The foundation stone of Jewish and Christian scriptures, the power of the Book of Genesis lies in its stories - Creation, the Fall, Cain and Abel, Noah, Abraham, Jacob and Joseph. These ancient tales illuminate some of our most enduring and profound problems: cowardice, the struggle with evil, the difficulty of facing past mistakes, achieving a true understanding of our innermost selves. Karen Armstrong traces the themes and meanings of these stories, examining what they can still tell us about the human quest for meaning.

'Both humble and generous, Karen Armstrong argues forcefully that we have to struggle for the meanings embedded in the often mysterious text, much as Jacob wrestled all night with God in the shape of an angel' Independent

written with passion and insight...Ms Armstrong has taken a familiar biblical story and made it relevant to our deepest and darkest concerns...a little masterpiece worthy of being a long-treasured companion to the ancient classic she celebrates' Washington Post

Praise for A History of God: 'An invigorating, unpretentious, sympathetic history... It is hard to imagine anybody who won't learn a good deal about world culture and present discontents from this book' Observer

Praise for The Case for God: 'One of our best living writers on religion....prodigiously sourced, passionately written' Financial Times

Also by Karen Armstrong: [jpeg of A History of God]; [jpeg of The Case for God]