Gotta admit that the books of Samuel didn’t do much for me. I can see how there are important themes and storylines: the transition from judges to monarchy, the advantages/disadvantages of monarchy, the changing role of the prophets and, most importantly, the life of King David. But it was just kind of a drag to read. Like when reading a fantasy or science fiction story, it gets so wearying having to deal with so many foreign names, tribes, peoples, places, etc. I feel like the writer is assuming what I know and so much is going over my head. While forcing myself through these chapters I found myself staring at the volumes on my shelf having to do with spirituality; I’d rather have been reading Divine Intimacy or a prayer book. Most Christian Bible-in-a-year reading plans have one read the Tanach and New Testament in a parallel, sometimes sprinkling in the Psalms. I see the wisdom of that.
I did a lot of skimming. I relied on the brief introductions and summaries in the ArtScroll Tanach, the Didache Bible, the Catholic Bible Dictionary, and You Can Understand the Bible. I’d say that one shouldn’t be allowed to graduate from college without demonstrating basic knowledge of the Bible. However, I don’t think the average person who is reading it for “foundation of Western civilization” reasons needs to read the whole thing. I can imagine a “best of” or “greatest hits” anthology that includes only the most important and influential parts: the Torah, the Gospels, the Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, Book of Job, Letters of St. Paul, Revelation, etc. If I was editing such an edition much of Samuel would not make the cut.
Simon of the Desert
The Many Saints of Suburbia 