The Book of God

This is a brief book review of "The Book of God" by Walter Wangerin Jr.  The book itself says that it is "The  Bible as a Novel."   I started reading this in October and finished it today (January 27).  It proved to be very satisfying and, like the Bible, approached the different narratives in many different ways.  Usually it was written as a straight forward account but sometimes it included first person readings or songs or character reflections.  Notable unique approaches included the Song of Solomon, the temptation of Christ, and Simon Peter's struggles with his tongue. 

The  Bible is presented in chronological order beginning with Abraham with the Creation accounts and poetic psalms being presented as "flashbacks" or in similar reflections.  Wangerin is not preachy but the law and the Gospel constantly emerge as the narrative unfolds.  It would be a wonderful tool to get the reluctant Bible reader to understand the scope of the Scriptures.

I confess that I wish that he went beyond day of Pentecost but he only spends a few paragraphs on the work of the Early Church.  Perhaps he meant to write a second volume based on Acts-Revelation.  Or perhaps the 850 pages that he did write would make including the "rest of the story" a bit too ponderous. 

Used copies of the book might be available at Goodwill or the Salvation Army.  That's where I got my copy.  No matter how much you pay for it, I think you will be very satisfied when you take the time to read it.  The pages of the Bible literally come alive!