Saturday, April 16, 2011

Tackling Crumb's Genesis, Bell's Love, or Ker's Bible?

You might help me with which to "tackle."  Should I do a book review here at this blog?  Which book?

Here's an option for you to consider:

Some time ago, David Ker noticed R. Crumb's Genesis and then a whole bunch of other bibliobloggers did too.  (And then Time Magazine's Belinda Luscome did her story, in which she was objective enough to call Crumb a "weird, obsessive, oversexed artist" while she reported how his illustrated version of a translation of the book of Genesis had made it to "no. 1 on the New York Times graphic novel bestseller list and on Amazon.com's Christian books list.")  So I blogged on the Bibliobloggers' obsessive blogging about the book without a mention of Crumb the person, who as Time reports is a "weird, obsessive, oversexed artist."  My posts included: 
And one of my favorite bloggers (the pseudonymous Theophrastus) said to me in a comment:

Nonetheless, I keep hoping to see you
tackle Crumb's Genesis proper,
rather than just
tell us what a jerk he is.

So, I figure it may be time.  Time for tackling, that is.

But wait.  There's another option you might consider for me, if I do a book review at this blog:

Bibliobloggers are now, still, fascinated with Rob Bell's Love Wins.  (And Time Magazine puts the Bell hell book on its cover, and reporter Jon Meacham asks "Is Hell Dead?", and that makes Biblioblogger Brian LePort confess he's fatigued.)  So maybe I could tackle that book.  Like Crumb's Genesis (which I've only looked at mostly -- well, it is a picture book), Bell's Love Wins is a book I haven't read.  So fresh eyes and all, if you like.

But wait. There's another option you might consider for me, if I do a book review at this blog:

There are biblioblogger reports of another book out.  Ten are mentioned, with a Thank You here.  And just out this morning, at the Better Bibles Blog itself, is the review-ish pre-view or something:  "The Better Bible Was Written To You."  And, in time, Time Magazine really could get to David Ker's new book The Bible Wasn't Written For You.  Why Time this time?  Well, the book is as controversial as Crumb's and as Bell's.  That's not to say that Ker is a jerk like Crumb or a polarizer like Bell.  But maybe his book is as worthy of "takling."

So what do you think?  Want a book review here?  If so, which?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I vote for that book by the Kerr guy. It sounds really like he doesn't know what he's talking about and maybee his writing could be a lot more dangerous in the end than those other peoplle.

G said...

I vote for the hippos.

Shawna Atteberry said...

I'd like to see a well-done review of Crumb's graphic novel. I haven't seen anything that dealt with the novel on its terms.

I'm sick of all the ado over Bell's book (but then I'm a universalist and don't think hell exists anyway), and I already know the Bible wasn't written for me but for people long dead, and I'm lucky to be a part of a faith tradition that believed its relationship with Godde was important enough to remember and pass on.

J. K. Gayle said...

Anonymous,
My guess is he knows he's harmless as he's doing what he's doing.

Jay,
One vote for the hippo.

Shawna,
I just ordered R. Crumb's book. Read it in the bookstore quickly when it first came out and was impressed, I confess, by the voice he gives to women, to goddesses, in his commentary; but is that Godde's voice for him? (Can't bring myself yet to spend money on Bell's book, and Ker's is free, so as the votes come in here, we'll see.) The best internet non-review I've read/ seen is "My Generation: R. Crumb, Genesis, feminism, and history in the latest chapter of an illustrated memoir" by Vanessa Davis.