A readable anthology of epistles, rather than a guide to alphabetic characters, is presented for nonspecialist scholars of the Middle East, the Bible, and languages. Some of the better preserved letters in the two languages down to the time of Alexander the Great, was first published in 1994. The second edition includes nine new texts, some subsequently published and others subsequently selected. The original scripts are followed by English translations. Annotation (c) Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)