The Bible: King James Version with the Apocrypha (Penguin Classics) [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

First, the good:

David Norton has done an incredible job restoring the King James text to it's original, intended form. Even the 1611 first edition contained errors, so this is really the first time that the translators' intended version has appeared in print (approx. 400 years later).

The layout of this book is a joy to read - instead of each sentence appearing as a paragraph, the original translators' intended paragraph layout has also been reconstructed and restored. Additionally, all of the songs and poems that have always appeared inline as a continuous stream of text are now broken out with appropriate spacing and line breaks, actually appearing as poems or songs.

Mr. Norton also updated all of the 17th century spelling to the modern form. Unfortunately, his definition of "spelling" is very liberal:

Changing "witnesse" to "witness" makes sense, as it is merely an updated spelling. Changing "digged" to "dug" or "spake" to "spoke" is debatable because it alters the flow. It's not just updating the word's spelling, but updating the word's conjugation.

The most egregious changes were when he changed every occurrence of "thine" and "mine" to "thy" and "my". For instance, "...to whom thou sworest by thine own self..." (from Exodus 32:13) is now "to whom thou sworest by thy own self." "Thy" should always be "thine" when the following word begins with a vowel instead of a consonant - this is basic English grammar, and the new text errs.

As an example (Psalm 141:8)

The traditional KJV:

But mine eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord: in thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute.

Is now:

But my eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord:
in thee is my trust, leave not my soul destitute.

"mine" has become "my", an alteration of the original grammar rules. However, the new layout of the text for the psalm as a whole is a valuable addition and the new sentence is beautiful in its own way.

So overall, the "updates" do make for a smoother and faster read, which some people may prefer. Combined with the improved layout, this version of the KJV is a pleasure to read.

As an alternative, if you prefer the original spellings and grammar, but want the apocrypha, then the only option is Oxford's The Bible: Authorized King James Version (Oxford World's Classics) which is also a paperback with a colorful cover. Unlike the edition published by Penguin Classics, Oxford's is the traditional text; but suffers in that it does not have Mr. Norton's improved layout.

In summary:

Penguin Classics/David Norton's version: Has reconstructed original text with excellent layout. Grammar changes, quotation marks, and removal of italicised words make for a faster and easier read but introduce new frustrating errors.

Oxford's version: Is missing Norton's reconstructed text and his vastly superior layout, but keeps the original grammar.

These two books are the only paperback editions of the KJV that contain the apocrypha.

Penguin Classics is highly to be commended for making available - in very attractive and economical form - the outstanding edition of the KJV offered by David Norton and previously published as the New Cambridge Paragraph Bible. Given the extent of the project, it was only inevitable that the first edition of this would have some errors (mostly typographical - such as 1 Corinthians 15:37). In the present volume these have been corrected.

True, it is possible to disagree with Dr. Norton on matters of method or literary/editorial judgment, but most believe that his work will stand the test of time as a remarkable, important achievement - based on the work of the orginal KJV translators and making their work, once again, enduringly readable. There is little doubt that, in time, his work will become definitive. For a college introductory course on the Bible or for people who want to engage with the KJV without being bound to all the unhelpful happenstances of the now standard editions, this Penguin Classics presentation is the one to buy. Highly recommended.

This edition of the King James Version (Authorised Version) of the bible is a pleasure to handle. It is printed on white paper that is thick enough to minimise the amount of bleed-through of print from pages sharing the same sheet. It is a well bound paperback, not sewn in signatures but still well bound. The book is surprisingly heavy but in a way that adds to the pleasure of handling it.

There are some things missing
(1) it does not have chapter summaries at the top of each chapter - these summaries are common in good KJV editions.
(2) it doesn't include the marginal notes from the KJV translators.

But there are some nice features
(1) it has a good introduction
(2) it has interesting notes at the end of the volume - these notes are similar to book introductions for each of the books of the KJV
(3) it has the text set out in paragraphs on a single column which in my opinion enhances the pleasure of reading the volume.

If you like marking passages this edition will suit you well because of the quality of the paper.

If you want a bible that includes everything that the KJV translators translated (except for the marginal notes with alternate translations) this is the bible for you.

The price is very good; $10.88 (as at 4th-April-2008).

This review is for the book with ISBN-10: 0141441518

Five stars is well deserved.