Mark Twain's Religion

Rating:
Summary: Fair, Clear, and Always Interesting
Review: I ordered this book after first finding a copy of the book Mark Twain & the Bible at a book sale. That book, now out of print I would think, is very impressive in its thoroughness (regarding MT's writings and the Bible) and its reasonable conclusions. Wanting to learn more, I ordered Mr. Phipps's book, and it too is impressive. He seems to have read everything that MT wrote, he displays a solid understanding of the Bible and theology, and he packages his examples clearly and entertainingly. Though it is written by a scholar and published by a university press, the book can be greatly enjoyed by a general reader. Phipps (especially in early chapters) strings together many anecdotes and quotes by and about MT, almost too many. You find yourself wanting him to stand back and generalize more often on the importance of all the examples. (The other book mentioned above is very good at that.) But this is a minor complaint. I got through this 380-page book in just a day or two, and it succeeded in making me hungry to learn even more about MT.