[jester710]

I don't know that I'd call Mere Christianity "preachy." Like most of Lewis's works, it attempts to make a strong, rational case for belief in Jesus. Whether you find the arguments compelling is another story, but I doubt that you'd feel preached at if you read it. However, I don't think it's at all what you're looking for.

If you want a non-biased look at a lot of this stuff, I'd read Kenneth Davis's "Don't Know Much About the Bible." It should have a lot of the info you're looking for, and it's pretty easy to read.