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    The Beginning of Desire

    Reflections on Genesis

    Author Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg
    Ebook
    Knopf | Schocken
    On sale Feb 01, 2011 | 480 Pages | 9780805212433
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    Turn the Scriptures over to Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg and what do you get? A unique blend of brilliant literary insights and theological wisdom, derived from a lifelong immersion in rabbinic traditions and lore. With amazing literary sensitivity, Zornberg ingeniously breathes new life into Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and Esau, Rachel, and Joseph. The author's vibrant spirit, charming personality, and infectious enthusiasm for the Bible draw the reader into the search for meaning where real life and the biblical story intersect. The Beginning Of Desire imaginatively interweaves biblical, rabbinic, and literary sources into a colorful tapestry that is both intellectually stimulating and personally uplifting.



    One of the Jewish biblical scholars scheduled to appear on the Bill Moyers PBS special on Genesis, Avivah Zornberg employs an amazing repertoire of literary sources to engage the audience and illuminate the text. Delivering her erudition in a pleasantly lyrical style, the author shares her experience of God with the world. It is an intimate, personal, and revealing encounter no one should miss.
    © Joan Roth

    AVIVAH GOTTLIEB ZORNBERG is the author of The Beginning of Desire: Reflections on Genesis, The Particulars of Rapture: Reflections on Exodus, The Murmuring Deep: Reflections on the Biblical Unconscious and Moses: A Human Life. She lectures widely in Israel, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. She lives in Jerusalem.

    View titles by Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg
    “Deserves to be the most widely read book on the Bible in years, perhaps decades.”
    —Jewish Exponent
     
    “Not only is Zornberg’s book leagues removed from popular trivializations, it also does what all successful midrash is meant to do: open up new perspectives on ancient texts.”
     —Commonweal
     
    “A sinewy, powerful, and hauntingly beautiful reanimation of the ancient text of early Israel and of their heroes and heroines.”
    —Publishers Weekly

    “Spectacular readings ... A beautiful and arresting exercise in biblical literary criticism; highly recommended.”
    —Library Journal

    “Zornberg brings a brilliant mastery of psychology, literature, and Judaismto bear on the Bible ... This is an extraordinary book.”
    —The Jerusalem Report

    About

    Turn the Scriptures over to Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg and what do you get? A unique blend of brilliant literary insights and theological wisdom, derived from a lifelong immersion in rabbinic traditions and lore. With amazing literary sensitivity, Zornberg ingeniously breathes new life into Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and Esau, Rachel, and Joseph. The author's vibrant spirit, charming personality, and infectious enthusiasm for the Bible draw the reader into the search for meaning where real life and the biblical story intersect. The Beginning Of Desire imaginatively interweaves biblical, rabbinic, and literary sources into a colorful tapestry that is both intellectually stimulating and personally uplifting.



    One of the Jewish biblical scholars scheduled to appear on the Bill Moyers PBS special on Genesis, Avivah Zornberg employs an amazing repertoire of literary sources to engage the audience and illuminate the text. Delivering her erudition in a pleasantly lyrical style, the author shares her experience of God with the world. It is an intimate, personal, and revealing encounter no one should miss.

    Author

    © Joan Roth

    AVIVAH GOTTLIEB ZORNBERG is the author of The Beginning of Desire: Reflections on Genesis, The Particulars of Rapture: Reflections on Exodus, The Murmuring Deep: Reflections on the Biblical Unconscious and Moses: A Human Life. She lectures widely in Israel, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. She lives in Jerusalem.

    View titles by Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg

    Praise

    “Deserves to be the most widely read book on the Bible in years, perhaps decades.”
    —Jewish Exponent
     
    “Not only is Zornberg’s book leagues removed from popular trivializations, it also does what all successful midrash is meant to do: open up new perspectives on ancient texts.”
     —Commonweal
     
    “A sinewy, powerful, and hauntingly beautiful reanimation of the ancient text of early Israel and of their heroes and heroines.”
    —Publishers Weekly

    “Spectacular readings ... A beautiful and arresting exercise in biblical literary criticism; highly recommended.”
    —Library Journal

    “Zornberg brings a brilliant mastery of psychology, literature, and Judaismto bear on the Bible ... This is an extraordinary book.”
    —The Jerusalem Report

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