The Forgotten Desert Mothers: Sayings, Lives, and Stories of Early Christian Women

Rating:
Summary: Buy it for the sayings of the Ammas
Review: The sayings of the desert mothers (the Ammas) are worth the purchase of the book. They are starkly beautiful and fresh. However, Laura Swan's commentary is predictable, dull and full of religious jargon and psychological cliche. Often the commentary loses sight of a particular Amma's "saying" entirely. Swan has a knack for missing the humor or irony in many of the sayings. I soon gave up reading Swan and simply read the Ammas' sayings -- and was more than rewarded.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating introduction to little-known women
Review: This is a wonderful resource book for anyone interested in the history of spirituality. We have heard about the desert fathers, but here is a well-documented, readable, sometimes quirky look at their female counterparts.
Swan relates the writings of the desert matriarchs to her own life and thought, which helped me think through some of the issues, such as asceticism, marriage, leadership, and changing views of women, society and spirituality. Read it! It is full of plums!