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 | The Ladder of Jacob: |
ADDITIONAL REVIEWS: "Highly recommended. . . . James L. Kugel persuasively argues that ancient interpreters did more than simply apologize for the less-than-illustrious behavior of certain biblical figures . . . by demonstrating how exegetical motifs arise from some quirk in scripture. . . . Kugel has written a book that is obviously important for specialists (it will certainly be instrumental in reevaluating the history of the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs), but he is so remarkably adept at making opaque materials accessible to nonspecialists that both novices and the initiated will read his latest work with evident relish."--Choice "James Kugel...is an expert in the history of biblical interpretation and well equipped to write a book that gives the reader an introduction to and explanation of the ancient exegesis of the particular text from Genesis under discussion in this book.... [It] can be recommended for every one interested in the development of certain biblical traditions, but especially for those interested in the way ancient interpreters treated biblical texts."--S I Cronje, Verbum et Ecclesia "[Kugel]...takes half a dozen Biblical stories--Jacob's career, his heavenly ladder, the rape of Dinah, Reuben's dalliance with Bilhah, Levi's elevation to priesthood, Judah's victimization of Tamar--and invites the reader to accompany him in a survey of ancient Biblical commentaries which range far beyond the well known canonical literature...James Kugel has presented the reader with a dazzling array of Midrashic and other texts which testify to the extraordinary vitality of the rabbinic mind and its successors in unpackaging the hidden meanings in the Hebrew Bible."--Arnold Ages, Chicago Jewish Star ENDORSEMENTS: "James Kugel is the expert in the history of biblical interpretation, and he offers a great introduction to and explanation of ancient exegesis of these parts of Genesis."--James VanderKam, University of Notre Dame "A wonderful book. The chapters follow their subjects detail by detail with a kind of masterfully unpredictable logic, almost like a detective story."--David Stern, University of Pennsylvania "James Kugel fuses immense learning with a poignant (yet wary) nostalgia for what he has called 'the God of old'. The Ladder of Jacob could be read side-by-side with Thomas Mann's Joseph tetralogy. Kugel, like Mann, belongs to authentic cultures now vanished or vanishing. Both novelist and scholar temper their ironies with wisdom and a sense of justice."--Harold Bloom, author of Jesus and Yahweh and Where Shall Wisdom Be Found? File created: 4/24/2008 | |
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