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Showing reviews 1-5 of 109
Not as good as Chick Publications March 11, 2010
Rotring (Western Plains)
I used to collect religious tracts. Proselytizers used to leave 'em for me, 'specially when I let 'em know I was a non-believer. These used to delight my geologist/anthropologist friends, who would howl with laughter reading them. Finally I en massed an entire collection, plus duplicates & triplicates of some. Crumb has a good style, derived from the 1930's & 40s postage stamp engraving methods. Look how he simplifies trees---very similar to the trees on the back of the old $20.00 bill (before they cut it down in size). The line-work in his figures, though a lot looser, still derives from some of the nice U.S. stamp engravings. The use of line & crosshatch in his backgrounds is definitely influenced by this sort of work. Crumb is a good illustrator, has good humor, and it's an ambitious accomplishment, but in the religious arena generally, he simply can't compete with Chick Publications!
The Bible, Warts-And-All March 11, 2010
B. Wolinsky (New York)
R. Crumb makes the Holy Bible's characters look incredibly UN-HOLY! He turns the "Good Book" into "The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, and The Evil.
Never mind that that the artwork is amazing, Crumb obviously studied ancient history and mythology when he drew this book. He went as far as he could in making the costumes, scenery, and architecture authentic.
I always believed that the Bible could be too brutal for kids. There's incest, adultery, murder, rape, sacking, pillage, plunder, etc. But Crumb makes the horrific parts even more graphic.
Somehow, I don't think Pat Robertson (or The Pope) will like this.
5 year old and I love it March 8, 2010
Mother Brown
I read this aloud to my 5 year old. Yes, you might think it's unsuitable, and indeed it is. But it was totally gripping, thought-provoking reading, for both of us; she kept begging for more every night. I was surprised that the illustrations are not as off-putting as I'd feared. There are plenty of breasts and buttocks, but not in every frame. And the book itself is, of course, pretty awesome stuff. Highly recommend, for all ages.
A Worthy Effort March 1, 2010
W. Milton Timmons (Van Nuys, CA United States)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
R. Crumb states in his introduction that his main literary sources were the "King James Version" of the Bible (presumably the 1895 revision), plus "The Five Books of Moses," translated by Robert Alter in 2004. He says that "in a few places I ventured to do a little interpretation of my own, if I thought the words could be made clearer, but I refrained from indulging too often in such `creativity,' and sometimes let it stand in its convoluted vagueness rather than monkey around with such a venerable text."
Of course, the very act of illustration is a matter of interpretation, but Crumb says that, even though he is not a believer, he did not allow himself to indulge in ridicule. Apparently he hoped to sell this book primarily to believers who would buy it for their children. On the cover, however, there is a blurb that warns "Adult supervision recommended for minors." He says he did extensive research into ancient Hebrew culture, including clothing styles, architecture, and geography of the period - which included viewing scores of movies based on biblical stories - in order to capture the original zeitgeist of the era in which they were written.
It is obvious that Crumb's real motivation was to display just how primitive and brutal these ancient people actually were. In contrast to the Hollywood versions, in which everything is glamorized, Crumb's graphic style inherently makes everyone ugly. The men are all grizzled and oafish, while the women, even those who were supposedly beautiful, come off as lumpish and homely.
Another blurb on the cover says that "Nothing is left out." Indeed he does cover all 50 chapters, and I couldn't find a single sentence that was omitted, although the exact phrasing may have sometimes differed from my King James Version. Even all of the redundant verbiage is there. Occasionally he introduces a footnote to explain the meaning of some reference. But I disagree with one critic's review that it is a "full-throated lampoon of every single chapter and verse." Crumb's approach is more subtle than that. On the contrary, he never adds any snide commentary. He just lets the text and the illustrations speak for themselves without any authorial exaggeration.
I immediately bought the book as soon as it became available because I had attempted to do the same thing a number of years ago and I wanted to see how Crumb approached it. But my intention was to illustrate it in the style of Mad Magazine, with footnotes pointing out all the absurdities, contradictions and bad writing style. I got as far as Chapter Four before I got too bored to continue with it. I greatly admire Crumb's tenacity and ingenuity in creating some image to illustrate every three or four sentences, no matter how inane and repetitious they are.
But I still wish somebody would publish a full-throated lampoon of the whole Bible, illustrated in the style of Mad Magazine. I can't think of any book with more comic potential or more deserving of satirical treatment.
Milt Timmons is an author whose books and other works may be viewed at (...)
A Theologian's Review. February 25, 2010
Michael P. Entner (Sunny Florida)
As a theologian who has studied the Bible at great length (sans the snazzy illustrations), I was really curious to see this book when it came out. In one word -- stunning! Crumb has not watered down or distorted the Scriptures; nor has he left out any of the juicy or violent bits. I will be proud to display this on my bookshelf next to my Bible and other theological works. Thanks Mr. Crumb!
Showing reviews 1-5 of 109
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