Customer Reviews

The Bible As Literature: An Introduction

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It is difficult to separate the literary and religious aspects of the Bible, but the authors' focus is on the book "as literature" and in the space of 357 pages (in my copy of the 4th edition - 432 according to Amazon.com), they cover literary forms and strategies, historical and geographic settings, the major components of the Old and New Testaments and the Apocrypha and Pseudoepigrapha, and issues concerning the text and its translation. A valuable final chapter considers the religious use and interpretation of the Bible. Although the book is concise, it manages in its 18 chapters and 3 appendices to be comprehensive and is consistently readable. I find the sensible, scientific approach credible and while it frequently causes me to reflect on my religious beliefs, they are not seriously undermined by this liberal approach. I do not know of a better introduction to the Bible.

I think that this book is wonderful! I am a student of Dr. Anthony York's and we have utilized this book in our classes. The Bible As Literature discusses the Bible in a manner that helps the reader actually read what is/was written without all the religious jargon. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is curious about "The Bible" or to anyone who thinks they "really" know what the Bible states.

I bought this book, the 5th edition, for a graduate class and ended up reading almost all of it even though only some parts of it were assigned. I was very impressed. It is very scholarly without being dry. It is fairly short given the subject matter and reader friendly with captions and review questions. It also covers the Apocrypha.

Again, I purchased this book for my husband who is in Seminary. He is pleased. The book arrived in excellent condition and in a timely manner.

This book is great. I have Dr. Anthony York, one of the authors of this book,in class, and his book is wonderful. It really helps to see the various opinions of the bible. It is also great for people who want to study the bible as literature and not from a religious stand point.

Does not read well. Poorly phrased and overly annotated. Two many hands trying to write in one book. Ideas and concepts get lost. Also states opinion as fact. Got offended more than once. Not a good source. Save you money and time! Avoid!