I recently read, once again, Homer’s The Odyssey.  I bought the used book many years ago for a mere 55 cents.  What a long lasting bargain!  The book makes a great read.  The human characters and gods are fairly well known even in the modern world.  Of course, many of the adventures are beyond belief unless you are a fan of children’s television programs.  There’s a great cast of characters, such as Odyssus (variously and frequently referred to as ‘the destroyer of cities’), Achilles (‘the most fortunate man that ever was or will be’), and the goddess Athene, Daughter of Zeus (‘she of the bright eyes’). I had forgotten, until I came to the end that Odysseus, his son and a few helpers lock all the doors of the main hall and kill all the suiters who had been pestering Odysseus’ wife to marry one of them during his extended absence.  So, The Odyssey offers a great deal, a classic.

Like The Odyssey, my book – West Meets East in Kazakhstan – makes for a great read.   Interesting stories, travel, insights into human character, various settings, colorful descriptions, and lots more.  But I am reminded by reading The Odyssey that it is useful to have one or more central characters who appear throughout the book, an underlying plot, and a climactic conclusion.  OK, you can’t expect a modern (almost) first-time author to cover all the bases.  Anyway, my version of The Odyssey has 365 pages whereas my book is only 263 pages long.  And, better yet, it is believable!

oooOOOooo

Book Sales:  I am still helping with the marketing of my book, West Meets East in Kazakhstan.   It’s about life in and around Almaty in the 1990s from the perspective of an American expatriate.  You will enjoy it!  The book is available online in softcover or e-book format from AuthorHouse (the publisher), or Amazon or Barnes & Noble.