a hard time listening through the reader's radio-announcer inflections to the underlying message. Not so with Scourby, he justly earns his title of the "Voice of the Bible".

I recommend this Audio CD highly. I don't believe you will be disappointed with it in any way.

I wonder when this will be available in CD format? My tapes have had it!

Ever had trouble reading the King James version? Alexander Scorby is the reader here and makes the KJV even more enjoyable. His deep, smooth vocals are great for the long drive, to make your work-day go by quicker, to relax to at home, or as an aid in studying the Word. I highly recommend this to anyone who has any reason to reading the Bible.

A very informative book that tells really a lot about Macedonian king Philp the 2nd and the way he forced himself on the Greeks. There's not as much in there about his son, Alexander, but it was worthwhile anyway for anybody who wants to know about the wars of that time in ancient Greece. I highly recomend it.

This book is the best book I have seen about King Philip II for general readers. Several scholarly books that are available contain more information of course. But for those who want a simple, straightforward overview, this book is excellent. The book contains a good deal less on Alexander and seems to make the case that much of Alexander's later success was due to his father's considerable talents. Nice job all around.

The achivements and conquests of the Macedonian king Philip II are summarized in this highly informative volume. The author devotes most of the book to Philip, rather than his illustrius son, Alexander, which is Ok because there are plenty of books about Alexander out there already. It is really refreshing to find out how much of Alexnader's accomplishments were the result of his father's talent and achievements, which tend to get glossed over in a lot of books about Alexander. As one of the reviews above mentions, the author does a really nice job of working in actual quotes from ancient writers, which gives the book a strong feeling of authenticity.

I don't know whether I would have liked King if I had known him, or whether he would have liked me. (In egotists mutual liking is usually based on misunderstandings.) There was much in his life to cause anger, and there was much waste. King was a mercurial spoilt brat with enormous talent, great compassion, great selfishness, idiosyncratic tolerance and intolerance, impressive culture, totally variegated experience, a marvellous capacity for talking about it, and enormous charm. He raises serious doubts about some of what he says, but says it all with such natural conviction that I accept most of it as stated, and most of that without doubt and little reservation.

His is not the charm of the evil, but irresistable rake, nor is it the cutesy "I may be a spoilt brat, but am I not sooo lovable?" It is a talent for dealing with people in certain contexts, and many walks of life, combined with tremendous articulateness, a fine command of English (and, apparently several other languages) an eye for the intriguing, the ridiculous, the deep and the shallow. And a capacity for attracting the people and the disasters that he wrote about so inimitably.

King was artless about his talent. No bragging, no false modesty. The subject comes up repeatedly, but always in context and always naturally and inoffensively. (He was an artist and writer! What do you expect?) He had great wit and he had great humour. In all four of his autobiographies there are many passages that are dangerous to read with a full bladder and there is hardly a page without a light irony that never breaks surface as a grin. I shall not retail them here. I am not King. Read them yourself. And do not expect to read just another book of gags by a reminiscing humorist. King is beyond that. There is a great deal more of life in his telling, than I for one would have liked to live. The expressions he used, such as those quoted by other reviewers in this column, are plentiful, frequently creative, and apposite. But those are frosting on a very substantial cake.

I cannot understand why his books are out of print. Such a combination of entertainment, talent and charm, not terribly dateable in the sense of being tediously topical; I should have thought it to be an instant classic of indefinite appeal. His writing is rewarding at several levels, ranging from gags to art and sociological comment. If you read it without profit, then I am afraid I have nothing to say to you, for we are mutual aliens.

But for anyone who has read this far through this review, I recommend King's books urgently and without reserve. I meant every word of the title. I have thousands of books, but I frequently re-read King's four, usually beginning by dipping in, then growling about no time to spare, and re-starting from the beginning.

Mine Enemmy Grows Older is one of King's best books. As Mr. Kolpan stated in his review, no one could describe a doctor's voice more accurately when King said, "it sounded like marshmellow syrup being strained through a bra." King really could write very vivid descriptions about anything. He usually wrote about what he knew; which i feel made him great. One should remember that King learned Engilsh as a second language; he was born in Austria. He developed a fantastic vocabulary in a short time. He met all the big "shot" publishers, including Mrs. Luce. He was constantly being hired and fired on his way to the top as an artist for newspapers,etc. His "zany" stories are missing from the present day world of writing: no one talks like him anynore--and i find it "sad."

I read this book in the late '60's and it was a used copy even then. But absolutely no one can give you the feel of New York's Greenwich Village scene in the real bohemian days like Alex King. I had occasion to interview Al Hirschfeld, the caricaturist who was Kings best friend. He considered him the smartest man he had ever met. And only King could describe a doctor's cloyingly soothing voice as being "like marshmallow syrup strained through an old brassiere." All of King's four (!) autobiograhies are fun. This one is the best.

I believe Alexander Scourby is the best when it comes to bible reading. When you buy something like this, it needs to be done in such a way that you look forward to listening over and over again and that is what a person will find with his work. He does not miss a word when reading along with him and his voice really brings the Bible to life. I love the KJ version but wish Mr. Scourby had also done other versions such as the NIV. But anyone will find this to be a real treasure for life and of course the KJ language is the most beautiful of all versions!

To review a book on such a great man and great book takes an open mind, to some alexander was a god and to others he was a kin to Hitler. This book was translated from Greek and roman authors but mainly by the greek historian Arrian. Born some four hundred years after the death of alexander arrian spent his life"s work writing account of alexander"s campaigns. Arrian refers to the Royal diaries of alexander, they tell of of a man of divine descent, a god, decendent of heracles, a brave man, a king who would fight with his men in battle. Alexander was born in Maceddonia in 356 B.C. and came to the throne on the murder of his father Philip in 336 B.C. What he did then was to conquer somethink like two million square miles, covering over eleven thousand miles in eight years. This book tells us how we took the persian empire and defeating Darius at the battle of Issus out numberd seven to one. Nearly thirteen years later this same young man, still only thirty-three years old died at babylon, in the heart of the persian empire. Brave to the point of rashness, passionate to the point of murder, a military genius, administrator and empire builder, but above all am inspiring leader of men.

This is a rare and successful modern epic poem by one of the most learned and linguistically inventive English poets to emerge since the second world war. Difficult though it is in places at first, it is also very moving. Catching the high Arthurian spirit, while also being witty, it will change the life of anyone who reads it.

This is an excellent set of cassettes beautifully read by Alexander Scourby. Kick back, relax and listen to his melodic voice read the greatest Book of all time.

"Rope Trick" is both similar and different from many of Lloyd Alexander's previous works, and it seems first and foremost to be a study on the characters rather than a story. Not that that's a bad thing -- Alexander's plot is intriguing, fresh, and has plenty of lovable and complex people.

Lidi is an excellent magician, but there is one magic trick that she doesn't know: The fabled rope trick. She and her kindly mentor Jericho rescue a neglected orphan from an abusive innkeeper, and find that little Daniella can predict the future. No sooner have the two made her an "Added Attraction" (she predicted that too) than they encounter a young outlaw named Julian sleeping under their wagon. A scuffle with soldiers sends them on the run to another province.

There they bump into many different people who have encountered the strange magician Ferramondo, who is seen differently by every person. He also knows the rope trick. Lidi begins a desperate search for Ferramondo, convinced that she will not be a true magician until she does. But sinister men are trying to get hold of Daniella for their own gain, and Julian is seeking revenge against "Baboon," the man who killed his uncle and drove him to become an outlaw.

This book is somewhat different from most of Alexander's books. The protagonist is a young girl rather than a boy (even the Vesper Holly books were narrated by a man) with a sad past, and there are more serious, melancholy themes. Julian in particular is a break from Alexander's naive young heroes-in-training, who learn their lessons along the way. It's also full of more introspection, as Lidi often stops to contemplate herself and others. The love story between Lidi and Julian is handled with delicacy, and goes very gradually over the book.

Perhaps the biggest problem is the finale. It's more than a little difficult to understand why what happens does happen, as it doesn't really seem to be entirely connected to the plotline behind it. It is, however, an interesting development and opens possible paths to a sequel; the various subplots are woven together like... well, like a rope. Alexander's writing is spare but amazingly evocative, and his dialogue is full of the same pep and charm as ever.

Fans of Lloyd Alexander will find an enjoyable tale of magic and mystery, and newcomers will enjoy this introduction to Alexander's work. Not his best, but a very good read.

This book was great!I tried to put it down, but found myself picking it up again. I liked the characters. Lidi isn't one of those mushy, shy girls that usually star in books. I really like Julian and Jericho and I definately loved Daniella. You should give this book a chance.

Let's get this straight - In his School Library Journal review of "The Rope Trick," that Amazon uses as a review of this book, John Peters gets nothing right, to the point that is makes me wonder whether he just flipped to the last few pages in order to mail in his review and collect a check.

This book is brilliant, a challenging work designed to tax the reading and comprehension levels of young teens. Besides giving away a major part of the ending, Peters badly misconstrues major themes in the work. This is a book about how we see God - in our own image, mostly - and how we each find our path to God. It is a major book for young teens that addresses issues such as causes of sectarian conflict as well as the individual's relationship to the Divine.

Read this book, and more importantly get your your young teenaged readers to read it, and then discuss it with them. You and they will not be disappointed. Ignore anything Peters writes - same result.

This book, The High King, by Lloyd Alexander, the 5th and last book of the "Prydain" series, is filled with action and suspense. The first four books lead up to this one with Taran, Assistant Pig Keeper, gaining friends, courage and manhood. Now Taran and his friends put everything at risk to save Prydain, the mystical kingdom they live in. Arawn, Death Lord, steals the most powerful weapon in Prydain, "Dyrnwyn", a flaming sword. Now the valiant men in Prydain must fight to get it back. The High King is an excellent book because of the action and suspense. There are 4 major battles in the book. It also shows the hardships away from the battlefield Taran and his friends encounter. Love, personal deaths, and other things are twirled in with the main action theme. Lloyd Alexander also tosses magic into the cauldron, enhancing the story greatly. The magic makes it so much more mystical. In addition, having it in a medieval setting makes the battles less just shooting and more strategy. It also has large type and is easy to read. * Some people may not agree with my opinion of the book, mainly because it is gory. But it is not just blood but action. The gore is necessary because it comes from deathless warriors, who are a huge factor in the book. Without them, the book would not be as good. When you read it. You will find that The High King is an excellent book, with much action.

*In the Yearling edition of the book.

I've loved Lloyd Alexander's classic series ever since I read "The Book of Three" in elemantary school. A well-chosen Christmas gift from my parents ensured that I got my hands on the next four books, concluding with "The High King".

One of the strengths of this series is that the characters learn and grow from one book to the next; it's great to see Taran from "The Book of Three", who reminds me rather of myself at that age (*grin*) grow up to take the responsibilities he has earned by the end of "The High King".

Alexander's use of Welsh mythology is excellent and for the most part right on target, though Arawn isn't quite as malevolent a figure in myth as he is in the Chronicles of Prydain, and the Gwydion of the Mabinogion is as much a trickster as he is a hero. (This isn't really a criticism; these are books for children, and I know that making Arawn and Gwydion more ambiguous characters would have confused me when I was younger.) The Triple Goddess, the people of Twylyth Teg, the people of Llyr--they're all here, forming a seamless and very real-feeling backdrop to the main characters' adventures.

Older readers may be interested in checking out the Mabinogion, the main body of Welsh myth that has survived the ages, after finishing this series. Gwyn Thomas and Kevin Crossley-Holland's "Tales from the Mabinogion" is an excellent edition to try, with beautiful illustrations.

Overall, the Chronicles of Prydain remain among my favorite stories, with "The High King" the best of the lot. I highly recommend them.

The High King is a Newbery award winner in a series of 5 books (The High King is last book in the series). Starting with the mystical and astonishing book The Book of Three, this series builds over time and forces the reader to read these books again after time. The book starts off with Taran, once a cowardly assistant pig keeper. After the other books he develops the skills needed for a warrior, and is now grown up into a majestic character with the other characters met and discovered in the other books. The saddest and dreadful book in the series, the story must end, and main characters that played an important role are enforced in this book, ending the series once and for all. This book is the final attack made towards the Death Lord, and seals the paths for epilogues, but leaves room for the past to be revealed. The series read together make a great connection towards each other, and answers all unanswered questions that remain in the readers' head. This adventure plots all the characters from previous journeys, and makes a perilous excursion for the fantasy readers. Just like any series, what happens in the past controls the future. This book, read with the series or alone, provides adventure for any age. The fantasy based book implanted on the fundamentals of a welsh legend shows how people can react sometimes, or how much their customs make notice in front of intelligence and common sense.

____________________________________________________________________________ _____I have read many books in my 17 years, but few have captured me as The Persian Boy has. It is the story of a persian boy sold into slavery and eventually becomes slave to King Darius III. As Persia is lost to Alexander's army early in the story, the boy becomes first a servant then a lover to Alexander. ____________________________________________________________________________ _____Perhaps the most interesting part of the story is that Renault maintains an enormous level of accuracy both about the historical events, and about the relationship between this boy and Alexander, based on records from the time. ____________________________________________________________________________ _____Another important aspect of this book is how it captures a boy's feelings and emotions when his father is lost, when he is forced to be a prostitute, and when he falls in love. Man-boy love is very taboo in our modern era, and those of you who have prejudices against such things might enjoy the viewpoint of a boy from 2300 years ago. ____________________________________________________________________________

Robert Lipsyte, who wrote some wonderful novels himself, said in a column that his father gave him this book to read one weekend. After putting it off, he finally gave in and was hooked from the first sentence. Mary Renault casts a spell from the first in "The Persian Boy", the pivot of her Alexandriad.

Bagoas is born into an aristocratic family; the turmoil following the death of King Ochos claims his father, mother and sisters, and he himself is castrated and sold at the age of 10. The twin horrors are followed in time by another; Bagoas is himself sold by his master to other men as a prostitute. Procured for King Darius, Bagoas's lot changes only slightly; instead of being sold to many men, he is kept by one man, a King he holds in awe for his station, and not out of personal admiration.

Darius has made the mistake of underestimating the young Macedonian King Alexander, who at 20 undertakes the reconquest of Greek cities in Asia Minor. But Alexander closes in on the Persian Empire, and Darius suffers one defeat after another until his own warlords lose faith in him. When a coup sees Darius taken prisoner, Bagoas escapes with only his life. In time he is rescued by one of those warlords, who decides to beg Alexander for clemency. Who does he bring to sweeten the plea? Bagoas--as a gift.

Alexander is presented by Renault as a man capable of more than mortal feats who is still reassuringly human--more than that, he needs love desperately, from the hero-worship of the soldiers who follow him to the intimate devotion of his lover Hephaistion. Bagoas has never known love at all, only use. When Macedonian King and Persian courtesan meet, the inevitable happens--and this is where the enchantment begins.

Renault's mastery is impeccable. With a few well-chosen words, she conjures the images of the great Persian palaces--the ruins at Persepolis, Susa, Ekbatana, and Babylon; she recreates the travels of the Macedonian army so well that any reader who picks up her companion book "The Nature of Alexander" will look at the pictures and exclaim, "I know this! This is--" and name the very scene. But it is her characters that truly live. Bagoas is keenly intelligent, charming, courtly, sarcastic, prey to jealousy and possessiveness when it comes to his lover; his growing maturity merely adds to the pain he experiences as the affair and Alexander's conquests progress. And Alexander is much more accessible here than in "Fire From Heaven," which is a wonderful book but presents Alexander as all light and no fire. Here we get to see Alexander as preening boy, heroic warrior, pragmatic king, and devoted lover. It is a marvelous love story whether or not it actually happened.

But the emotional payoffs of the affair are balanced by hideous tragedies, none more affecting than the death of Hephaistion. Bagoas' quiet desperation to keep Alexander with the sane and living is agonizing with the knowledge that Alexander did not survive his lover by more than three months. Renault foreshadows without laying it on too thick, but it's worth noting that the portents of Alexander's death were recorded by historians, and the ancients paid close attention to that sort of thing. The final quarter of the book is grim, with only a few moments of light, and the most poignant moment is when Bagoas, having kept watch over Alexander even after his death, finally gives way to the Egyptian priests who come to embalm the Macedonian.

It isn't all romance and grief. Bagoas is, after all, only sixteen when the affair starts; he's prey to insecurity about his place in Alexander's heart, and his two antagonists are Hephaistion, Alexander's lifelong love, and Roxane, the legendary beauty who becomes Alexander's wife. With Hephaistion, Bagoas indulges in the sort of reverie that anyone who's ever had a romantic rival can identify with (stopping short of cutting him into little pieces and feeding him to the dogs). Roxane, on the other hand, earns Bagoas' hatred for good reason, and she is presented as everything Hephaistion isn't: clinging, vindictive, and devouring. Bagoas wryly notes that Alexander has, like most men, married a woman like his mother, and it's asides like this from him that make the story such an indulgent treat to read.

Like other reviewers, I will say that if you despise homosexuality and homosexuals, don't pick up the book. But if you can put aside prejudices and read for the sheer pleasure of encountering excellence in writing and losing yourself in another place and time, "The Persian Boy" is still in print.

Mary Renault initially captured my attention with Fire From Heaven, the first of the Alexander novels, and gave new life to this revered warrior and hero. But with The Persian Boy, as told through the eyes of Bagoas, a slave boy who becomes confidant, advisor, and lover to Alexander, she humanizes this historical figure even further, and gives him attributes that the history books neglect, those of a man. She probes his mind, as witnessed by the eyes of adoring Bagoas, who first reveres Alexander as his master, and then dotes upon him as lover. Bagoas remains faithful to Alexander through months of separation during the conquest of Greece, and stands by his side despite treacherous efforts to discredit and dethrone his King, through Alexander's 'relationship' with his boyhood companion Hephaistion, and his 'marriage of convenience' to Roxane.

This novel, while it appealed to me on a romantic level, also exemplifies the nature of love, be it between man and woman, or man and man, as a fevered, passionate longing for another, a sense of loyalty to them and to your relationship with them, during hard months of separation, and a desire to do anything to please and/or comfort them. However, the book also accurately recreates Alexander's journey of seige across Greece, and the hardships he and his followers endured. Readers would be hard pressed to find a more descriptive and honest look at Alexander the Great as a flesh and blood creature, and not just the conquering hero of many bloody battles which history books offer us.