Cohen (Judaic studies, Yeshiva U.) shows how three heirs of the Jewish exegetical tradition in al-Andalus Muslim Spain harnessed the literary tools available to them to devise a hermeneutic for analyzing biblical metaphor. Abraham Ibn Ezra (1089-1164) and Maimonides (1135- 1204) were both poets who lived in Andalus and had access to the rich Muslim literary traditions and practices. Kinhi (1160-1235), the son of emigres from Andalus to Christian Provence, was not a poet and did have such access, but perpetuated the tradition as a Talmud teacher immersed in rabbinic literature. Annotation (c) Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)