The Illiad by Homer

One of the foremost achievements in western literature, Homer's Illiad tells the story of the darkest episode of the Trojan War.

Troy

Trojan War itself is a part of Greek mythology so one can argue that the city of Troy did never exist. But there are certain facts about a powerful nation, who used to live in the western shores of the modern day Turkey, and collected taxes from the ships which sailed near their coast. There are written documents about Alexander the Great visiting the ancient city of Troy on his way to Persia. Modern day archaeologists have discovered remnants of an ancient city which they suspect that to be of Troy.

The Trojan War

Helen, the young and beautiful Greek princess and her Trojan lover Prince Paris, started the prelude to crisis. Helen was the wife of Menelaus, King of the Greek kingdom Sparta. Members of the Trojan royal family visited Sparta inorder to broaden the friendship between the two kingdoms. Prince Paris, the younger son of King Priam of Troy, came with them and for the astonishment of all found himself in love with fair Helen, the Queen of Sparta. One thing led to another and finally Helen ran away to Troy with Prince Paris.

As soon as Menelaus discovers that his beloved wife has been 'stolen' he joins forces with his fierce brother Agamemnon, the King of Greece, and summon all the Greek warlords and declare war on Troy.

There are memorable characters on both sides such as 'Great' Ajax, 'Lesser' Ajax, Diomedes, Idomeneus, Nstor, Odysseus and Tucer but at it's centre is mighty Achilles, the greatest warrior champion of the Greeks.

On the other side there is Hector, the elder son of King Priam and the greatest warrior of the Trojans, Aeneas, the son of goddess Aphrodite, Polydamas and Sarpedon. Most of them meet the dust at the battlefield but Aeneas survives the war and makes his way to Italy to begin the race of the great Romans.

The Plot

The book describes the incidents that took place in the final year of the 10 year long siege of the city of Troy. Achilles, the greatest warrior of all time, refuses to fight for the Greeks after being humilated by his leader Agamemnon. But when the Trojan Hector kills Achilles' close friend Patroclus, he storms back into battle to take revenge-although knowing this will ensure his own early death.

Interwoven with this tragic sequence of events are powerfully moving descriptions of the ebb and flow of battle, of the domestic world inside Troy's besieged city of Ilium and of the conflicts between the gods on Olympus as they argue over the fate of mortals.

"Look at me. I am the son of a great man. A Goddess was my mother. Yet Death and inexorable destiny are waiting for me"-Achilles

Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott

Set in the reign of Richard I, Coeur de Lion, Ivanhoe is packed with memorable incidents-sieges, ambushes and combats-and equally memorable characters: Cedric of Rotherwood, the die hard Saxon; his beautiful ward Rowena; the fierce Templar Knight, Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert; the Jew, Issac of York, and his beautiful and spirited daughter Rebecca; Wamba and Gurth, jester and swineherd respectively.

In this book Scott explores the conflicts between the Crown and the powerful Barons, between the Normans and the conquered Saxons, and Richard and his scheming brother, Prince John. At the same time he brings into the novel the legendary outlaw Robin Hood and his band of outlaws, and creates a brilliant, account of the age of chivalry with all its elaborate rituals and costumes and its values of honour and personal glory.

The story also describes how the Jews were discriminated by the commons and by the rulers during that certain age. It also brings out white peoples attitude towards the dark skinned people(Saracans in this stroy), as a certain group of people who are wild and less emotional. Scott tries to bring out the dark side of the Templar Knights, the protectors of Christiandom, in which he was successful. The fierce Templar, to the astonishment of all the readers, fall in love with the fair Jewess, which leads to disaster. But the sudden appearence of Wilfred of Ivanhoe in the lists of Templars save the life of the innocent creature.

Though the reader get the feeling that Wilfred and Rebecca are getting close to each other in numerous occasions, their relegious beliefs draw them apart in a dissapointing manner and finally leads to Wilfred taking the hand of fair Saxon maiden Rowena, his childhood companion, and the fair Jewess entering a convent.

Threads in Java

import java.lang.*;

class TestThread extends Thread
{
public void start()
{
for(int x=1;x<6;x++)
{
double a=Math.random();
int b=(int)(a*100);
try
{
System.out.println(b);
Thread.sleep(100);
}catch(InterruptedException e){System.out.println(e.toString());}
}
}

public static void main(String ar[])
{
TestThread t1=new TestThread();
t1.start();
}
}

Alexander - THE GREATEST LEGEND

The movie "Alexander" traces the short but adventures life of the Macedonian conqueror, Alexander the Great(356-323 B.C.)., whom conquered almost the entire known world of his era. His father was King Philip of Macedonia who was murdered in 336 B.C. Upon his father's murder Alexander ascended the throne at the age of 20. After he became the king he crossed into Asia chasing his father's murderer but it led to a 11-year conquest of the know world. The movie traces his conquests of Egypt, to battles with the Persians and the capture of Babylon, operations near Maracanda and in Afghanistan, and pushing all the way to India where he reigned unchallenged before his sudden death at the age of 32 in Babylon. Although Alexander used the well-oiled army created by his father, King Philip, he pushed the limits of Macedonian and Greek power to the levels King Philip could not have dreamt of.

Director : Oliver Stone

Official movie trailer :

The Lost Symbol

 

                                    The book is not yet released but Dan Brown hope to release the novel this September.

For more info : http://www.danbrown.com/the-lost-symbol.html

Digital Fortress

     

                             When the National Security Agency's  invincible code-breaking machine encounters a mysterious code that it cannot break, the agency call in its head cryptographer, Susan Fletcher, a brilliant, beautiful mathematician. What she uncovers sends shock waves through the corridors of power. The NSA is being held hostage-not by guns or bombs, but by a code so complex that if released would cripple U.S intelligence.

                              Caught in an accelerating tempest of secrecy and lies, Fletcher battles to save the agency she believes in. Betrayed on all sides she finds herself fighting not only for her country but for her life, and in the end, for the life of the man she loves.

"It is said that in death, all things become clear;......." -Digital Fortress-  

   

Deception Point

                           When a new NASA satellite detects evidence of an astonishingly rare object buried deep in the Arctic ice, the floundering space agency proclaims a much-needed victory....a victory that has profound implications for U.S. space policy and the upcoming presidential election.

                           With the Oval Office in the balance, the president dispatches White House Intelligence analyst Rachel Sexton to the Arctic to verify the authenticity of the find. Accompanied by a team of experts, including the charismatic academic Michael Tolland, Rachel uncovers the unthinkable-evidence of scientific trickery-a bold deception that threatens to plunge the world into controversy.

                             Before Rachel can make her findings known, she realises, perhaps too late, such knowledge puts her and Tolland in deadly jeopardy. Fleeing for their lives in an enviorenment as desolate as it is lethal, they possess only one hope for survival;to find out who is behind this masterful ploy. The truth , they will learn, is the most shocking deception of all...............

"Brown proves once again that he is among the most intelligent and dynamic of authors in the thriller genre. He has skillfully blended his own wit and style with the rip-roaring......... Highly recommended"            

                               -  Library Journal -