The Message
I have recently purchased the whole bible in the message translation and I have to say that I am loving it. I enjoy looking at different translations because thay often give you slightly different, and valuable perspective, with different wordings. But for pure reading and understanding enjoyment the message is a breath of fresh air.
I am going back into the old testament to reread the stories that are the foundation to it all, and I am truly enjoying it. I have just read Daniel and Hosea and now am moving back to Genesis. There are so many amasing lives in the old testament. Sometimes we think of them as spiritual giants but when you really look into their stories you realise that they are most often just regular joes like ourselves.
So get into it. Find out the stories and the lives that God has shaped over the millenia.