Some of Plotz's favorite words used to describe the Bible in, say, the first half of his book are "smite" and "rebuke." Later on, he reminded me of one of my best friends from high school; on at least three occasions he would say something along the lines of "This is possibly my favorite book (and/or verse) from The Bible!" Plotz uses similar expressions when blogging about Ruth, Job, and Ecclesiastes (all of which are of the latter part of the Old Testament/Hebrew scripture.
Dryer, slower, and more commanding books (i.e. endlessly filled with rules, laws, and genealogies) tend to draw a relatively more negative review from Plotz. Examples of these books include Leviticus, Deuteronomy, and, arguably, Psalms. Plotz is a person who believes in the world before God, and he enjoys stories where humans do most of the work and, so to speak, mischiefmaking because God's actions are recognizably, if taken literally, more smiteful rather than forgiving.
I enjoyed Plotz book very much, and his practical POV of the Bible is, above-all, helpful, though his POV is arguably supportive of, say, atheism along with Judaism. Pragmaticism within the interpretation of sacred, holy scripture?
