Jesus Christ, can you think of any one person who has had more influence on two thousand years of history? I think we all know the story – born in a barn, pissed off many important people and ended up nailed to a tree. Christopher Moore has decided that there has to be more to the story. If we could sit down with Christ’s best bro from his teenage years back in Nazareth, what stories would we learn?
Lamb is pure genius. Let’s be honest, we were all stupid teens at one point in time. When you sit back and think about it, people everywhere from every time are more or less the same. Did Napoleon get picked on by the other boys because he needed a stool to get on his horse? Did Abraham Lincoln burn down a lob cabin while farting over an open flame? Was Attila the Hun afraid to kiss a girl? It’s fun to imagine what historic people would have been like when they were stupid teens.
This book had me laughing out loud, reading great one-liners and hilarious scenarios to my ever-patient wife, who has not yet forbidden me from speaking to her while she is reading. I loved how Moore created these magical scenes that would develop a theme or flat out statement from the Bible. For me, Lamb had a Forrest Gump appeal to it. Through the comedy, Moore told a heartwarming tale that portrayed the life of Jesus Christ in a whole new perspective. As a reader, I had a window into the events and influences that created the man. Yes, I know that it’s fiction, but it seemed plausible.
The characters. I just can’t say enough about the characters created by Moore. Biff, of course, carries the story. He is the peanut butter to Jesus’ jelly. Biff allowed us to see Jesus for who he was, a person just like any of us. They argued, farted and had each other’s backs. They were normal, yet exceptional. Moore didn’t neglect any of the other characters. I was able to see many familiar characters in a whole new light. Best of all, was his treatment of Jesus. We got to know the boy who became the man. We saw his struggles, his pain and torment, but we also saw him have fun and learn. There was nothing irreverent about the character.
Lamb might not be for everyone. The close-minded at one end of the spectrum or the other will hate it because they are supposed to. It’s fictional hypothesizing, enjoy it for what it is. And that’s all I have to say about that.