Titled Loving Kindness and Truth, the collection of 31 essays pivots on the interests of the Biblical scholar long established at Brown University: the Hebrew Bible, ancient Judaism, the ancient near east, archaeology, and Jewish history and thought. A sampling of topics turns up a liturgical reading of Psalm 145, on murdering or injuring a proselyte, the retelling of the flood story in the Gilgamesh epic, an archaeological perspective on the Philistines in the prophetic texts, and the foundation legend of Ashenazic Judaism. No index. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)