Rating: 
Summary: A triumph: a trinity of courage, compassion & poetic genius
Review: "Only a novelist as daring as Mailer would attempt to retell the story of Jesus in Jesus's own words. . . . Its penetration into Jesus's human heart rivals Dostoyevsky for depth and insight. Its re-creation of the world through which Jesus walked is as real as blood. Ultimately, Mailer convinces, more than any writer before him, that for Jesus the man it could have been just like this; and that is, in itself, some sort of literary miracle". Publishers Weekly
(Quoted from the back cover of THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THE SON, paperback) I cannot think of a more perfect book to read and give as gifts for the Holidays, to people of all faiths OR lack thereof. I have heard for years that Norman Mailer's ego, with its supposedly massive size, has this way of getting in the way of his message and transcendant literary skill in everything he writes; as if there is a watermark of his opinion of himself printed on every one of his sentences that becomes visible when you hold them up to the light of day. Though that isn't my excuse for not reading any of his work before this, I can only imagine how much jealousy lay in the hearts of those who proclaim this as a caveat whenever his work hits the market and touches the surface of the universal human heart after reading THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THE SON. Far from attempting to completely de-spiritualize or Freudian-ize Jesus into spiritual insignificance, Norman Mailer attempts--and for me is successful--at something far more creative, courageous and important. Mailer, with THE GOSPEL... allows for new spiritual and compassionate eyes to see the Christ, via giving the documents describing the life and Tao of Jesus in the New Testament a completely different context and perspective. He reveals the hidden dynamic of the unconscious deification of the writers of the synoptic gospels--and their writings--that not only runs centuries deep, back into the early stages of the Catholic Church, but perhaps is the genesis of the environment which necessitated the appearance of the Son of Man and his revolutionary message among the Hebrews in Jerusalem in the first place--centuries before he came. And then Mailer returns THEM, not Jesus, back into the very human, epic poet/journalist-symbols of the Ancient Near East Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Paul originally were; making an unconscious debate over THEIR message (as opposed to Jesus') masquerading as love of Christ, intellectual sophistication or piety--yea or nea--irrelevant. All by trying to tell Jesus's story in something of his own words. Nietzsche has said in HUMAN, ALL TOO HUMAN that it is the degree to which one can display a most positive vision or illusion of ONESELF that decides and structures both the opinion we have of people, places and things in the world and the way in which we express it: the Narcissistic impulse of man's ego. Mailer's courage is in revealing this truism's agonizing power, as it may have infused the very religion to which much of Western Civilization has turned to rise above such ego-burdened ways. But his talent shows itself in how this work is nearly devoid of lambast or criticism of those caught in such paradims over the millenia and today, as it enters the loving, complex, but forgiving heart of his subject--the subject of it all. He does this by making us hear Christ; not from the point of view of people who wrote about him many decades after his death/ascenscion, but from an artistic one, a representation of the voice of Christ himself. An artistic representation so compassionate as to, in some passages, incomparably touch the heart and reawaken the soul. The courage to attempt this would be in and of itself--even in the context of hubris--worth congratulating regardless of success. The compassion to lift oneself beyond judgement and culturally acceptable evaluation and go straight to the heart of such a profound subject, and then write a new yet familiarly compassionate view of the man/spirit, would also be laudable even if it failed to move you. And the erudition necessary to make ancient Jerusalem, Rome, Cairo, Bethlehem and Gallilee come alive alone would make it an enjoyable read, even if the subject and purpose of it all was lost and missed. Norman Mailer didn't just combine all three of these essential gifts and distill out most of the possible downsides associated with them with THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THE SON. I counted only about four or five times in all 200-odd pages of the book (totalling maybe ten or fifteen lines of text) where the presence of a 20th century man with his own opinions about life, religion and his own significance bled through the gentle, non-sentimental, purely magnificent poetic prose. Norman's personal trinity of courage, compassion and erudition created this vehicle, via which he let his spirit/muse and it's Gabriel-like message for us rise above the confines of his ego. (And, again, as I've never met him, that ego may still be being overexaggerated by those in a culture that, unlike the eyes of the Christ, cannot see the many ironic forms of it's own arrogance.) As such, this book--if only for a moment (smile)-- can have you doing the same for the Holidays. I rate this so close to five stars that I might as well call it that: a five star beautiful achievement. A masterpiece.
Rating: 
Summary: Jesus Rolling over on His Cross
Review: Argh! What a boring turkey of a novel this was! Mailer and Updike like to snub their noses and proclaim from their mighty recliners that THEY know literature. And if so, they can have it! I read this on a recomendation from a friend, well, and ex-friend. I'm sure he's coffee house hopping as I write this. Don't be fooled by pretentious blather... this isn't literature, just a vain attempt at it. I should have listend to Tom Wolfe when he said this book "sunk without a bubble!"
Rating: 
Summary: Jesus the Doubter
Review: Since there was no introduction, no disclaimers given at the start of the book, one has to assume the Mailer intended this Jesus to be fictional. As such, the book should be judged by the standards of fiction: composition, depth of characterization, pace of action, dramatic impact, etc.. Such a judgment would probably be favorable. However, if this book was intended to be factual or historical, then different standards should be followed. Traditional Christianity considers Jesus to be fully human and fully divine. Any book that describes Him should maintain that balanced affirmation. In practice, very few do. Writers either emphasize His humanity (the modern rage) or His divinity. Mailer clearly focuses on the humanity. He paints a fairly good view of the times and Biblical data (with a few minor errors, such as placing Timothy rather than John at the foot of the cross). His Jesus is undeniably human, with most if not all the faults that we share. Some prior reviews commented favorably on this aspect, saying that this Jesus spoke to them in ways that traditional Christianity did not. Well done, Mailer. This Jesus is a challenge to present day Christians who have let themselves become spititually fat and lazy. Yet the divine aspect, although mentioned, does not seem to me to be what the Christian faith has been saying. Mailer's God the Father has a strained relationship with God the Son: all is not well in heaven city. Mailer's God(s) seems to resemble the Olympian gods more than the Trinity. For someone who is not a serious Christian, this Jesus may well inspire a possible conversion. But to someone who is already a serious Christian, it will probably not influence him or her much.
Rating:
Summary: Jesus Today
Review: I heard Mr. Mailer say in an interview that as an agnostic Jew he wanted to find out why Jesus' influence is still contemporary after 2000 years, and that as an author, the way for him to do that was to enter into the mind of Jesus. (Writers of fiction can do that - it is a God given talent!) I've never particularly liked Mailer's fiction, but as a Roman Catholic I'm always open to new understandings of Jesus. What a wonderful surprise to find that somewhere in his research Mailer met the Jesus I know. I now have a way to share my faith with people without them or me thinking I'm proselytizing. Thank-you, Mr. Mailer.
Rating: 
Summary: A conservative re-telling of the Gospels
Review: When I saw that Norman Mailer had written a book about Jesus I expected a searching biography of the man. For some reason I didn't expect Mailer to closely follow the Gospels. But he did, and I was disappointed. I already read the Gospels, more than once. I'd like to read a book that leaves out all supernatural occurrences and just focuses on a human being who has been very influential. This isn't the book. Personally, I don't believe in the miracles reported in the Bible, and I was hoping for an incisive biography of a great man. The book I want on this subject hasn't been written yet, I guess.
Rating: 
Summary: The Gospel according to the Son
Review: I picked up this book because Norman Mailer had written it. Not that I had ever heard of it or knew what it was about. What an enjoyable experience! I loved the struggle Christ had with his humanity and divinity. I think that truly captured what it must have been like or at least a glimpse at a possibility. My only critisim is the ending, I either didn't get it or it seemed weak compared to the rest of the book. The final two pages? But all in all a good read, quite profound and I am giving it to my son for Christmas!
Rating:
Summary: Omnipotent god?
Review: In a universe engineered and operated by an all powerful, all caring and all knowing god... how can bad things happen? Well, god could be less than omnipotent and this is the god Mailer shows us. Kiind, caring and loving but deficient in power so as to be unable correct earths injustices. How real!
Rating:
Summary: Easy read and rewarding
Review: I am still trying to wonder weather it's the character or the Mailer's language that did not have depth. I had strong mixed feelings of both at different places. He certainly would have added more depth to the character, but on the other hand why would you if the character was as it is potrayed? The most amazing scene I remember and liked in this book are those fasting days in the desert and the test phases that he was put through. However, the image of Jesus as human and divine comes through realistically. He is so insecure and at times all the character seem to be more firm to what they say, for instance the Satan who argues against him. It feels like the human part of Jesus was a person with severe insecurities and it was the spirit of divine in his body that kept driving him. One other thing that I still find hard to understand is why did Jesus always have to proof himself what he is. Throughout the book Jesus, as a character tries all hard ways to convince his followers/listeners. His hard ways includes bringing the dead out of their graves, Curing the diseased, feeding the hunger ... all in a very unrealistic way. Was it necessary to save the already dead, cure the diseased and feed the hunger through these ways? What is the message out here? Also, during the teachings, I strongly felt they always bring you down to a stage below and then try to lift you up. The teachings say you have sinned so repent. However, this has got nothing to do with the author way of representing. One other question that arises in my mind, maybe silly is: Why is Jesus non-vegetarian? Why didn't he discourage killing animals? Aren't animals living beings? Overall, I feel the book is very well written, easy read and rewarding. Although, I grew up studying in a Catholic school, I never realized all these until I read this book. I came across the thoughts that I have mentioned above while reading this book. I guess I have to read some more on this subject to further compare.
Rating:
Summary: Good
Review: I couldn't imagine how Mailer was going to tackle this one.It's obvious he did his homework beforehand. I wasn't expecting sucha beautiful work. My favorite account was when Jesus spent 40 days and 40 nights in the desert and how He might have felt. It reminds us how human He was...even though this IS a work of fiction.
Rating:
Summary: A beautiful story, simpy written
Review: This is a book to be absorbed, not critiqued. The image of Jesus as human and divine comes through realistically. Mailer is a gifted writer and this book will surely be remembered as one of his best
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