The Life of Herod the Great
Salvaged from a fire, re-assembled and edited, this unfinished Zora Neale Hurston novel is only now being posthumously published. In these pages, Hurston set down her researched version of the story of King Herod I of Judea. Called Herod the Great, this Herod should not be confused with his son, the King Herod who taunted Jesus, although both seem to have equally unsavory reputations in the popular imagination. The Herod of this story was the first ruler of a monarchy put in place by the Romans which replaced the theocracy presided over by the high priests. In this novel, Hurston flips contemporary views of Herod the Great by presenting him as a misunderstood man who deserves to be comprehended in the context of his own times rather than through our modern perspectives.
Hurston sets the tone in her preface by placing his story into a very wide historical setting of violence, chaos, change, and competing visions of Eastern and Western ideas in the world of the ancient Middle East. Her Herod is a charismatic leader, one who embraces change but is often restrained by customs he considers outdated and of little use either for his contemporary time or for the future. Described in heroic terms as courageous, intelligent, and resourceful, he is also portrayed as completely devoted to the ideals of his father, who inculcated in him respect for all honest men and a disdain for liars and schemers. The plot is thick and enemies abound as Rome’s might transforms the Middle East as well as the course of Herod’s life, who rises alongside in strength as the mighty protector of Judea. Highly recommended for its distinctiveness as an unusual novelistic treatment of an enigmatic historical figure written in a crisp literary style.
