Call number
915.604 FEI
Status
Available
Call number
Pages
451
Description
Both a heart-racing adventure and an uplifting quest, Walking the Bible describes one man's epic odyssey--by foot, jeep, rowboat, and camel--through the greatest stories ever told. From crossing the Red Sea to climbing Mount Sinai to touching the burning bush, Bruce Feiler's inspiring journey will forever change your view of some of history's most storied events.
Publication
Harper Perennial (2001), Edition: Reprint, 451 pages
Original publication date
2001
ISBN
0380807319 / 9780380807314
Collections
Subjects
User reviews
LibraryThing member brewergirl
I found this an enjoyable mix of history, geography, and religion. He combined interpretation of biblical stories with political/cultural history in a very readable style. I really enjoyed it.
LibraryThing member lorin77
I enjoyed reading this book. Its a well-written travel book that made me want to visit the middle east (especially Petra) as well as being an interesting take on the Bible.
LibraryThing member Clueless
This old testament God is not my God! My God is not petty, vengeful, small minded nor literal. My God is kind, loving, forgiving, warm & fuzzy and mystical.
Okay I guess I've read DS 'Frog and Toad's' Lost Button story as a bedtime story one too many times.
Okay I guess I've read DS 'Frog and Toad's' Lost Button story as a bedtime story one too many times.
LibraryThing member justmeRosalie
I enjoyed this book very much for a lot of reasons. The travel alone makes it so worthwhile. Feiler's ability to describe what he sees is amazing. I can think of only one other author with such a talent for painting pictures with words. It has been an eductional and spiritual journey.
I HIGHLY
I ENJOYED DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DESERT. They made me curious about really being there. The experience of self discovery the author shares also brings about one's own personal introspection.
As for the places and the history of the Israelites, I found some confusion as well as confirmation about what I already thought I knew. But I also gleaned knowledge about their travels and experiences.
Some beliefs of my own have been challenged with the scientific and natural explanations of the miracles found in the Bible, but on the other hand, Feiler paints a picture of these people in a more day to day struggling scene that no doubt is more factual than the way most of us see it in our more stinted observations. In this way the Bible has become more alive for me. Reading this book is very close to being on the journey yourself. As if I had accompanied the group, myself, I feel full of ponderings and memories, and a lot to think about.
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I HIGHLY
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RECOMMEND THIS BOOK. IT CREATES A VERY WORTHWHILE JOURNEY THROUGH THE BIBLICAL LANDS OF EGYPT, THE SINAI DESERT, TURKEY, JERUSALEM AND JORDAN. I ENJOYED DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DESERT. They made me curious about really being there. The experience of self discovery the author shares also brings about one's own personal introspection.
As for the places and the history of the Israelites, I found some confusion as well as confirmation about what I already thought I knew. But I also gleaned knowledge about their travels and experiences.
Some beliefs of my own have been challenged with the scientific and natural explanations of the miracles found in the Bible, but on the other hand, Feiler paints a picture of these people in a more day to day struggling scene that no doubt is more factual than the way most of us see it in our more stinted observations. In this way the Bible has become more alive for me. Reading this book is very close to being on the journey yourself. As if I had accompanied the group, myself, I feel full of ponderings and memories, and a lot to think about.
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LibraryThing member Gary10
Contemporary journey through the places that appear in the five books of Moses from the Bible. Good accompaniment for a trip to Israel.
LibraryThing member grheault
You'd really have to be a Bible afficianado, I think, to appreciate this book. I was a little bored, since standing in a dusty spot that has been designated by wrangling scholars as the possibly probably probable place that something may have happened is not all that interesting to me. If stories
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of the Bible have caught your imagination, travelling along with Bruce and a contemporary expert could be rather an exciting way to make the world of so many thousands of years ago come alive for you. And for that alone, this book is worth the chance. Show Less
LibraryThing member cestovatela
Initially I found this book dry and unengaging and had to put it down. I'm glad I picked it up again. Bruce Feiler, accompanied by an acclaimed Israeli archaeologist, sets off to visit the present-day locations of the first 5 books of the Bible. On the way, he investigates its links to Mesopotamian
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mythology, documented historical events and the politics of a volatile region. Feiler himself is devoutly Jewish and this isn't a book about trying to disprove the Bible; rather, it's an objective assessment of which stories are backed up by verifiable historical detail and what scientists and anthropoligists know about the way real people lived during the Biblical era. The modern-day component of his travels is equally fascinating, leading him to interviews with Israeli settlers on the Gaza Strip, Palestinians infuriated by Israeli policy, and the bedouin nomads spread across Jordan and the Sinai Peninsula. I learned that there is a real food called manna, made from the excretions of plant lice, that tastes like honey and drifts to the ground in the morning in tiny wafers. That, along with with thousands of other intriguing historical details, means you should read this book. Even if it takes you a really long time. Show Less
LibraryThing member simchaboston
A bit self-involved at times -- I would have preferred less about Feiler's personal spiritual journey and more about the people and places he was seeing. But still worth a read for anyone interested in the stories of the Bible.
LibraryThing member justine
Great book, very compelling.
LibraryThing member mahallett
i wanted to like this more. too much speculation/interest in the bible. to me the bible is a folk tale. i am interested in israel, egypt, jordan and thought this would be more of a travel book. i should have been alerted by his photo--very strange teeth.
LibraryThing member Priory
One part adventure story, one part archaeological detective work, one part spiritual exploration, "Walking the Bible" vividly recounts an inspiring personal odyssey--by foot, jeep, rowboat, and camel--through the greatest stories ever told. Feiler explores how geography affects the larger narrative
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of the Bible and how much these places have affected his own faith. Show Less
LibraryThing member Othemts
So, I read and reviewed the book Where God Was Born without realizing that it was a sequel to a previous journey until the author responded to my review on Twitter (oops!). This journey goes to the places of the five books of Moses in Turkey, Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Egypt. Feiler
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summarizes the stories of patriarchs Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses alongside his own travel adventure. He depicts his personal religious journey as desire to be at the exact places being replaced by a understanding of the symbolism of the land. Feiler also engages in ialogue with many people Jewish and Islam about the differences between Jewish scripture and Quran. No matter what order you read them in, these two books are terrific companions to anyone's spiritual journey. Show Less
LibraryThing member mrkurtz
This book is an inspirational oasis from the Sinai desert that the people of Israel travelled on a circular path for forty years , Fieler travels with this people whose paths he traces and comes out in the land of milk and honey- renewed and transformed.Full of wonder and awe 'Walking the Bible' is
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a powerful and spiritual pilgrimmage and Feiler inserts a sense of poetry about the land. Show Less
LibraryThing member bereanna
this was our chicklit selection and we all agreed that it had value and we were glad to have read it, but it was soooo slow.
LibraryThing member bereanna
this was our chicklit selection and we all agreed that it had value and we were glad to have read it, but it was soooo slow.
LibraryThing member saintbedefg
The author's true odyssey begins on 16,984 ft. high Mt. Ararat and ends on Mt. Nebo, perhaps standing where Moses had stood when he knew he would never cross to the Promised Land. This is an eloquent, informed, often funny travelogue.
"After high school I lost touch with the religious community of
"In subsequent weeks I had the same experience in a variety of places. I realized the Bible is not some abstraction, nor some book gathering dust. It's a living, breathing entity unencumbered by the sterilization of time." NOV 2004
"After high school I lost touch with the religious community of
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my childhood. But as I traveled I found certain feelings resurfacing, The idea of writing about the Bible sneaked up on me. In Jerusalem an old friend, Fred, was giving a tour. 'And over there," the said, pointing to the Dome of the Rock, " is the cliff where Abraham went to sacrifice Isaac.' Real or not, that piece of information hit me like a bolt of lightening. It had never occurred to me that that story -- so timeless, so abstract -- might have happened in a place so identifiable, that I could visit. It had never occurred to me that the story was so concrete, so connected to the ground. To here. To now.""In subsequent weeks I had the same experience in a variety of places. I realized the Bible is not some abstraction, nor some book gathering dust. It's a living, breathing entity unencumbered by the sterilization of time." NOV 2004
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LibraryThing member charlie68
An informative exploration of the history of the Jews that took place in the first five books of the Bible. Also a tour around the ancient sites and how they impact the people living there today. It is also deeply spiritual so it might not be for everyone.