A condensed version of O'Reilly's bestselling adult book Killing Jesus.” —School Library Journal
“This distillation of the best-selling Killing Jesus: A History (2013) retains the original's melodramatic tone and present-tense narration.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A thoroughly documented, visually rich presentation.” —Kirkus Reviews on Kennedy's Last Days
“All the suspense and drama of a popular thriller.” —Husna Haq, The Christian Science Monitor, on Killing Kennedy
“Immersively written . . . Mr. O'Reilly and Mr. Dugard succeed in investing a familiar national tragedy with fresh anguish . . . A powerful historical précis.” —Janet Maslin, The New York Times, on Killing Kennedy
“This thrillerlike adaptation captures the excitement of the Union victory in the Civil War and the shock and horror that quickly followed as the country learned of Lincoln's death and sought revenge on his assassins. The popularity of O'Reilly's adult title will drive interest in this version, but it definitely stands alone and will find an audience among general readers and report writers.” —School Library Journal on Lincoln's Last Days
“Accessible to younger readers.” —Booklist on Lincoln's Last Days
“If Grisham wrote a novel about April 1865 . . . it might well read like Killing Lincoln.” —Peter J. Boyer, Newsweek, on Killing Lincoln
“[Killing Lincoln] delivers a taut, action-packed narrative with cliff-hangers aplenty.” —The Christian Science Monitor on Killing Lincoln
“[Killing Lincoln] is nonfiction, albeit told in white-knuckled, John Grisham-like style.” —The New York Post on Killing Lincoln
05/01/2014
Gr 4–9—The title of this illustrated, ineptly condensed version of O'Reilly's bestselling adult book Killing Jesus (Holt, 2013) is misleading; the book is actually a pseudo-biography of Jesus Christ from birth to death, with as much material on his youth and ministry as on his final week. O'Reilly's audience is uncertain. He confusingly begins with Jesus's presentation at the temple and the visit of the Magi, omitting the basics of the Christmas narrative, and ends with the empty tomb—no Easter resurrection here (even though it's identified in the afterword as "the core of the Christian church"). O'Reilly also states that Jesus's miracles were "stories" or "puzzling events" and that Jesus only claimed to be God's son but was actually Joseph's child, which may offend Christians. The volume's other flaws make it unacceptable as history. For instance, the "Note to Readers" asserts this is a "fact-based book about Jesus the man," but the book combines information with supposition and a lot of storytelling. The latter is based on the New Testament gospels (although no scriptural citations are provided), attributing emotions and motives to the main players. Even the genuine data is not documented, so it's uncertain where O'Reilly's details come from. His writing can't save the book—he annoyingly switches between present and past tense, sometimes in the same sentence. At least the numerous illustrations have some merit. For an alternative, try Lois Rock's The Lion Encyclopedia of Jesus (Lion, 2011), for younger readers, which does an excellent job of tying Jesus's life to modern Christian practices.—Ann W. Moore, Schenectady County Public Library, NY
2014-02-26
This distillation of the best-selling Killing Jesus: A History (2013) retains the original's melodramatic tone and present-tense narration. Also its political agenda. The conservative pundit's account of Jesus' life and, in brutal detail, death begins with a nonsensically altered title, an arguable claim to presenting a "fact-based book" and, tellingly, a list of "Key Players" (inserted presumably to help young readers keep track of all the names). Like its source, its prose is as purple as can be, often word for word: "There is a power to Jesus's gait and a steely determination to his gaze." Harping on "taxes extorted from the people of Judea" as the chief cause of continuing local unrest, the author presents Jewish society as governed with equal force by religious ritual and by the Romans, and he thoroughly demonizes Herod Antipas ("he even looks the part of a true villain"). Alterations for young readers include more illustrations, periodic sidebars, far fewer maps and a streamlining of context so that the focus is squarely on Jesus, with less attention on the historical moment—an unfortunate choice. Assorted notes on 16 various side topics, from a look at Roman roads to the rise of the cross as a Christian symbol, follow. A mix of 19th-century images, photos of ancient sites and artifacts supplement frequent new illustrations (not seen) from Low. Insofar as the reading level of the book for adults is on a par with this effort—for the most part, only the substance has been simplified—it's hard to see the value of this iteration. (source list, recommended reading) (Biography. 12-15)
