something to believe in

jason boyett's pocket guide to the bible is an easy read. this, as it turns out, is quite a compliment, given the difficult nature of the subject he is covering - no less than the Good Book itself.

boyett stuff pgttb's 191 pages with a veritable biblepalooza's-worth of information (biblical terminology, character and content summaries, history of the bible itself). to some, this might sound duller than sitting through last quarter's earnings summary report, again. however, boyett's conversational tone is both humorous and engaging, making pgttb a very enjoyable reading experience.

beneath the winking and smirking, readers will find pgttb a very useful reference - and not only bible novices. even long-time bible readers will probably find themselves asking, "is that in there?" as they read through some of boyett's insightful breakneck summaries. the biblicabulary will help readers understand key insider lingo faster than king nebuchadnezzar can say to the israelites, "all your base are belong to us." chapter six, "the brief history of holy write," is an invaluable resource for both understanding how that purpose-driven pimply teen boy's extreme study bible ended up on your coffee table and as a concise survey of some important church history.

and, really, what bible readers haven't found their thoughts wandering in some of the more obscure texts into thoughts such as, "now that would totally rule as a band name!" look no further than page 186 for seven (count 'em, seven) such would-be awesome band names. in fact, i think his list of awful health conditions (see page 173) would make correspondingly wicked lead singles for some of these bands. imagine the intro, "and after the break, we'll hear 'smited bowels,' the hot new track from forsake my sweetness."