february-2018

Inside CultureWatch
41 Where the Spirit Calls
Courtney Hall Lee on
And Your Daughters
Shall Prophesy
41 Stories from the
Knife’s Edge
Robert Wilson-Black
reviews Still Christian
43 Myths and Migrants
An interview with
Tisha M. Rajendra on
Migrants and Citizens
Furious, Goliath bore down
upon David, who got him
right between the eyes with
the very first stone. Done.
See Goliath, now historic.
turns winsome and ominous. With title and
highlights in fluorescent orange, the design
is reminiscent of some DayGlo-kissed
whimsy from the 1960s. In the Beginning:
Illustrated Stories from the Old Testament
(Chronicle Books) retells, through images
and spare prose that is both fresh and
respectful of the scriptural sources, core
stories of the Judeo-Christian tradition,
from creation and the Garden of Eden to
Daniel in the lions’ den. Created by French
writer and biblical interpreter Frédéric
Boyer and French illustrator Serge Bloch,
and translated into English by American
poet Cole Swensen, it is a profound work
leavened by gentle playfulness.
In the Beginning (published in France in
2016 as Bible—les récits fondateurs) began
not as a book but as 35 short animations
Boyer and Bloch created for the independent
French Catholic publishing company
Bayard. This is evident in the simple, energetic
illustrations and concise narratives
of the book. (The site bible-recits.com has
links to 15 of the animated chapters on
YouTube—they are engaging even if you
cannot understand the French narration—
and video interviews in French with Boyer,
Bloch, theologians, and biblical scholars.
Boyer also supervised a team of biblical
scholars and contemporary writers for a
French translation of the Bible published
by Bayard in 2001.)
Serge Bloch is a prolific illustrator for
newspapers, magazines, children’s books,
and animated series. His illustrations here
are dominated by loosely drawn characters,
Memory is on our side—
stories of the past help us
know who we are.
with soft spot washes of color and texture.
More detailed drawings, often of anachronistic
objects—a brick wall, a throne,
factory equipment, the Eiffel Tower (topping
the tower of Babel)—are at times
layered in. Bloch often employs Ralph
Steadman-style ink blotches and distortion
to emphasize the danger and chaos of apocalyptic
visions or tales of earthly horror.
Sex and violence are frequent themes, but
the illustration style is not exploitative or
explicit. Although this seems a book most
fully meaningful to adults and teenagers,
it is not inappropriate for mature children.
The 35 chapters pull substantially from
the books of Genesis and Exodus, but also
from other books with a clear narrative
structure, including Joshua, Judges, Ruth,
Esther, Jonah, and Job. But Boyer and
Bloch also illuminate the Song of Songs,
the Psalms, the poetry of the prophets
Isaiah, and the strange visions of Ezekiel.
The chapters each open with a title page
and a blurb announcing what is to follow,
often subtly wry. Chapter 27, for example,
is “Isaiah’s Visions or A Mysterious
Liberator ... In which we learn of the events
that followed the catastrophe of exile. And
a prophet who sees what no one else wants
Continued on Page 39
New & Noteworthy
Mavis
Staples
A Voice of Compassion
Artist and activist Mavis Staples
speaks to the increasing social divide
in her latest album, If All I Was Was
Black. In this interracial and multigenerational
project, Staples doesn’t shy
away from anger but, as always, her
ultimate message is the promise of
positive change. Anti- Records
Peacemaking with Purpose
Jon Huckins and Jer Swigart, cofounders
of The Global Immersion
Project, believe peacemaking practices
should be grounded in Jesus’
teachings. Mending the Divides:
Creative Love in a Conflicted World
is full of stories, insights, and questions
for discussion and shows what
it means to live as a true global citizen.
InterVarsity Press
More than an Education
Emmy-winning documentarian
Stanley Nelson tells the story of
historically black colleges and universities
in “Tell Them We Are
Rising.” With commentary by historians,
scholars, alumni, and current
students, the documentary masterfully
explores the impact of HBCUs
in America, then and now.
hbcurising.com
No Ordinary Time
Kaitlin B. Curtice, a Native American
Christian writer, speaker, and worship
leader, invites readers to explore
what “glory” means in her book,
Glory Happening: Finding the Divine
in Everyday Places. Through stories
and prayers, Curtice reveals that
the divine can be encountered in
the most ordinary of circumstances.
Paraclete Press
FEBRUARY 2018 sojourners 37