Famous Jerks of the Bible

Liz Curtis Higgs delighted her fans with Bad Girls of the Bible and its sequel, Really Bad Girls of the Bible, examining the important spiritual lessons that can be learned from negative examples. In the same vein, Margaret Brouillette offers Famous Jerks of the Bible, exploring characters such as Delilah, Haman, Jonah, Pontius Pilate and Nebuchadnezzar. Brouillette has the characters tell their stories in the first person (Samson describes how Delilah could ""turn up [his] thermostat,"" for example), with each narrative followed by application questions and suggestions for further Bible study. Brouillette's writing is neither as funny nor as sophisticated as Higgs's, but since this is geared for teens, the simplifications are somewhat understandable. On the other hand, there is surely more to the story of Samson and Delilah than Brouillette's concluding caution: ""Do not date a non-Christian."" ( Aug.)