My book "Hypatia's Feud" is in Amazon

The publication of my book “Hypatia’s Feud” marks the end of a three year project during which I researched, wrote and edited the manuscript.

During that period I had many interesting conversations with friends and colleagues. Some women who graduated from various courses broadly labeled as Women Studies were not happy hearing that I was writing a book based on the life and times of Hypatia. The insinuation was that Hypatia belonged to them and I, a man, had no right to write a literary novel about their hero and idol.

The fact that I had a classical education didn’t matter to them. I reminded them that as an astronomer, qualified in Science and Mathematics I understood her achievement in these branches of science. Lastly I mentioned that I spent several summers in Alexandria and took a number of philosophy courses but could not change their minds. Eventually we agree to disagree.

An astrophysicist, I respect, insisted that Hypatia was just a mathematician. In vain I tried to convince him she was the quintessential philosopher-hero who lived and died as a Humanist among religious zealots. Sensing I could not change his mind I mentioned she was the conduit of ancient wisdom to the modern world but failed again to change his mind.

To my religious friends I stressed that Hypatia’s Feud at the dawn of the fifth century CE with all dogmatic religions and political creeds, is our feud too because her foes under different names are ever-present.

The moral of my experiences is that no matter what we choose to do or write we will always have detractors. What is important to me is to explore universal issues and put my work out there.

“Hypatia’s Feud” is now available as a book and as e-book from Amazon.