The Joseph Paradox: A Radical Reading of Genesis 3750

US-born rabbi Millgram continues themes he began in Four Biblical Heroines and the Case for Female Authorship (McFarland, 2008), one of which is the birth of what is now called the theology of Providence. Bypassing what he sees as the reductionist approach of source-criticism scholarship, he focuses on the story of Joseph and the coat of many colors as a self-contained literary unit within the larger narrative of Genesis. Rather than the simplistic rags-to-riches story told for centuries, he finds a dark cautionary tale in which Joseph's success in Egypt sets the stage for the enslavement of his descendants and Joseph himself is rejected by his family, by his people, and by Scripture. Annotation 穢2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)