She gives graphic accounts of heated battle scenes, sure to please fans of historical fantasy and adventure.Īt times, a modern sensibility sneaks into Brooks’ retelling of this ancient story. Brooks’ account refuses to shy away from accusing his followers of what we today would regard as war crimes – including rape and mass murder – carried out during tribal conflicts.

Recognizing Natan’s gift, David adopts the boy into his band, where he becomes a reminder of David's divine anointment, as well as one of the few able to offer him truthful criticism.īrooks creates a compelling narrative of David's life, from his troubled youth to his dotage, framed by Natan's interviews with David's mother and his former consort, Mikhal. As Natan's own life is threatened, he is struck with the first of his prophetic visions. As the leader of a group of bandits, David kills Natan's parents when they refuse to provide supplies for his followers.

Geraldine Brooks’ novel The Secret Chord portrays King David as supremely human, employing as narrator his constant companion, the prophet Natan (Brooks uses names in their transliteration from the Hebrew of the Tanach (the Five Books of Moses and other writings) throughout, rather than the more familiar spellings). He is divinely-inspired psalmist and musician, brilliant military strategist, and respected judge, yet these attributes are marred by his failings. People have been pondering such questions since antiquity, and perhaps the best-known case of a morally-ambiguous leader is King David. Do we value charisma over moral purity? Do we forgive personal flaws in deference to rank and power? It's a good bet that many Americans are doing some deep thinking about the qualities we seek in a leader.

The secret chord