The names of the chief characters in the biblical Book of Esther are those of Mesopotamian deities. Stephanie Dalley argues that the narrative reflects real events in seventh-century Assyria which were `explained' soon after they occurred in a mythologizing cuneiform text and linked to religious festivals comparable to the Jewish rites of Purim. Dalley has produced an intriguing and thought-provoking book that will be read with pleasure by cuneiformists, biblicists, and classicists alike.