Whoever started the tradition of referring to the various documents of the Bible as "books" probably meant well. However, it seems to me, this rather generic designation often obscures an important truth: namely, that the "books" are, in fact, an extremely diverse body of literature -- containing everything from laws to letters, and poetry to prophecy. Even a casual reader soon realizes that the so-called "Good Book" is actually an eclectic collection of pieces written over the course of centuries by God only knows how many people, and for how many divergent purposes, or from how many variegated points of view. Of course, it somehow manages to hold together, and when we consider the Bible we usually regard it as a whole. But all the same, perhaps in part because of its plurality, I think d…