Customer Reviews

Never Grow Old: The Novel of Gilgamesh

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

To be honest I've never heard all that much about the myth of Gilgamesh. So reading this book, I had no idea what to expect. Fortunately, that made for a pleasant surprise.

So, for other clueless people like myself, Gilgamesh is the God-King of Uruk, one of the city states of the Fertile Crescent. At the age of twenty, he feels his largest contribution as King has been to build a wall encircling the city for defense, and he wants to be remembered forever for great deeds. So when Enkidu, the very last of a tribe of semi-mystical beings (in reality I think he's a Neanderthal) emerges from the forest, Gilgamesh befriends him. Together they accomplish many great things, but Gilgamesh still wants immortality in some form or another. So when sent on a quest by Ishtar, the goddess of Uruk who lives in the city, Gilgamesh jumps at the dangerous task.

Even though this novel is based on a myth, the story within walks a fine line between science and mysticism. There are gods and goddesses who are present-but are they truly gods or are they people representing the gods? There are beasts of strange appearance-are the demons are just animals from another age that are the last of their kind? Is Enkidu really some type of magical being or he just something different? It was nice to see something that is shrouded in so much social history and mysticism, as all myths are, maintain the sort of beyond the real scope while being something that a normal, modern, science drenched person can relate to.

All in all, I really liked this book. I did find it to be somewhat of a slow starter, but after a certain point I just couldn't put it down. I was up late finishing this book. One thing that would have been nice: maps! Diagrams of the cities, of the temples....I'm an anthro major so I know what some of this stuff looks like but it's hard imagining buildings and cities from pre-history. Also a certain map plays a MAJOR role in this story and it would have been nice to see it. Still this is definitely something I would recommend and it's nice for me, as someone who mostly reads books by female authors, to find a male author I can really get into.

Four point five stars.

To the author: you tried to contact me, but I have no way to get back to you, so I'm getting back to you through this review. There is no email address on your Amazon profile and your website, for some reason, will not let me send an email. So, if you want to contact me, please email me at [...] . Thank you very much for your offer (does it refer to this book or another one? Because the moment I finished "Remembering Hypatia" I ordered this and I certainly hope another novel is coming soon) and I'm glad you liked my review.

This is a beautifully written and timeless novel of a young man growing into his role as king. Thoroughly absorbed by the lives of the main character, his friends, and his enemies, the reader faces the emotions and experiences common to all humanity, including pride, forgiveness, power, helplessness, rage, love, death, deceit, loyalty, bravery, terror, and humor. I laughed at, loved, feared, loathed, identified with and was shocked by the characters, in turn. The historical details are fascinating and add to one's sense of being drawn into the story. I literally could not put Never Grow Old down, and had it finished the day after I started it.

After recently finishing this book all I can say is WOW! From page one you get drawn into this tale. By the third chapter I was invested into plot lines that were just barely developing. As the plot lines formed and weaved in and out of one another I could not put this book down. Any fan of Historical Fiction would do themself a great service by snatching up this title.

The story of Gilgamesh is one of the very first literary efforts in existence, an epic Mesopotamian poem whose subject is the King of Uruk, a city state on the Euphrates. This novel is an adaption of the Sumerian work, written in present day prose.

While perhaps a worthy premise for a novel, there is nothing in particular to recommend this particular work. It is very short, not especially well written (especially with respect to the sophomoric sexual encounters) or captivating. In fact, the longer I read it, the more irritated I became. Granted, this is a novel, and the author is entitled to a certain degree of literary license, however in this instance the license was abused.

For example, it is his theory (premise?) that Neanderthal man survived to the days of ancient, recorded Mesopotamian civilization. While this is ridiculous to the tune of about 30,000 years, I can almost let that go. In this case, however, he presents Neanderthal man as quite the cosmopolitan, bon-vivant man about town. He is an accomplished linguist, boasts culture and ethics beyond reproach and (hold onto your hat) is a gentle, compassionate lover, who despite being a virgin, has impeccable sexual techniques guaranteed to please the ladies.

In a role reminiscent of Ayla from Clan of the Cave Bear, the story also features a sorceress/medicine woman of sorts who, were she born 3,000 years later could have been one of the greatest minds of the Renaissance. For example, she knew that plague was carried by rats (not entirely true, as it was the fleas on the rats that carried the plague), a fact that was not even posited until well after the Bubonic Plague decimated the world in the Middle Ages. The plague wipes out her village as a result of "plague rats" dumped into the water source for the village. I'm not even sure this is a viable means of spreading plague.

She points out that her village is democratically ruled. Silly me, and I thought the Ancient Greeks brought us our concept of democratically elected government, 2,000 years after the setting of this story. The whole book suffers from this annoying habit of instilling skills, knowledge, practices and beliefs into characters who could not have possibly enjoyed them. Goodness gracious, one savage ruler is concerned about premature ejaculation as he rapes his victim, as if it will destroy his ability to entice future rape victims. I'm not sure that sexual staying power was one of the characteristics most prized by early Mesopotamian rapists.

I think it says a lot, when the presence of mythological creatures (which I have absolutely no problem with) in a novel is not even the most unbelievable facet of the story. The actual existence of Humbaba is far more likely than the linguistic skills of the Neanderthal character or the medical/scientific knowledge of the story's medicine woman.

In closing, I'll leave you with this puzzler:

"Twelve was the sacred number for all of Sumer. There were Twelve Tablets of Destiny seized by the monster Anzu and rescued by Ninurta. The Annunaki statues were twelve in number, as were (wait for it... wait for it...) the celestial bodies in the heavens- ten planets and the sun and moon."

Holy Copernicus! You mean the ancient Sumerians actually posited the existence of the solar system, and without the aid of telescopes even identified TEN planets? Even before Pluto was removed from the pantheon of planets, we could only come up with nine!

I'm perfectly aware of the lunatic fringe (yes, aliens are involved) which ascribes seemingly impossible astronomical skills and powers to the ancient Sumerians. The fact is, mainstream historians and researchers recognize that the planet Venus was not identified until 1500 B.C.E., approximately 1,000 years after the era of Gilgamesh. While the Babylonians later identified several more planets, the outer planets could not possibly have been discovered or observed before introduction of powerful optical telescopes in early modern times.

I can't imagine a readership to which I would recommend this work.

People like Brian Trent give fiction writers a bad name. Just because it's fiction doesn't mean you're allowed to fudge history. To start with, Marduk wasn't worshipped until one thousand years after Gilgamesh. Babylon as a city did not exist in Gilgamesh's time except as a tiny village of mud huts and back then it wasn't even called Babylon; It was called Kadingirra and it's original location was not near Kish but near Ur in the south. Bad and outdated scholarship has attempted to link Gilgamesh with Nimrod but that theory was disprove a long time ago. That's what happens when you do Google searches instead of real research: you make an ass of yourself. I really wish that Amazon would alert buyers when they're looking at self published books. There is a reason why legitimate publishers are out there Don't bother with this one unless you like really historically inaccurate historical fiction and lots of adverbs to make up for unimaginative prose.

Brian Trent really captures the story of Gilgamesh and re-creates a world so believable that the novel draws in the reader. After reading the first chapter I was so involved in the story that I actually called out of work to finish the novel. Brian Trent's newest novel may yet prove that this writer is a true intellect of history that even a story thousands of years old makes the reader feel as if the epic story of Gilgamesh happened only yesterday. I hope more people buy this book and become lost in the story of Gilgamesh.

I was pleasantly surprised when I read this book. Aside from whether or not it is historically accurate, it is a great read. It's a very entertaining story that effectively brings Gilgamesh to life - a king full of character, bravery, loyalty but not without weaknesses. I was touched by the story - it is well told and well written.

How fascinating to read of characters (Gilgamesh, Enkidu) who for me and doubtless many others, only live as strange names from Earth's earliest recorded history. At long last a novel (Never Grow Old) brings them fully to life, their rich personas captivating the reader so that each page of their story flys by with an eagerness to read on. Brian Trent has an incredible ability to create characters that live on for the reader after the last page is turned. His passion for history, his skill as a writer and his superb handling of historical dramas assure the reader of powerful personalities that remain forever indelible, adding a new dimension other authors have seldom explored. Never have I read historical fiction that is as informative, exciting and unforgettable. "Remembering Hypatia", and now "Never Grow Old", has me eagerly awaiting Brian's next book.

A good old fashioned tale told around the fire, full of might and primal emotions of lonely wants and needs, but full of hope for the far reaching future. A true primitive fantasy of innocent friendships admist the rise of the first civilization known to man.