S. H. Hooke is the chap who wrote the bit on Genesis in Peake's Commentary. There wasn't a single a time when I had a question or a curiosity about what I was reading that he didn't have something to say, and loads more besides. Granted, I've only read Genesis a couple of times and my questions aren't deep ones, but still, that's a remarkable track record. What I really wanted to do was lay a hold of Professor Hooke's head and suck his brain out. A procedure I was unable to undertake due to his death fifty years before. Luckily he wrote this book before he died. Like a commentary, it follows Genesis in order but is really a series of essays on the most interesting bits. I think the first six chapters may constitute a masterpiece in their own right. He's interested in what each part of Genesis meant to the people who wrote it. He uses the Documentary Hypothesis – not just subscribing to it as a hypothesis but using it as a tool to deconstruct the text. If you're thinking of giving Genesis a go the best advice I can give is that you get a copy of this and use it like a set of end-notes. I can't remember the last time I finished a non-fiction book with such a sense of satisfaction. It's certainly the finest piece of literary criticism I've ever read. ( )