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A review by hekate24
Jezebel: The Untold Story Of The Bible's Harlot Queen by Lesley Hazleton
4.0
Eminently readable book that's part non-fiction, historical fiction, travelogue and rant. It has a similar agenda to [b:Cleopatra: A Life|9722923|Cleopatra A Life|Stacy Schiff|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1319719099s/9722923.jpg|12020129] and suffers a bit in comparison. I think the passages where Hazleton tries to get inside Jezebel's head ultimately weaken the book. How much do we know about the polytheistic religious practices of the time period? How much do we know about what female rulers acted like? Is there information on all this? As of reading this book I'm not 100% sure. I think it would have benefited from that information, so the reader could make inferences, rather than any of the "but surely Jezebel thought..." portions. The beginning of the book condemns previous authors for molding Jezebel into their image, but Hazleton does that quite enthusiastically, with frequent allusions to modern day politics.
There's a lot about this book I enjoyed however. I'm very fond of analyses that try to put the bible into historical context, and this book does a great job of it. And even if I take issue with some of Hazleton's methods, I always approve of attempts to understand vilified women in history.
There's a lot about this book I enjoyed however. I'm very fond of analyses that try to put the bible into historical context, and this book does a great job of it. And even if I take issue with some of Hazleton's methods, I always approve of attempts to understand vilified women in history.