In If They Could Talk, the authors ask the question: what if the animals of biblical times could talk? What would be the whale's take on swallowing Jonah? How would the scapegoat who carried away Israel's sins feel? Would the prodigal's fatted calf resent his role or be happily oblivious to it, or both? What did Balaam's donkey really think of his master? And how did the she-bears in the story of Elisha view God's provision of a feast of forty-two children?This is not a collection of sweet tales for young children. Not all of the animals (or people) in the biblical stories fared well. Many of the accounts are fun but others are serious and even confronting. One or two are bittersweet. All try to capture the essence of the biblical narrative from different animal perspectives.