King Jesus

King Jesus has been called one of the most controversial historical novels of all time. In it, Robert Graves, known for his psychologically unconventional character interpretations, draws on both painstaking scholarship and imaginative wit to produce a detailed portrayal of the life of Christ on earth. As the author remarks in his concluding Historical Commentary: "My solution to the problem of Jesus's nativity implies a rejection of the mystical Virgin Birth doctrine, which no longer has the same force in religious polemics as it had in Justin's day; to the mass of people nowadays the choice is between a Jesus bom in the ordinary course of nature and one as mythical as Perseus and Prometheus."

Praise

"This is not reading for the easily shocked; it definitely presents Jesus as a sage and a poet, if not divine. It moves, as does all Mr. Graves' writing, at a brilliant fast pace, and with a tremendous style."—Kikus Reviews

"Mr. Graves is a poet; both the knowledge of a scholar and the imagination of a poet are brought to bear upon Jesus as child, boy, and man. The book is a bold speculative adventure."—Harold Brighouse, Manchester Guardian

About the Author(s)

Robert Graves

Robert Graves (1895-1985) was a British poet, novelist, translator, and critic. His many books include the historical novels I, Claudius and Claudius the God, the autobiography Good-bye to All That, and the mythic/literary studies The White Goddess and The Greek Myths.