Where God Was Born: A Journey by Land to the Roots of Religion » (First Edition)

Both funny and intellectually rigorous, Bruce Feiler has applied his investigative spirit to religion, Japan, the circus, country music and assorted other topics. His personal accounts of various cultural forays are always illuminating, if you can keep up.

At a time when America debates its values and the world braces for religious war, Bruce Feiler, author of the New York Times bestsellers Walking the Bible and Abraham, travels ten thousand miles through the heart of the Middle East—Israel, Iraq, and Iran—and examines the question: Is religion tearing us apart ... or can it bring us together?

Where God Was Born combines the adventure of a wartime chronicle, the excitement of an archaeological detective story, and the insight of personal spiritual exploration. Taking readers to biblical sites not seen by Westerners for decades, Feiler's journey uncovers little-known details about the common roots of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and affirms the importance of the Bible in today's world.

In his intimate, accessible style, Feiler invites readers on a never-in-a-lifetime experience:

• Israel Feiler takes a perilous helicopter dive over Jerusalem, treks through secret underground tunnels, and locates the spot where David toppled Goliath.


• Iraq After being airlifted into Baghdad, Feiler visits the Garden of Eden and the birthplace of Abraham, and makes a life-threatening trip to the rivers of Babylon.


• Iran Feiler explores the home of the Bible's first messiah and uncovers the secret burial place of Queen Esther.

In Where God Was Born, Feiler discovers that at the birth of Western religion, all faiths drew from one another and were open to coexistence. Feiler's bold realization is that the Bible argues for interfaith harmony. It cannot be ceded to one side in the debate over values. Feiler urges moderates to take back the Bible and use its powerful voice as a beacon of shared ideals.

In his most ambitious work to date, Bruce Feiler has written a brave, uplifting story that stirs the deepest chords of our time. Where God Was Born offers a rare, universal vision of God that can inspire different faiths to an allegiance of hope.

Publishers Weekly

Mixing archeological history with war story, Feiler journeys the length and breadth of the modern Middle East, in search of the final word about religion's efficaciousness. Feiler's understated voice underscores the drama of his tale. The sober, measured tones and the occasionally scratchy timbre of his voice emphasize the personal aspect of his book, which is part biblical exegesis and part study of religion's impact on contemporary life. Feiler's work ranges from studying the less savory aspects of the legacies of Israelite kings David and Solomon to touring Iraqi archeological sites under the watchful eye of the postinvasion U.S. Army. The audiobook bookends its chapters with swirls of orchestral music, adding a nice touch and playing up the inherent archaic romance of Feiler's story. The production as a whole might have benefited, though, from a reader with slightly more gravitas than the author can provide. Feiler acquits himself honorably, but a professional reader might have more capably teased out the book's aura of drama past and present. Simultaneous release with the HarperCollins hardcover (Reviews, July 11). (Sept.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.