this is the best non-fiction book i've read in quite some time. a.j. jacobs, a new york agnostic jew, decides to live by the bible for a full year. we're all familiar with the ubiquitous ten commandments, but the bible has hundreds of rules that are a lot less straightforward than "thou shalt not kill".who knew that the bible forbid the wearing of clothes made of wool and linen? and not only that, but there is an association of people who will test your clothes for the offending mix. huh.
jacobs' year takes him to a creationist museum, the wailing wall in israel, a mega church, a hasidic dance party and many other wonderful and fascinating sites. he consults rabbis and pastors and other clergy on his quest to divine the interpretation of biblical passages that could be taken literally or metaphorically.
a touching, hilarious and insightful memoir, "the year of living biblically" had me up past my bedtime many nights.
No comments:
Post a Comment