Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal facts for kids
First edition
|
|
| Author | Christopher Moore |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Humor, mystery, adventure, absurdist fiction, comic fantasy |
| Publisher | William Morrow |
|
Publication date
|
2002 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 464 |
| Followed by | Fluke, or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings |
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal is a novel by American writer Christopher Moore, published in 2002. In this work the author seeks to fill in the "lost" years of Jesus through the eyes of Jesus' childhood pal, "Levi bar Alphaeus who is called Biff".
The original edition of Lamb was issued in hardback and paperback and contains an afterword by the author explaining some background of the novel. In 2007 a special gift edition was published, with a second afterword by Moore, recollecting his trip to Israel for research.
According to the author, the producer-director Peter Douglas (with Vincent Pictures) optioned the film rights to the novel.
Contents
Plot summary
Biff is resurrected in the 20th century to complete missing parts of the Bible, under the inefficient supervision of Raziel; wherefore Biff narrates that he and Joshua (by Biff's account, the Hebrew original of the Hellenized "Jesus") travel Eastward to consult the Three Wise Men (a magician, a Buddhist and a Hindu yogi) who attended Joshua's birth, so that Joshua may learn how to become the Messiah. Over twenty years, Joshua surpasses the trio by incorporating his beliefs into theirs: he learns to multiply food from a Wise Man and learns to become invisible from another, whereas his ability to resurrect the dead, initiates his first meeting with Biff in childhood. Throughout his role, Biff is sarcastic, practical and loyal, against Joshua's temperamental and sometimes idealistic character.
The recounting of Jesus' human and godlike qualities, combined with Biff's earthy debauchery, humorously explains the origins of judo and cappuccino; reasons that Jews eat Chinese food on Christmas; and how rabbits became associated with Easter.
Literary allusions
The author cited Bulgakov's novel The Master and Margarita—particularly the Biblical scenes told from Pontius Pilate's point of view—as a partial inspiration to create this novel. Other works apparent in the novel are the writings of Lao Tzu, the Torah, the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, Sun Tzu's The Art of War, the Tao Te Ching, and the Gospels of the New Testament. The idea that prior to his public ministry, Jesus traveled to Kashmir, India, to study at a Tibetan monastery was first suggested by Nicolas Notovitch, in his 1894 hoax The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ.
Sequel
In 2015, Moore said of writing a sequel to Lamb, "...I am bound and determined not to do it. At every book signing, somebody will tell me it’s his favorite book. Then they say, 'Can’t you write another?' But if I write a sequel, let me predict what readers will say. They’ll say, ‘Well, it was good, but not as good as Lamb.’ Why would I want to try to outdo Lamb and then fail and ruin it for everyone? Better just to leave it alone."
See also
In Spanish: Cordero, el evangelio según el mejor amigo de la infancia de Jesucristo para niños
