It has been a while since I have written a review. This is not because I haven't been reading mind you! Even though my life has picked up considerable moment since starting work and finding a church and friends and the like, does not mean that I am over the whole "reading for pleasure" thing or the Bookworm Project. I am still reading and loving it! Now, I must say that I have gotten out of chronological order of books completed though. There are actually 6 or 7 book reviews still waiting to be written but since I literally just finished this book about 20 minutes ago and I have energy and don't feel like going to bed yet, gosh darn it I'll just write this now instead of putting it off. So here we go.
If you know anything about ancient middle eastern culture, and let's face it who doesn't, right, you will know that women and men lived very different and separate lives from what modern day Americans call normal. There are still cultures that hold to many of the same traditions as their ancient ancestors but as time goes one even their strong heritage and love of tradition have bowed the knee to progress in some form or another. The Red Tent is a fascinating look into the life of women in Old Testament biblical times. This book is written from the perspective of Jacob's only daughter, Dinah. In your Bible she is a blip on the map really. A side note. An after thought. She is portrayed merely as a way of explaining why Israel was greatly feared in Canaan. If you do not know her story you can find what little there is in Genesis 34. An entire life wrapped in one chapter covering one event and a horrific event at that. She is numbered among the blemishes of Jacob's offspring and quickly forgotten. I remember reading that chapter and thinking, "Is that it? Is that really all there is to be said of the only daughter of Jacob? What happened to her after that?" It appears Diamant had the same questions. Now of course this is all fiction and pure speculation and for the sake of an interesting story. But it still would satisfy the imagination of many of reader.
Although it is written about Biblical characters, do not expect to find Christian values or themes. The author has taken the liberty of sprinkling in her own ideas and extra-biblical details that work fine for the narrative. Just don't expect to use this book as a cross study of Genesis. It is fiction remember. The title "The Red Tent" refers to the tent that women enter for their time of the month (sorry to any guys reading this, I am sure this is exactly what you wanted to read about tonight). A woman was considered unclean during this time and so it was customary and required of her to remove herself from the rest of the tribe until her menstrual cycle had run its course and she had been purified. Now, as all women know when you run in a pack you all tend to get on the same schedule so for 3-5 days out of the month the tribes entire female population was holed up in the red tent to chatter, gossip, have their cat fights, and share their pain. The tent was also where births happened. This book gives you a fly on the wall glimpse into what life might have been like for Jacobs 4 wives and daughter as they gave birth to the 12 tribes of Israel, as they had miscarriages, fed the husband that they all shared, and as their lives played out before one another in such close proximity.
A friend recommended this book and it is certianly an interesting read. Although the book's story line itself is fiction, from what little I know of ancient history, I would not be surprised at the cultural accuracy. I do not foresee myself reading this book again but it is definitely an intriguing perspective on what life as a woman was like back then. As a lover of history with a vivid imagination, this book painted a lot of fascinating pictures of life as Old Testament women that I would have never considered on my own. Be forewarned there are a few scenes that are pretty racy that you might do well to skip over but as I said from a historical and also anthropological standpoint the book certainly peaked my interest in studying more about the women of that century and culture.
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