Christians divided over Crumb’s comic book bible

The counterculture American cartoonist Robert Crumb has taken on arguably his most controverisal work yet, by producing an illustrated version of the Book of Genesis.

Crumb, best known for his 1960s X-rated comic strip Fritz the Cat, has spent the past five years working on the new book, which illustrates the first 50 chapters of the Bible.

Crumb's version faithfully replicates every word of Genesis, including some of the Bible's best known stories such as those about Adam and Eve, Noah's Ark and the Tower of Babel. Given that the first book in the Bible carries a hefty quotient of murder, rape and incest there was little need for Crumb to embellish with his trademark dark and sexually explicit style.

The Book of Genesis illustrated by R Crumb, which is released on October 29, carries the warning "adult supervision recommended for minors". It has outraged several religious groups including the Christian Institute, a religious think tank. "It is turning the Bible into titillation," said spokesman Mike Judge.

However a spokeswoman for the Bible Society, who had not seen the book, said that the reviews suggested that Crumb had "really engaged" with the Book of Genesis.

"It may surprise people but the Bible does contain nudity, sex and violence. That's because it contains real stories about real people. If, by reading the book, people are encouraged to re-engage with the Bible, then that can only be a good thing."

Crumb, 66, was raised in a secular home, but received a religious education after his ex-marine father sent him to a strict Catholic school for the discipline. The cartoonist told Associated Press he was "not out to ridicule or belittle" the Bible. "I don't believe it's the word of God. At the same time, I think the stories are very powerful."

After spending five years on his 201-page book, Crumb, who lives a reclusive existence in the south of France, claims that the project took so much out of him that he is now in recovery. As for his next work, he said: "I guess next I'll tackle the Koran. See how that goes over."

Crumb's original black and white drawings for the Book of Genesis will go on display at the Hammer museum in Los Angeles from Saturday, before going on a US-wide tour.