"A meaty work that will delight both those who are fascinated by language, and those who care deeply about the Bible and how we read and interpret it." –
RELEVANT Magazine "This combination of casual ease and serious scholarship allows Ruden to bring fresh insights into even the most familiar stories and will make the book a true pleasure for anyone with an interest in translation or the Bible." –
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"If you seriously want to know what the Bible says . . . Ruden is the best guide you are likely to find: friendly, informal, yet with a scholarly grasp of just how unrealizable perfect translation is." –J. M. Coetzee
"Feisty, iconoclastic, but ultimately winsome. . . . Ruden's writing is delightful, her overall proposal provocative, and her examples compelling. . . . Her approach to translation recovers the emotion and artistry of God's Word." –
Christianity Today
"Contains some of the most sumptuous words about Bible words that I've ever read. . . . Ruden reminds us of the loveliness of language and the joy that sacred words can deliver." –
The Christian Century "Ruden finds hidden meaning in the intricate arrangement of the ancient vocabularies, poetics, and lifestyles, and therein lies the fun." –
Kirkus Reviews