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Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal,
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Christia Hall
Seemingly irrelevant concepts and interjections are seamlessly followed up on throughout the rest of the story. I guess it depends on your taste, but I love the type of humor and brush with philosophy as well as historical accuracy, as far as I can tell. Don't forget that the first part of the book follows the lives of two little boys who live in a culture of religious oppression and wrought with curiosity about life, sex, etc. I thought it was brilliant. One of the few works of fiction I not only had patience for, but enjoyed.
Ellie
Sometimes books don't hit me the right way the first time, so I put them away and come back to them later. "Lamb" is drop down and roll around on the floor funny. So if it's not tickling your funny bone, I would walk away, and try it again later, so you don't miss the fun. There are very few books in life as good and as funny as this one. I suddenly slowed down reading it half way through so it would last longer and because I realized how rare a book like this in our lifetime.
hhhhhhhhh
Yes. The flippant setup is necessary so you will later be gutted by profundity. It takes serious balls to write a new Gospel, Moore has to quickly establish a different context for the "Greatest Story Ever Told."
Chuck Raymond
And what exactly was the author supposed to show reverence to, JULIE? Yet another manufactured god from mankind brought to life in yet another book-revealed religion? Sure, refrain from parody and genuflect to desert prophets that thought an invisible sky genie was angered when a lightning bolt hit a tree during a thunderstorm. How dare the author disturb the cognitive dissonance of those gullible enough to believe First Century scribes, hearing voices in their heads from desert mirages, began etching all the secrets of the cosmos on soft clay tablets and got it right? This book wasn't written to impress smug moralists searching through the fog looking for wisps of smoke from a magic lamp in the 21st Century. It was offered as comic, and, regardless of what you think, witty diversion for those not hearing the voices of ghosts from desert bone yards restricting them in life and telling them to feel guilty for being human. You may feel the author is IRREVERENT, but understand if you are feeling this because you are one who has succumbed to primitive mythology in the guise of a belief system, you are then IRRELEVANT to the author as well as to modern times. What are you even doing here commenting? You knew the book would be a religious parody. Go sit quietly on a pew bench and wring your hands in frustration over the secular world you can no longer cope with. And leave those enjoying their brief dance in the light of existence alone.
Friedrich Haas
Irreverence is relative. If you hold religion in reverence, no, you don't want anything poking at it. However, if you grew up with religion, and now see it as passe as the Pagan Easter Bunny and Santa Klaus, yeah, one can enjoy poking at all the structure built around a boy feeling his way forward with so little guidance from an absentee father.
deLille
I think the first 50 pages are pretty accurate in describing how the rest of the book will pan out. I pushed myself through the entire book so that I could finish it for a book club meeting, but I can't say that I have a burning desire to read any more of Christopher Moore's books. After attending the book club meeting last night, I think it's clear that people have different senses of humor, and the type of humor presented in this book greatly appeals to some but not to others. It's as simple as that. As for me, I found the humor to be clever and witty, but not terribly funny, whereas other book club members found it to be laugh out loud. To each his own!
Neil Cake
People seem to be under the impression that this question is purely about irreverence. It isn't, and it isn't saying that irreverance can't be funny, just that in Julie's opinion, this book is irreverant, but has forgotten to be funny. To some of you irreverance alone might be enough to be funny, but not evidently our Julie.
I haven't read the book as yet, but I'd be willing to give it a go, just to see which side of the debate I come down on. That is all.
I haven't read the book as yet, but I'd be willing to give it a go, just to see which side of the debate I come down on. That is all.
Robert Belew
and...so it is written.
Laura
I think a certain amount if irreverence is needed given the subject. Would a Biff written like a devout biblical character be less irreverent? I think a new or "fictional" character written in canonical style might be more offensive to some than one who is clearly parodic. Also, I think Joshua's character is treated respectfully, most of the irreverence comes via Biff. I found the book hilariously satirical though there were definitely instances of sophomoric humor.
Tim
I'd definitely say intelligently satirical, but I also didn't find the first 50 pages to be anything less than intelligently satirical, so maybe we wouldn't agree.
Thomas
Meh. I wasn't too impressed. It was like a biblical Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
Nguyen Khoa
Hi, you can read full books for free
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