I strongly agree with their conclusion that Ugaritic is a dialect of Canaanite, but they exaggerate in several regards. The Rins cite such luminaries as U. Cassuto, H. L. Ginsberg, Z. S. Harris, and W. F. Albright to justify this claim, but many more recent investigators would disagree. I repeat that I agree with the Rins' general conclusion that Ugaritic, like Hebrew, belongs to the Canaanite language umbrella. However, the differences between Ugaritic and Hebrew cannot be dismissed with the waving of a wand. I wish only that political and ideological leanings would not impinge on scholarly research, especially when they can mar an otherwise excellent product.
Caution is advised here, and almost without doubt the text means something else.
The philological notes are clear and concise, with an eye to the Bible throughout. Of the many gems raised, space limitations permit me to present only one. The Rins have placed between the two covers of this book a remarkable amount of material for the Hebrew reader to gain access to the great corpus of Ugaritic epic poetry and to fully appreciate its importance for biblical studies. They are to be congratulated for this major new resource. H-Judaic acknowledges the support of Florida Atlantic University.