About book The Sisters Of Sinai: How Two Lady Adventurers Discovered The Hidden Gospels (2009)
First of all, I declare an interest! Like the two lady adventurers, I was born and brought up in the Royal Burgh of Irvine and educated at Irvine Royal Academy. However, there the similarities end!As a native of the ladies' home town, I appreciated the detailed background on their family and their connection to John Ferguson whose money ultimately funded their lives and their adventures. They had an intellectual curiosity that was nurtured by their enlightened father. I did learn a great deal about some significant local personages such as their minister, W B Robertson.The substance of the book of course is concerned with the Smith sisters' travels and their achievements all of which were due to their linguistic abilities. The author is to be complimented for giving us a detailed narrative about their travels, their searches for the gospels, and for doing so in a most dynamic way. I really felt as though I was travelling with the sisters and the book although scholarly in its research and detail had a very contemporary feel to it.This was by far the best book I have read for some time and would heartily recommend it to anyone who is fascinated by the achievements of twin sisters from this otherwise unremarkable town! Well done biography/history of two Scottish twin sisters who broke all kinds of barriers yet remained staunch traditional Presbyrterians to the end.Anyone who is interested in intellectual history in the 19th century, particularly how new findings in linguistics and science affected a world convinced of the literal truth of the Bible, would enjoy this. It is also interesting as a tale of two very intelligent and practical Scotswomen who undertook the physical and intellectual challenges few men attempted at the time, in order to accomplish their religious aims--no feminism involved.It also makes a fascinating read about travel and politics in the Levant of the second half of the nineteenth century. Those people were tough.
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Amazing story of how two self-taught sisters discovered ancient Syriac copies of the New Testament.
—Nihal
loved reading about these intrepid women and their visits to monasteries in the mideast
—hayvansever
