Of all the modern retellings of the story of David, including Heller's _God Knows_ and Shamir's _The Hittite Must Die_, this is by far the best informed, most sophisticated and the most remarkable achievement for a writer. Another on-line reviewer praises the book for revivifying "a dry piece of OT prose." There is nothing dry or prosaic about David's story in 2 Samuel 9-1 Kings 2. On the contrary. It is in a league of its own. Yet Heym has somehow given himself a superlative background in biblical studies and the ancient Near East, and somehow acquired a command of English which native English speakers should envy. As a result, Heym manages to produce a piece of engrossing fiction which at the same time contains a wealth of insight into both ancient and modern political realities. As a modern biblical novel, it far outstrips even Thomas Mann's writings on Joseph and Moses. The highest praise I can give is to put it on a par with Hurston's magnificent _Moses: Man of the Mountain_.
