'The Jezebel Letters'

Monday, February 20, 2006

Beach's "The Jezebel Letters" combines her biblical scholarship with a fictionalized first-person account of the biblical character. In the process, she transforms the stereotype of the conniving Jezebel into a more historically-based portrayal of a powerful, literate woman.

Presented as a "recently discovered" cache of documents from the ninth century B.C., "The Jezebel Letters" draws the reader into an assassination conspiracy supported by Queen Jezebel. The queen's letters and memoirs, interwoven with the sometimes-conflicting contemporary accounts of the Bible and ancient Near Eastern documents, re-create the century's religious, political, military and economic developments in the kingdoms of Israel and Judah.

Generously illustrated with line drawings, "The Jezebel Letters" is solidly based on historical research, archaeological excavation and familiarity with the region's geography and material culture.

"I didn't start with Jezebel," explained Beach, who is in her fifth year of teaching classes at Monmouth and also is on the faculty of St. Ambrose University. "I started with ancient ivory carvings and saw a resemblance to Jezebel's story," especially to the Israelite king Ahab's ivory palace at Sumeria.

She said she has "lost count" of the times she has visited the biblical sites in Israel and Palestine since 1966. "It's been more times than I have fingers."

While doing her research, Beach said she was "drawn to the passage of Jezebel's death scene. That led me into an investigation that I've previously published in scholarly ways."

In short, she said of her book's subject matter, "I wasn't looking for Jezebel. She found me."

Writing "The Jezebel Letters" gave Beach an opportunity to break free of the limits of her previous non-fiction works on the subject. "I was able to fill in the gaps with my imagination," she said.

The idea of writing in the first person came as a result of role-playing exercises that Beach uses for her Bible classes. To give her students an idea of what she expected, she'd come to class as Jezebel. "That role-playing helped give me the sense that I could take it further," she said.

He added, "Jezebel emerges not as the notorious and despised 'painted lady' of biblical narrative and later tradition, but as the urbane and thoughtful Queen of Israel who gives voice to her efforts and those of her family in guiding Israel through one of its most challenging - and least understood - periods."

The 192-page hardcover book was published by Fortress Press. It is available by calling 800-328-4648 or by visiting the publisher's Web site at www.fortresspress.com. The cost is $19. Local bookstores such as Borders and Barnes and Noble also have it in stock, if not on the shelves. More information on the book can also be found at thejezebelletters.com.