Mary of Nazareth

March 15, 2008
Known for his previous fictionalizations of biblical women ("The Canaan Trilogy": "Sarah, Zipporah", and "Lilah"), Halter here crafts the story of Miriam (Mary), who is in league with Barabbas and the Essene Joseph of Arimathea against the Roman occupiers and their puppet client-kings, the house of Herod. She is brash and passionate, given to fits of righteous indignation and fierce loyalties. An ancient Near Eastern feminist, Mary spouts abundant highly charged speech and eschews marriage because "I have other things to do in this world than be a man's wife." Her work is bearing the Messiah, a thing she asks of the Lord rather than a thing thrust upon her. Halter's Mary exists on the border between visionary and madness, and she blames herself for Jesus's eventual arrest for forcing his hand at the wedding in Cana. Some historical elements give pause (for instance, the Essenes were a separatist movement unlikely to join in political intrigue), and, as with Halter's previous works, he runs out of creative energy before getting to the conclusion. But the modern twist is intriguing. Recommended where interest in biblical fiction warrants.Sandra Collins, Byzantine Catholic Seminary Lib., Pittsburgh

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2008
Halter, whoseCanaan Trilogy dramatized the lives of Old Testament women Sarah, Zipporah, and Lilah, moves into New Testament territory with this novel about Mary. Although he always makes his characters his own, he takes Mary in a direction that borders on alternative history. This Mary is a feisty young woman, educated (she was schooled with the slightly younger Mary Magdalene) and so bold that she, along with her friend, the rebel Barabbas, stages a plot to remove her father from the Romans cross. Disgusted watching men like her father, Joseph, as well as Nicodemus and Barabbas, debate ways to topple the Romans, she wills herself to become the vessel for a savior. The story seems to end with the birth of Jesus, but then Halter adds a curious epilogue in which he claims to have received a Gospel of Mary from a mysterious Righteous Gentile. The text of the purported gospel continues the story, telling of an unwilling Jesus and an overbearing Mary. This odd device doesnt quite work, but, nevertheless, the novel is an engaging and thought-provoking addition to the growing body of historical fiction on biblical women.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)