Othello Greene: The Story Begins

I was given a print copy of Othello Greene: The Story Begins  by Anthony H. Baltimore SR. for review.

This review is going to be somewhat different, I think, because for me Othello Greene: The Story Begins operates on several different levels, some of which I am not well versed in.

First and foremost the overarching theme of the story is action/adventure. Beyond that, the story also has a strong story line of Islamic belief. It also focuses on young love and Washington DC area black society and culture.

Being a white christian male living in the northwest mountains, it is clear that many of these thematic concepts are not within my particular area of expertise. I did however, in my career work with many black people and they never asked to be called African-American, so there it is. My use of the words 'black people" is not meant with any disrespect. Never the less my purpose for doing reviews is to share my reactions to the books I read. So here goes.

The over all story is great. Not mincing words, it is a strong, action oriented story. Technology, political intrigue, evil-want-to-take-over-the-world bad guys, several heroes (one main one: Othello), innocent victims, torture, sex, romance, all the things a good action story contains. The bad guys are just that; bad guys. Their political, religious or cultural identity is not the issue, they're evil and bent on world domination.

I was concerned when first offered a copy, that Othello Greene: The Story Begins was going to be a veiled propaganda piece for Islam (I don't care to read propaganda for any belief, including my own). Happily, this story is not that. Yes, the author is Muslim and presents Islam positively, but it is in the greater context of the story. Were it propaganda, I think I would have found insults or at least disrespect for Christianity and other religions mixed into the story. Not so.

A major portion of the characters are middle to upper class people located in the DC area. They are predominantly black, with a few white characters here and there. Obviously, as a 60+ year old white guy, I can't speak to authenticity of the culture presented. Again nothing offensive to any culture here. It seemed to me to be a mix of Boyz in the Hood, Leave it to Beaver and The Cosby Show. This is where the young love and much of the romance comes in.

This book is fairly long; 771 pages to be exact. Although no specific mention is made of follow up books, the title pretty much confirms it ...The Story Begins is a pretty good hint.

This book is also...BRUTAL. Very graphic scenes of brutality, well beyond the usual found in action stories. Also, very graphic scenes of sexuality, fortunately for me, consensual. I don't do well with rape or abuse of women.

The biggest negative for me? The usual, typos. Not misspellings but wrong words; form instead of from, where instead of were, for example. Perhaps a consequence of the length of the book, these mistakes became more prevalent as the story progressed. As I have said many times, not the end of the world, but disruptive to the flow of the story.

For a story that fell well outside my personal frame of reference I found Othello Greene: The Story Begins by Anthony H. Baltimore SR. a very engaging, action packed, read. Be prepared to spend some time with it, it is not a quick read. But if you like action, and all the things that go with it, you'll like this book. Enjoy!

Mike