As Burton Visotzky says, the Book of Genesis seems to be, at least on first reading, an ugly little soap opera about a dysfunctional family... a story about rape, incest, murder, deception, brute force, sex and blood lust. But these stories reveal much about human dilemmas and ethical problems that mirror and inform our own lives. By delving into the foibles and peccadilloes of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac and Esau and holding up these characters of Scripture to the light of critical inquiry Burton Visotzky reveals much that is fresh and useful about ethics and morality; much that can help us to strengthen our selves and our communities.