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Robert Alter

Strong As Death Is Love: The Song of Songs, Ruth, Esther, Jonah, and Daniel, A Translation with Commentary Hardcover – March 2, 2015

by Robert Alter (Translator)

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Robert Alter’s award-winning translation brings new immediacy to five beloved books of the Bible.

The Song of Songs; Ruth; Esther; Jonah; and Daniel offer readers a range of pleasures not usually associated with the Bible. As distant in time from the Five Books of Moses as Updike is from Shakespeare, these Late Biblical books are innovative, entertaining literary works. Women often stand center stage. The Song of Songs is a celebration of young love, frankly sensuous, with no reference to God or covenant. It offers some of the most beautiful love poems of the ancient world. The story of Queen Esther’s shrewd triumph is also a secular entertainment, with clear traces of farce and sly sexual comedy. The character of Ruth embodies the virtues of loyalty, love, and charity in a harmonious world. Enigma replaces harmony in Daniel’s feverish night dreams. The apocalyptic strangeness of Daniel echoes in works from the New Testament’s Book of Revelations to the lyrics of Bob Dylan. And Jonah, the tale of a giant fish who, on God’s command, swallows the prophet and imprisons him in his dark wet innards for three days, ends with a question that lingers, unanswered, leaving the reader to ponder the many limitations of humankind.

Print length

256 pages
Language

English
Publisher

W. W. Norton & Company
Publication date

March 2, 2015
Dimensions

6.5 x 0.9 x 9.6 inches
ISBN-10

0393243044
ISBN-13

978-0393243048
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Sensitive to the nuances in the original Hebrew and Aramaic, and also pleasing to the ear of the English-speaking reader… An accessible introduction for interested general readers, this book should also appeal to scholars."
― Publishers Weekly

"[Alter] continues his work of masterful translation."
― Marcia Z. Nelson, Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Robert Alter's translation of the Hebrew Bible, the magnificent capstone to a lifetime of distinguished scholarly work, has won the PEN Center Literary Award for Translation. His immense achievements in scholarship ranging from the eighteenth-century European novel to contemporary Hebrew and American literature earned Alter the Robert Kirsch Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Los Angeles Times. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society, Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California, Berkeley.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ W. W. Norton & Company; 1st edition (March 2, 2015)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0393243044
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0393243048
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.11 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.5 x 0.9 x 9.6 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #428,079 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #653 in Old Testament Criticism & Interpretation
- #913 in Old Testament Commentaries
- #1,576 in Old Testament Bible Study (Books)

Customer Reviews:
63 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		77%
4 star		14%
3 star		6%
2 star		3%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

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Gerard D. Launay

Poor Translation of Song of Solomon

Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2019

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I am not competent to evaluate Professor Alter's translation of Ruth or Jonah. But I have spent a quarter of a century studying the Song of Solomon and, in my opinion, can vouch that on average, Dr Alter inserts a mistranslation of a word in every other line. His most typical translation error is to convert plural words to singular. To be fair, he usually identifies these alterations in the footnotes, but in many places in the poem, the change will have a profound effect on meaning. Just one example: instead of "a fountain of gardens" or "a spring of gardens" as a description of the
Shulammit, he inserts "a garden spring" which has an entirely different meaning. His translation, later on in the
poem, that the speaker goes to see (actually experience) the "buds of the brook" does not describe either the correct plant or the actual nature of the stream beds with short bursts of gushing water. In summary, the reader is better off with the King James Version for the poem. Again, I emphasize that I am not criticizing any other part of his translations of the other books of the Bible.

5 people found this helpful

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Yehoshua Ben-Avraham

A MUST FOR ANY SERIOUS LITERARY STUDY OF THE BIBLE!

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2015

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Vintage Alter!!! If you are interested in a literary approach to the Bible this and the other translation and notes that he has done for the Hebrew Bible are indispensible for your study and learning. Even if you are more traditional in your approach to the text this is still a great tool to help you understand the literary charachteristics of the different books of the Bible. It is a great help for private learning as well as helping with preparing for classes and sermons. I have used Alter's work in my studies for years and I always find more on subsequent readings.

15 people found this helpful

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Keep it real

Excellent work

Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2015

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Translation and commentary on the book of Daniel are worth the cost of the book (which doesn't imply agreement with everything he says). The other translations and commentary are fascinating as well. If you have an interest in these books of the Old Testament you owe it to yourself to have this translation with helpful notes on it.

6 people found this helpful

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Ira Slomowitz

Wonderful

Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2015

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What is there left to say about Robert Alter's translations of the Bible?
I am sure the sticklers will find issues with various words here and there, but this is a pleasure to read - both the translation and the commentary.
I am capable and enjoy reading the Bible in the original Hebrew, but Alter gives it another flavor.
Awaiting the rest of his great undertaking.

4 people found this helpful

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Phyllis F. Perkins

Not only for his translations, but for his notes get this book.

Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2015

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Over the years, I have bought -- and READ -- everything, I think, that Robert Alter has published. He has added so much to my understanding of Hebrew texts. Thanks!

9 people found this helpful

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James T. Beighlie

Readable, insightful, true to the original text and the context out of which it arose.

Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2018

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Robert Alter's translations and commentaries always display tremendous sensitivity to the conventions of ancient writing and the key themes of biblical writers. I found this book and all his writings to be great tools for serious biblical scholarship and useful in giving non-scholarly readers who do not know Hebrew insights into the nuances of the language and how language conveys the message of the biblical text.

Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2019

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THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL TRANSLATION OF THESE BIBLICAL TEXTS. THE COMMENTARY ADDS DEPTH AND UNDERSTANDING. IT IS A JOY TO READ AND TREASURE.

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Bob Harper

Thank God for Robert Alter

Reviewed in the United States on June 27, 2015

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This is the latest book in Alter's translation and commentary of the Jewish testament. The translation is very fresh (especially Daniel and Esther) and the commentary is very insightful. If you are interested in the Jewish testament at all Alter's is a must including this book.

3 people found this helpful

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Kevin MG O'Connell

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 26, 2017

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Alter is always good values and deserves space on the bookshelf

North London historian

A work of enduring value

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 29, 2019

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This translation brings this poetry to life

Lesley Malone

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 6, 2015

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Interesting and very informative.

Alibert

Ottimo, piacevole

Reviewed in Italy on November 11, 2016

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Diciamo che il nome di Alter è una garanzia. La lettura è piacevole e le note anche. Lo consiglio a chi vuole leggere una bella traduzione in inglese di questi libri della Bibbia senza affaticarsi o annoiarsi.

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Strong As Death Is Love: The Song of Songs, Ruth, Esther, Jonah, and Daniel, A Translation with Commentary Hardcover – March 2, 2015

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