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A review by karenangela_1
The Book of Books: A Biography of the King James Bible, 1611-2011 by Melvyn Bragg
3.0
This was an interesting read and Bragg does make a good case for the King James Version of the bible being one of the most influential books ever written.
The King James Version was the book that influenced many of the social movements of the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly those aimed at ending poverty.
It was also the book that helped to convice William Willberforce, among others that slavery was wrong although quite why they would need any book to tell them this I don't know.However during the American Civil War both sides would use the King James Version to justify their position, and it was also used to attempt to control people by telling them how they should live their lives especially when it came to sex.
As for Bragg's book, while it is an enjoyable read if I could have I would have given it two and a half stars instead of three. This is for two reasons, firstly given that he claims that this version of the bible is one of the most influential books of all time he gives very few pages to the actual creation of this book and secondly there were some, lets be charitable and call them typos, that really should have been picked up on before the book went to the printer - the most obvious one being when George Eliot changes sex within the space of a few sentences.
The King James Version was the book that influenced many of the social movements of the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly those aimed at ending poverty.
It was also the book that helped to convice William Willberforce, among others that slavery was wrong although quite why they would need any book to tell them this I don't know.However during the American Civil War both sides would use the King James Version to justify their position, and it was also used to attempt to control people by telling them how they should live their lives especially when it came to sex.
As for Bragg's book, while it is an enjoyable read if I could have I would have given it two and a half stars instead of three. This is for two reasons, firstly given that he claims that this version of the bible is one of the most influential books of all time he gives very few pages to the actual creation of this book and secondly there were some, lets be charitable and call them typos, that really should have been picked up on before the book went to the printer - the most obvious one being when George Eliot changes sex within the space of a few sentences.