David Rosenberg (poet)

David Rosenberg
Born	August 01, 1943 Detroit, Michigan
Occupation	poet, biblical translator
Notable works	A Poet's Bible, The Book of J
Notable awards	PEN Translation Prize
Spouse	Rhonda Rosenberg (writer)

David Rosenberg (August 1, 1943 Detroit, Michigan) is an American poet and biblical translator. He is best known for The Book of J (with Harold Bloom) and A Poet's Bible, which earned PEN Translation Prize at 1992.

David Rosenberg was born on August 1, 1943 in Detroit, Michigan to Herman and Shifra Rosenberg. His father worked in the popcorn business and his mother worked as a seamster. He graduated with a B.A. in creative writing from the University of Michigan in 1964. From 1978- 1982 he lived in Israel where he worked as an editor for Hakibbutz Hameuchad/The Institute for Translation of Hebrew Literature. He was an editor at the Jewish Publication Society from 1982-84 after he returned from Israel. After leaving the JPS, he worked as an editor at Harcourt Brace Jovanovich until 1986. He got his M.F.A. from Syracuse University, M.F.A. in 1966. He did additional graduate work at the University of Essex in England from 1970–72 and at Hebrew University of Jerusalem from 1980- 82. After getting his B.A he was the personal assistant of Robert Lowell at The New School in New York City.

In 1990, The Book of J, which Rosenberg co-wrote with Harold Bloom was published. Rosenberg translated the biblical texts for the book. What was notable about the book was that Rosenberg and Bloom identify the earliest narrator of the bible as a woman.

In 2006, his translations of biblical passages helped him write Abraham: The First Historical Biography. Publishers Weekly reported the book was sold to Viking in 2001. This book put's biblical Abraham into the cultural context of ancient Sumer.

In his New York Times book review, Frank Kermode discussed how Rosenberg worked to be both modern in his translation, and faithful to the original Hebrew. Further, he notes in his review that Harold Bloom, who co-wrote The Book of J with Rosenberg, identified J as Bathsheba. Rosenberg doesn't agree with this.

Frank Kermode, in his review of The Book of J for the New York Times, says that Rosenberg's translation "blandness of the modern versions" of the Bible. He adds: "This bold and deeply meditated translation attempts to reproduce the puns, off-rhymes and wordplay of the original."

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