Judas

December 15, 2009
Ramsay, an Episcopalian priest, is not the first author to take on one of the New Testaments most intriguing characters. (See the Read-alikes column on Judas that appeared in the December 1, 2007, issue of Booklist.) But this particularly readable attempt to tell Judas story in the form of a historical novel is notable for its imaginative use of biblical incidents to give readers a different way to think about the Bibles biggest villain. Here Judas is the illegitimate child of a Jewish woman and a Roman soldier. His mother is eventually reduced to prostitution, and Judas grows up among thieves and whores. His thirst for revenge against those who abused his mother and young sister leads Judas to some bad places but eventually to Jesus, where his apostolic role is not what he supposes. If theres any complaint to be made about the book, its that its too short, especially at the end, where readers will want to hear more about the familiar cast of characters. Ramsays observations about the roles of women in biblical society make the novel a good choice for book clubs.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)