This book is FINALLY back in print in the USA and for a very reasonable price! this is part of Eerdman's "Biblical Resource Series". "The purpose of The Biblical Resource Series is to bring back titles that the scholarly community regards as ESSENTIAL RESOURCES for the biblical thinker of today." This is well organzied so even the beginner can easily find information, and covers Nomadism, Family Institutions, Civil Institutions, Military Institutions, and Religious Institutions. An encyclopedia of sorts! Roland de Vaux (1903-1971) was esteemed both as a biblical historian and as an archaeologist. If you get this book, you also need to purchase Archaeology of the Land of the Bible by Amihai Mazar available here. Both will get you moving in the direction of biblical studies.

This is a indepth look at Ancient Israel, but not at all dry. The author has a dry wit and great enthusiasm for his subject. Although he uses alot of Hebrew language references, I was still able to understand his explanations. The author's personal faith in the Christian God is evident and refreshing. He is not out to tear apart the Old Testament, but to help other's better understand the life and times in which it was written. For anyone who has had questions after reading the Old Testament, I highly recommend this book. Submitted by Wendy Lang, Orillia, Canada

Pritchard's contributions to Near Eastern studies can not be praised enough. Here we have many surviving text translated well and supplemented by commentary on social and historical background. Well worth the money and time for the serious scholar.

Prichard's ANET is a standard reference for those examining the cultural setting of the Bible. It contains translations of many important inscriptions which shed light on otherwise mysterious Bible customs.

Generally regarded as a scholarly work, it's worth checking out for the layperson as well. Some of the jargon may be a little tricky, but there's no substitute for original source material, which makes up the majority of the book. Besides, some of the stories are just a plain old (very old) good read.

Included are such things as the Epic of Gilgamesh (containing our oldest Flood parallels), the Nuzi Texts (which help us understand the life of Jacob, among others), and various of the ancient law codes which have parallels to the biblical code.

Tremendously useful for study!

Ronald B. Allen's guide to worship in the Psalms: "And I Will Praise Him" silently asks the implied question "And will you?" This text is a technical and personal experience in the study and practice of Worship in the Psalms. Certainly the Psalms represent too large a subject to tackle in a brief work, and yet the reader finishes the book with a sense of "being there" in the Psalms. "And I Will Praise Him" is a great aid for those who are on a quest to gain greater understanding and benefit from this daunting and often perplexing book of poetic praise. A mountaineer needs the proper gear in his pack before he climbs a mountain, and so also anyone seeking greater spiritual heights through the Psalms must first load their pack with the equipment necessary for a successful journey. By way of introduction Ronald B. Allen begins with not only a definition of what a Psalm is, but goes further to explain "how a Psalm is". Here we gain the understanding of a genre of Psalms including Psalms of praise and Psalms of lament. Following, the text includes a detailed, but manageable explanation of the poetic devices of the Psalms, because "We must learn to read poetry well if we are going to read the Bible well. " Our next piece of equipment is a proper understanding of the ancient Hebrew's practice of praise; vocal, public and loud! Allen thoroughly establishes that the Psalmists intend praise to be congregational and vocal "to share with those who will understand best our excited boastings in the wonder of knowing the living God. " The reader is also equipped with a telescopic sight so that the praise of God might be seen "on target" as the Psalmists saw it. Finally Allen takes into account the origin of the mountain of the Psalms so that in understanding its creation we can appreciate the beauty, depth and might of the praise written by God and man. "And I Will Praise Him" fills the pack with the equipment needed for the journey into the Psalms. Praise is an Imperative! This is the one singular point that is established throughout this book as the basic understanding of the Psalms. Ronald B. Allen's book seeks to place praise in the context of life, or is that "place life in the context of praise"? This is the thesis of this book; that we should, no... we must, praise Him throughout all our days no matter what our circumstances may be. "Praise is a matter of Life and Breath. "

Rarely can you find a book that will both touch your heart and challenge your mind. Dr. Ron Allen does both in this study of worship in the Psalms. A tender scholar, Dr. Allen lets us see God's passionate heart for His people that leads God's people to the appropriate response-worship! If you're looking for a book that will inspire you or a group to grow in love with God with your heart, soul and mind, choose "And I Will Praise Him." Interactive questions makes for easy discussion. Hebrew-made-simple explains the greater depth. Ask any of Dr. Allen's decades of seminary students if his life matches his message and you'll know why his classes and books take an honored place in their understanding of God's Word.

This is a great book, the best book I have read in a long time. I feel like I am traveling the world with Annie and the Wild West Show.

The book had alot of information just it didn't really focus on Annie it was on Buffalo Bill's show more often. It wasn't very helpful in the report I did on her.

No one in the 21st century understands the Jewish context of the Bible (including the N.T.). If you read the Bible at all you need this book to understand what many things mean. It will clear up the idea of Soul Sheol Life etc... Get it, you will gain new insight into the life of all the Bible folks, even Jesus. So there you go! Get it!

This is the definitive book of Old Testament anthropology. I first saw this book referred to as a primary source by several scholarly works, and decided to read the book myself. This book does clearly explain the visually expressive way the Ancient Hebrews viewed the world. Nouns often represented an action: "hands" represented doing, "breath" represented living, "tongue" represented speaking, and "feet" represented moving.

Also Wolff creates a compelling argument that the Old Testament Hebrews literally saw the soul as an actual physical member deep within their bodies. "Sheol" and the afterlife, and many other topics are also discussed and explained. This book strongly influenced the way I read the entire Bible, because I feel more able to view the words from the perspective in which the words were originally written.

The well known poem, starting with the line "For the Want of a Shoe, the Horse was Lost,"serves to describe the talents of William R. Nester. In this information packed book we see a wide range of individual and collective actions of Native Americans, Fur Trappers, Explorers and Financiers in the development of the American West. Then Nester carries these inter-related actions to a higher plain to show how they would impact on the larger, international scene down the historical path.

Many of us are all familiar with the Arikara War when there would be armed conflict against elements of Ashley's and Henry's party as they ascended the Missouri River. Nester applies more than enough information to ground his readers in these series of episodes. But he also shows in the larger picture how the Arikara, Hidatsa and Mandan would eventually emerge as middlemen in both commerce and trade over a truly wide geographical range, such as Santa Fe, British operations and St. Louis trade. The Arikara War would become the harbinger of things to unfold in both commercial and political developments and their impact upon America's Western regions.

Some would clamor that such conflicts were evidence that Hudson's Bay Company, British agents and others were out to incite Native Americans against American interests in the middle Missouri trade.. While such charges might have been unfounded, they would be useful in attempts to gain governmental support and motivate public opinion.

An added dimension for this book is Nester's analysis of the evolution and shifts of power among different Native American tribes. A good example of this are the results of the 1837 small pox epidemic that would shift the balance of power on the so-called middle Missouri region. The Lakota Sioux, apparently less severely affected in this epidemic, would emerge as the most powerful tribe. This would be a far more important factor in the decline of Arikara influence than the expedition of General Henry Leavenworth and a military detachment and a group of Sioux Indians against the Arikara nation. A peace without complete victory would cause the Arikara to continue to be potential adversaries. With the shift of power the Sioux Indians would come to the front to be a considerable threat in later years until the Battle of Wounded Knee in 1891 would close that chapter.

A number of us (including me) attribute the loss of the beaver trade primarily to the change in fashion to silk top hats. Nester shows that the beaver supply had begun to run out a considerable time before the last rendezvous held at Green River in 1840. Resulting efforts to find new beaver regions would also have their impact upon both local and international relations. The resulting shift to the buffalo trade would continue until those animals practically disappeared in the 1880s.

It would not be trappers or explorers but the constant avalanche of American settlers who moved into the Northwest regions that sealed the fate of those areas, which British authorities ceded to the United States in 1846. Here we see a wide range of causes and resulting effects on the American West in a finely crafted, well researched book. Rounding out this presentation are the appendices, which include a well done index, chapter end notes and an extensive bibliography of titles for additional research.

The first military encounter between the fledgling United States government and western Indian tribes was the Arikara War. In 1823, at the height of the fur trade, Arikara warriors attacked an American trapping expedition on the Missouri River in what is now South Dakota. 230 solders, 50 aggrieved trappers, and 750 Sioux allies retaliated against the Arikara under the command of Colonel Henry Leavenworth. The result was the defeat of the Arikara and a debate between Americans advocating the firm subjugation of the Native Americans and those who held to more pacific and accommodationist philosophies. The Arikara War: The First Plains Indian War, 1823 offers both white and Indian perspectives as it examines causes and effects of this little, time-lost war. William Nester's informative, engaging text is enhanced for students of Native American history with paintings by Bodmer, Catlin, Miller, and other period artists. The Arikara War is also available in hardcover....

[Paired review with Ghost Towns of Colorado, by Philip Varney]

I'm going to be lazy here, and refer you to my review of Varney's Colorado book, nearby. Both are splendid, and both belong in the library of any ghost-town fan.

Pete Tillman visited his first Colorado ghost towns some 40 years ago, and has since been to hundreds more throughout the West, both for work and for fun. Vulture (AZ) is his current favorite "true" ghost. But, hmm, Bodie (CA) is bigger and better-kept.... And Jerome (AZ) has the best views... And I've *still* never been to Crystal (CO). So much to see, so little time....

This book contains a wealth of factual background data on each ghost town, as well as numerous "back then" and "see it now" photographs. The book maintains the high standards expected from the publishers of "Arizona Highways Magazine"

Robert Alter's The Art of Biblical Narrative is the sort of book that comes around once in a generation. For the most part, modern Biblical scholars are divided into two camps - homileticists, who tend to reduce every story in the Bible to a moral, and source critics, who chop up the text into various sources. Alter goes a third way. Alter's thesis is that the literary quality of the Bible has been sadly overlooked. To atone, so to speak, for this glaring omission, Alter sets out to show how the narratives in the Bible, even if constituted from a redacted text, nevertheless exhibit exquisite literary qualities. Alter convincingly demonstrates that if we overlook the art of how the stories are told, then we miss much of their meaning.

Alter reveals various techniques used by the Biblical writers to make the stories so compelling. One technique is the reserve of the narrator who often leaves unspoken the motives of the characters, thereby drawing us into the story by compelling us to try to supply what the narrator has withheld. Wordplay, the skillful repetition of words and phrases - so often lost in translation, connects seemingly disparate narratives into a fascinating montage. Type scenes, similar settings and stories such as meeting a future spouse at a well, play off each other, inviting the reader to compare and contrast what happens in one scene with its counterpart and to find meaning in these similarities and differences. The often laconic and subtle remarks of the narrator tend to support or undermine the words spoken and poses struck by the characters, which most of us will miss unless we learn to read the stories closely.

Perhaps the most delicious part of Alter's book is his frequent recourse to the stories themselves in order to demonstrate his points. For example, Alter begins his book by examining the story of Judah and Tamar that falls in the middle of the Joseph story. Tamar, you will recall, was Judah's daughter-in-law. His son and her husband dies and the other brothers do not fulfill their obligation by levirate marriage to carry on the dead son's name by fathering children with Tamar. Tamar ultimately rights this wrong by seducing Judah and conceiving two children by him. Alter reads the story closely and convincingly argues that the story has been woven tightly into the Joseph story by various narrative techniques so that it becomes the fulcrum upon which the stories hinge, making Judah a different person in time for his momentous meeting with Joseph in Egypt. Alter's treatment of the Judah and Tamar story alone is worth the price of the book. Buy the book and read it, you'll never regret having done so. In fact, you'll find yourself rereading it over and over.

I am a bilble seminary undergraduate from Hong Kong. After I read this book, I found a new perspective (and interest)to read the Bible---the narrative way. Alter helps us to analyse the underlying narrative motive of the Bible writer, which we usually missed

ENJOY! Each page is a large-scale color plate of one artist's work - 125 in all. My favorites include works by Mian Situ, Cyrus Afsary, Ray Vinella, Tom Haas, Ken Auster, Lanford Monroe, E Manning Crook, Oleg Stavrowsky, Stepahn Juharos, Howard Post, Paul Youngman, Martha Saudek, Judith-Moore Knapp, Sherry Blanchard Stuart, Tim Cox and Bruce Peil.

Whether it's a mystical painting of thunder maidens or plain-song renditions of cowboys taking a coffee break or a sketch of a bull rider at a rodeo or a buffalo shedding its winter coat this book is like a window on that hot, sunny world of Cowboys & Indians, desert & animals, sunsets & rivers. A glorious gallery of the Great American West.

What a courageous woman Bess Corey was to go into the unkown territory of mostly crude men and make a home for herself. She didn't let anyone take advantage of her, yet she was sweet. She was an honest, humorous, hardworking woman. This book kept my interest from beginning to end. The only disappointment was that she didn't write more letters! This would be a great book for anyone who wants to really understand how America was built.

I came across this book purely by accident in the library, and since the title sounded interesting, I decided to check it out just to see what the letters were like. I was expecting dry letters written by a hardened woman. Boy, was I wrong -- I love Bess! She's so funny, and her letters back home are wonderfully descriptive. At 21, she left Iowa to stake a claim in South Dakota. I'm only about a third of the way through the book right now, and she's living alone in a tiny 2-room house on her claim, getting up at 5 to walk two miles through the snow to the schoolhouse where she teaches. At night, she writes these letters home, describing her day in great detail. This book is a treasure. I'm ordering a copy for my home library right now. :-)