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Summary: A celebration of sisterhood!
Review: Beautifully and poignantly written! I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and going through the range of emotions with the women in this story. I thought the author did a beautiful job depicting the strength of women, the bonds and relationships between them and the differences among them and how they related to men. Those reviewers who criticize the book's departure from Biblical accuracy should keep in mind that this is fiction, and exceptionally well written fiction, at that!
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Summary: well done
Review: Half way through this book, I discarded it. I was sick of reading about the menstrual cycle and birth details of the women in Jacob's tribe. However, I always finish a book, so I picked it up again some weeks later. Taking a fresh view, I became transported to the biblical world of women and was surprised at the richness of their lives. Not being a biblical scholar, I knew nothing of the story of Dinah and was horrified. I checked the bible - the authors story relates to valid passages. I am impressed at the author's skill in using her knowledge of biblical lifestyles to tell Dinah's life story.
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Summary: A Place to Begin ---
Review: What an interesting character Dinah becomes as she ages. When the reader first meets Dinah she is a child & looks on her four mothers with a child's accepting eye, as she enters puberty the meaning of THE RED TENT becomes ever more clear to her. As with all teen girls there is angst in dealing with the mothers, but soon Dinah falls in love, "marries" and the rest of her life begins. Despite all she endures through her family, her travel to Egypt, difficult circumstances, Dinah survives to her end as a strong, graceful woman.Anita Diamant takes great liberties with this Biblical story. (The reader should keep in mind that this is FICTION based on the Bible.) The story is engrossing. A fast read. The characters are not deeply developed, yet the reader feels as though she knows them. After finishing THE RED TENT I re-read the Bible story & researched "Dinah's" words in THE FIVE BOOKS OF MIRIAM. THE RED TENT was a place to begin studying this story. I hope the author provides more Midrash as a jumping off point for study. I am glad I got to know Dinah--she has remained with me in spirit. It is easy to recommend this book. As with Anita Diamant's other writings, THE RED TENT will enhance your life.
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Summary: A Must Read!
Review: While I finished this book several months ago, it is still with me in many ways. I think of the traditions that bonded women in the biblical era described and I wish our current society had similar ways to bring young women and older women together for a week every month to sing and talk and just bond. Anita Diamant's story will grab you at so many levels you will want to read the book again and share it with all your female friends all at the same time. Dinah's story is a sad and tragic tale. Grab the tissue and be prepared to feel sad, angry and astonished all at once. I would highly recommend this book!
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Summary: Lyrical presentation of bible story from woman's perspective
Review: This selection of my monthly Book Club was a pleasant surprise. The author has a real gift for prose and the pacing of the story was perfect in keeping the momentum going. I wept and cried with Dinah through each of her heartbreaks. This is a book that will be understood by women at many different levels. It is the story of a being a daughter, a wife, a mother, a lover, and a friend. Dinah is the kind of woman that any modern day woman would want in her life.
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Summary: Totally original!
Review: I found this book to be completely enchanting. The story unfolds like a rich tapestry held together with the love and tears of a family from the bible. The story is told from the perspective of Dinah, Jacob and Leah's son. I thoroughly enjoyed the tale of her life and how life was for women. Anita Diamant creates a vivid picture that has lingered in my mind. This was an excellent read and I have recommended it to many of my friends.
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Summary: From a Woman's Point of View
Review: Imagine the Bible stories you were told as a child retold from a woman's point of view. They're actually better retold this way--and it follows the stories in Genesis--only in a more intimate way. This book is beautifully written and captures your attention--right after you get over all the "begets". Use the genealogy chart at the beginning of the book, find a comfortable chair and read and read--and then cry when it's over!
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Summary: A story of mothers and daughter
Review: The Red Tent shares a genre with The Wide Sargasso Sea and Mary Reilly, in that its author, Anita Diamant, has taken characters and stories from other books, in this case the book of Genesis, and fleshed out a story from a woman's unique perspective. I love reading history, mystery, and about mysticism. This book fascinated me to the extent that I considered calling in sick to work in order to finish it. The writing is very seductive. I treasure the author's skill in weaving relationships between Dinah and her birth mother, Leah, and her other mothers -- her mother's sisters. As a person of Christian faith, I enjoyed a "what might have been" fleshing out of Biblical characters. And I hold dear the concept of The Red Tent, the place where women gather on a monthly basis to share their creative and sustaining powers.
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Summary: A Total Distortion of Biblical Fact
Review: The author certainly is at liberty to write almost anything about Dinah since the Bible says so little about her. It offends me, however, that she would take such liberties with Biblical characters such as Joseph. The Bible gives us a great deal of information on Joseph. For the author to trivialize Joseph in such a way is appalling and as I see it, a cheap way to sell books. The author wrote, for example, that Joseph had sex with not only Potiphar's wife (not Biblical) but with Potiphar as well. It's one thing to fictionalize characters we know little about, but to distort Joseph was completely unnecessary.
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Summary: Remembering Dinah from the Bible.
Review: The Red Tent by Anita Diamant is one authors retelling of the story of Dinah from the Old Testament. For those of us who have studied this protion of the Bible, this account is worthwhile since there is one or two references as to what happened to Dinah, Jacob's only daughter. And I would imagine that many can't even recall this woman or how she fits into any Biblical story. I enjoyed this book immensely despite the criticism that the auhtor didn't always hold perfectly true to the retelling of other parts of this story. What I also found interesting about this book was that the majority of readers found out about it from word of mouth. I also know that today it is being read by many book group as well as women's studies groups. It is a wonderful guide to see what womens lives were all about at that time and even if this is only a fictionalized account based on the author's research. While I found many parts of thsi book both compelling and poignant, what I found most fascinating was Dinah's relationships with her birth mother and aunts and their relationship with Jacob. The writing at these times and the views expressed are almost modern in feeling. Especially worthwhile reading is when Dina, who serves as the narrator, says that in order to learn about a person, one must first listen to the story of their mother. When I first heard about this book from a friend, I didn't expect to read it. After all hadn't I studied enough about the Old Testament while attending religious school and in my house of worship. But then as I read more and more recomemndations for this book or heard about it from other readers, I decided I had to at least try it. I am so glad that I did and know that this book will always be among my very favorite titles.
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