This season's holiday shopping on Kickstarter went very well.

Amazon: In addition to the thing you actually asked about, here are 20 more books that all sound the same.
Me: Meh.

Kickstarter: Here is a book about an autistic Yeti. Or perhaps you'd prefer a Neanderthal comic book?
Me: Shut up and take my money!

So, the Neanderthal comic book arrived today: The Tale of Tal: a Neanderthal graphic novel by Dr. Gianpaolo di Silvestro and Luca Vergerio. It includes introductory materials by Prof. David Caramelli from University of Florence ("The Neanderthals"), Dr. Fabio Bona from University of Milan ("The Cave Bears"), Dr. Fabio Fusco, a researcher/consultant palaeontologist ("Flora and Fauna"), and Prof. Mauro Mandrioli from Unimore ("Science and Graphic Novels"). These parts are bilingual in Italian (black text) and English (blue text). The scientific bibliography is all in black, but a mishmash of languages since it draws on publications from diverse countries.

I am particularly charmed by the descriptions of Neanderthals in the flyleaves. "Neanderthal was an alternative way of being human, with all its diversities and fragilities." Not less than human, just differently human. It reminds me of what we lost, when we lost our cousins on the hominid family tree: a concrete example of wholly different, yet equally functional, ways of being human. We know that three species cohabited in Africa. Modern humans carry DNA from at least three relatives: Neanderthals, Denisovans, and one unknown ("I didn't get his name, but wow what a night!"). We just tend to ... forget.

There are spoilers below.

( Read more... )

Religions of Late Antiquity in Practice by Richard Valantasis

An array of documents. Many Christian, including hymns, sermons, acts of martyrs and other accounts, but also Manichean, with hymns and a service, pagan, such as a spell tablet invoking Osiris to recapture a husband's attentions, Julian the Apostate arguing against Christianity, claiming that Solomon worshipped other gods because he was wise, an aretalogy of Isis listing her virtues, and a Mithradic liturgy, and various other things, such as Talmudic tales, and the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas. A number were taken from incomplete documents, so the lacunae pile up, and some of the commentary begs the question a bit.

Little Red Rodent Hood by Ursula Vernon

The return of Princess Harriet!  Wielding her sword, saving the day, sometimes even listening to her friend Prince Wilbur's good advice!

( Read more... )

From the Lines of Dissent which is a collection of essays orginally published on Media Diversified which I bought at the start of last year in a fit of 'everything is terrible, lets throw some spare cash at good content' back at the start of the year. Most of the essays are ones I hadn't previously read online, and the few that I had read before are worth a second read. The format makes it perfect for dipping in and out of on lunch breaks and buses so I sped through it.

Hamster Princess: Whiskerella by Ursula Vernon

Book 5. Minor spoilers for earlier books ahead.

( Read more... )