Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth

I've found a few 2-star ratings that I would agree with. Much of the information Aslan provides about Jesus is old hat. I was interested in the bits of information about the time period itself, and this is a decent introduction. Even with my poor background in NT history, though, I was quirking eyebrows at some of the things he wrote, some of the things he just assumed (and there seemed to be a lot of assumption going on), and his very melodramatic writing style. Very melodramatic. So, in the end, interesting, quick to read, provides some useful background info, but not great. The search continues. I actually HAVE Crossan. I should probably read him now.