This book is worth getting, if for no other reason, for the large, beautiful illustrations. My book weighed in at 16 pounds, so you might want to have a reading desk available. ( )

Beautifully illustrated, heavy and impressive looking when thrown on the coffee table before guests arrive. Also remarkably heavy and can hold any door open for furniture moving!

This is a large beautiful and luxurious book. The illustrations, maps and charts are very helpful and are also accessible via a CD/ROM that comes with the book. The narrative is well written but sometimes suffers from what I call 'stealth liberalism' where the scriptural accounts are not outright denied but approached somewhat skeptically. The authors have also chosen to bow at the altar of political correctness by using B.C.E. and C.E. in the dating citations. All in all a good tool but one that cannot be used as a source of theology. However, if used as one tool among many it would be helpful to any serious student of the Bible. ( )