The Red Tent
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The Red Tent
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Marian
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rated it 5 stars
Dec 28, 2007 08:26AM
This is one of my favorite books. I truly enjoyed reading it and would recommend it for any woman.
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The Red Tent helped me re-evaluate much of the Bible study I had done as a child especially the role and influence of the female characters. The story on its own is wonderful but when taken in the larger context of their biblical couterparts, the charcters in the book are even deeper. An excellent, insightful, educational read.
I'm sooo not a religious person, so I nearly missed reading this book--The story is so eloquently told, beautiful attention to detail, language, and mannerisms of all her characters, Anita Diamant truly captures a girl's journey through childhood to womanhood, and eventually death.
A FANTASTIC READ!
I can't recommend this book enough. For some reason I stay away from "hyped" books (yes, I do miss some truly remarkable books when they first come out) and this is one I didn't read for years. When I started it I couldn't put it down. Finishing it I stayed up until three in the morning, and I'm not ashamed to say I cried hard at the end. Diamant has a beautiful way with words; parts of the book read like poetry.Don't miss this book!
I also loved this book. It made me proud to be a woman. I was struck with how intuned women are (or at least used to be) to nature and their body's place in it.Couldn't put it down - always the sign of a great book!
Marilyn
you ladies have captured my attention !
I too loved this story. Some others I've spoken to couldn't read the story as that--a STORY! They thought too spiritually, but I loved this novel. I enjoyed the deepth, anger, love, harmony, and soul sisters found there. I loved the women's "red tent" and thought how bonding that would have been. I loved the tales of the midwives' experiences throughout the book. I too could not put this down. It was a remarkable book--one I would recommend to all women, especially mothers!
I absolutely loved this book. I would recommend it highly it is a great version of the "chick flick" in book format. I really was able to picture the period of time and the characters.
I LOVED it!! The author takes you right into the life of women in ancient/biblical times. I felt like I was there. And Dinah's story was so fascinating.
Even though it is based on a small part of the bible, you do not need to be familiar with the biblical aspect to enjoy this story.
I wish there were more books about the women of this time. I want to read all of their stories!
I agree with Rose Ann. When I finished The Red Tent I wanted to read about more women from biblical times. I was hoping Anita Diamant would write another but she seems to have moved on to other things. Does anyone know of other authors who have written similar stories i.e. female biblical figures? I think I remember seeing a book about Sarah.
Hi, ladies. My library has a database that searches for read-alikes. I think Amazon also has this feature.Here are some titles with similar subjects:
Unveiled, Unspoken by Francine Rivers
What Dinah Though by Metzger
Sarah by Halter
Rachel and Leah by Orson Scott Card
Rebekah by O.S. Card
Seven Days to the Sea by Kohn
Hadassah: One Night with the King by Tenney
The Gilded Chamber by Kohn
Fallen by Maine
The Midwife's Song by Ray
The Preservationist (about Noah and his family) by Maine
Song of the Crow by Maheu
Lilah by Halter
Wisdom's Daughter by Edghill
Zipporah by Halter
Mary Called Magdalene by George
Sarah by O.S. Card
The list goes on an on. See if your library has a database for read-alikes.
I recommended this book to a co-worker who is an avid reader. She gave up on the story because the beginning was so dry, listing the names in the bible as a means of setting up the families in the story. I agree that the beginning might deter some from getting over that hump and discovering a magnificent story.
Oh wow Tressa!Thanks so much!
I too loved the concept of the red tent. I feel as women we could all use that type of bonding. If we did this once a month there wouldn't be as much of a need for psychologists and marriage counselors. We would have each other instead to gripe to and advise.
I chatted with Anita Diamant when she was participating in a B&N book discussion. I asked her about doing other women in the Bible and she said that she usually doesn't do the same thing twice so probably not. It's a shame because she did it well.
Well, I enjoyed this novel -- mostly. But, I found it quite annoying at times as well. It was often enchanting and very imaginative. But, I felt that it took a bit of a "free ride" by going out of its way to slander biblical old testament heroes.And, indeed the comments here reinforce my annoyance. This is fiction. There is no reason to believe it is true and the bibilical version is false. It is certainly not perfectly accurate from a historical (archeological) perspective either.
Elise, sorry we annoyed you with our comments about how much we enjoyed The Red Tent. What heroes did the book slander? It wasn't a patriarchal society?I don't think the author was trying to slander any historical figure. She took one woman mentioned in the Bible and created a life for her on paper. I don't think anyone who reads it takes it at face value and thinks the Bible is false. Good grief.
The author of The Pearl Earring took a real-life painter and a popular painting and created a fictionalized account of how the painting came into existence. It's just another way to write a novel that I find very entertaining. I happen to find these types of conjecture novels fascinating. And, no, I don't think that's how the events went down in real life.
Umm, yes, Teresa, I actually think I have grasp of historical fiction as a genre. So sorry. I was under the impression this was a literary *discussion* group. I did not realize this was a fan club where thinking or variant opinions are so unwelcome. I won't post again!
Eleece, I just think your comment about there being no reason to believe TRT is true and the Bible is false is way off the mark. I don't think for one moment these readers believe it. Nor do they believe it is historically accurate.Discuss all you want...and so will I.
Wowsers! I didn't think the author slandered the Biblical heroes; however, I think she did point out some very human flaws. They're human; they have flaws. This discussion is reminding me of an earlier Goodreads discussion when none of the participants could accept that Martin Luther or Brigham Young or Joseph Smith could have made an error in judgement. It happens with humans.
That being said, it's fine if you agree, disagree, find fault with or are disgusted by anything written in a book or in a discussion. That's the beauty of this forum. I keep finding points of view that I, in my 'out west', middle class upbringing, have never encountered. I love to be enlightened by others' opinions. I can choose to reject or accept them.
I'm fairly certain that I've shared opinions about other books that people have thought were absolute crap. And that's fine!!! That's the point!!! Thanks for letting be blow off some steam...
I hope this discussion never reaches the animosity of the Into the Wild thread. Ouch. That place is painful to visit.I also welcome different points of view. I just was wondering where Elise got the idea that anyone here thought the novel was true and the Bible was false. I read back through the comments and found nothing to support that statement. Everyone here enjoyed a small fictionalized piece of history. That's all.
Firstly, I have to say that I, too, immensly enjoyed this story (and stayed up way too late finishing it). I also cried at the end, because ultimately what she wanted was to be remembered, which is something I think we all want. That being said, I think Diamant could have chosen any young woman from that time and told an equally powerful story. I'm not particularly religious and I did not remember Dinah, so I went and looked it up. How is that bad for faith? The reason I like historical fiction, particularly historical fiction that fills in the holes around a wider story, is that it allows you to ask yourself, "what if?" What if this was the life Dinah lived? I wasn't there, I certainly don't know. That's why we write and tell stories.
Finally, why is it not allowed to write a story where the previously labeled "good guys" are now not as good? If you read the Old Testament, there are a lot of wars being waged and a lot of people being captured, killed, etc, not everyone thinks this is a good thing and this is just another side of the story.
Loved this book so much I,ve read it three times. Don,t know much about the bible stories and I don,t think you have to to enjoy this book
Tressa wrote: "Hi, ladies. My library has a database that searches for read-alikes. I think Amazon also has this feature.Here are some titles with similar subjects:
Unveiled, Unspoken by Francine Rivers
W..."
Thanks Teresa great info!
Its been a long time since I read this book...years ago....but I do remember loving it at the time. Maybe I shud reread it
Wonderful book...and one every woman should read.
I just finished the book for the 2nd time & loved it just as much as ever. You really think about how life could be at that time & gives you a much different perspective on the reality of living, motherhood, & even dying that women faced.
This was a great book. It says so much about the women of the Bible and so much about who we are today as women and what we can do with our lives.
when I read this book I felt very proud to be a woman and I wanted every woman to read it.
Great book! What took me so long????
My book club .. comfy chair book club, piacenza read this book a couple of months back and everyone absolutely loved it. It was my second time reading it and I must say it was even better the second time.
Even though I liked the book, I was annoyed at her inconsistencies. Why did she have to change the facts?The book would have been just as good (even better) had she stuck to the facts of the Bible.
Elise wrote: "Well, I enjoyed this novel -- mostly. But, I found it quite annoying at times as well. It was often enchanting and very imaginative. But, I felt that it took a bit of a "free ride" by going out of ..."here, here.
the women's studies dept loves this book but it completely misses the point in terms of what was/is important about Judaism and its revolutionary change, paradigm shift, in human relations and perception, understanding of the purpose of human existence.
One of the best books i have read in a long time. I actully had a woman come up to me and say it was refreshing to see a man read a book like this. i had to laugh...it was a great book..
Elise wrote: "Well, I enjoyed this novel -- mostly. But, I found it quite annoying at times as well. It was often enchanting and very imaginative. But, I felt that it took a bit of a "free ride" by going out of ..."Just to avoid this kind of reaction, the author emphasizes the fact that it is a NOVEL--she made sure to put that word on the cover.
It isn't meant to be biblical commentary.
This book is one that I think every woman should read. I read it as a senior in high school--barely on the cusp of womanhood myself--and since then I have not and will probably not ever stop recommending it to people, and the recommendation is almost foolproof; out of the 10 people I've recommended it to who have read it, only one has told me that she didn't enjoy it. The rest have gone on to recommend it to their own friends, to buying copies for their mothers and sisters, and generally enjoy rereading it. This book is an all-time favorite of mine and I make a point to reread it every year.
Lindsay K wrote: "I'm sooo not a religious person, so I nearly missed reading this book--The story is so eloquently told, beautiful attention to detail, language, and mannerisms of all her characters, Anita Diaman..."
Me neither Lindsay, I am not in the least bit religiousy! But this book was so well written, I couldn't put it down.
Penny wrote: "Lindsay K wrote: "I'm sooo not a religious person, so I nearly missed reading this book--The story is so eloquently told, beautiful attention to detail, language, and mannerisms of all her charac..."
Same here. Funny thing is i read this during my lunch times at work. I had a woman come up to me and say she was thrilled to see a man reading a book from the womans POV !
It is a great book no matter the sex of the POV.
Rose Ann wrote: "I LOVED it!! The author takes you right into the life of women in ancient/biblical times. I felt like I was there. And Dinah's story was so fascinating.
Even though it is based on a small part of..."
Believe it or not, Orson Scott Card has written at least 3 books about biblical women -- The Women of Genesis Series. I've read the first two - Sarah and Rebecca - and thought they were quite good.
An interesting book to read and I did enjoy the women's point of view.I was disappointed with it being concidered historical fiction. Most historical fiction I have read has been researched and presented as accurately as possible for the time. If there are non-fiction characters the facts concerning them are presented accurately. This is not true in The Red Tent. For example, the children born to Jacob are not even presented as being born to the correct wife or servant. I realize in historical fiction, there is speculation, but when facts are known there is no need for it.
I think that you have to give more leeway on the historical accuracy for history this ancient. There's a big difference between putting a novel during the reign of Henry II and writing about bronze age figures, who may or may not be fictional themselves. It has been a while since I read this book, but I think on the cover or maybe the introduction, it said something about this kind of novel being in the Jewish tradition of re-imagining the bible stories. Does anyone else remember that? It would be interesting to know more about that tradition and what the general parameters are.
I liked this book a lot. Alternatives for people who would like to read similar works include The Mists of Avalon (not biblical, but a comparable mix of fable and feminism) and, if you can find it, Esther by Norah Lofts (definitely biblical!).
My absolute favorite book. My original book is somewhere out there in the world. I had written my name and date in it and passed it on to my friend and told her to do the same. I'm hoping it comes back some day with many names and if not hopefully women have been enjoying it all over the world.
That was really nice of you and a fantastic idea ! I loved the book too and have read it 3 times
:-)
Martha wrote: "I agree with Rose Ann. When I finished The Red Tent I wanted to read about more women from biblical times. I was hoping Anita Diamant would write another but she seems to have moved on to other t..."Try The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman, probably the best book I've ever read.
The Red Tent was one of the best books I have ever read, I couldn't put it down, I highly recommend this book.
Kelli you should have registered it on Bookcrossing.com and then you could have hopfully followed where it has been.
Terena wrote: "Martha wrote: "I agree with Rose Ann. When I finished The Red Tent I wanted to read about more women from biblical times. I was hoping Anita Diamant would write another but she seems to have move..."I loved the Dovekeepers too.
I've read this book 4 times and will probably read it more than that. It's one of those books every woman should read. Where is the Red Tent when I need one? I'd say bring it back but we probably already have... it's called "book club"!!There is an inside joke in our office (95% women)that we refer to our "time" as being in the Red Tent. Everyone knows to back off if we seem a little perturbed/frustrated/sad/emotional/bloated once a month. I just say "I'm camping" and they seem to get the point!!
I really loved this book and yes it is worth reading again and again!
So, I've never joined an online discussion such as this, but I wanted to give it a try. I finally got around to reading this book- it was my choice for a book club that I've recently joined. Unfortunately, our discussion de-railed and we didn't talk about the book very much, which saddened me because I absolutely loved it. I cried bitterly through the last third of the book, and found it very hard to read at times (aren't all women's stories, especially historical ones) but I thought it was just so beautifully done. I grew up reading the Bible, although I hadn't read the stories referenced in many years. For me, it was like my experience reading 'Wicked' (which I also really enjoyed)- of having a well-known story turned on its head. With the perspective changed, the entire story is, naturally, very different. I realize, of course, that The Red Tent is not a fact-based alternate history, but it is based on the (very serious) tradition of Midrash- imagining possible scenarios to fill in the gaps of the Bible's narrative. So, coming out of this well-accepted tradition, it is not so far-fetched as we might think.
Of course, it's only a possibility, and any 'truth' can only be reached by blending Multiple (flawed) humans' perspectives. But, that's just it- the Bible generally only gives us one perspective, which comes from the male-centric society that was, in part, formed out of Christianity. I felt that The Red Tent also began to tell the story of the dying of ancient religions, the death of the Goddess, and of mother-centered cultures; of the way that severe patriarchy wiped out womens' histories- and their importance.
At times, I started to feel that Diamant had gone too far in altering Jacob and Joseph's characters for the worse, but then again, is it not because this time the story is being told from the women's perspective, and the truth can only be found by blending perspectives? And was not Jacob's (male) god, El, an angry, even cruel God? This is corroborated by reading the Bible - in fact, the Bible's own perspective shifts drastically from Old to New Testament, with the introduction of Christ. It goes fom "eye for an eye" to "turn the other cheek." But enough of these ramblings...
On another note, I agree with other readers that this story makes me proud to be a woman (even pulled at my ovaries a bit, despite the terrifying descriptions of giving birth lol). I have read that the old way of giving birth (and for that matter, even relieving ourselves of waste) by squatting is much better, and easier, because it allows gravity to better assist us in these tasks. And the idea of being surrounded by women with whom your life is so interdependent is a very comforting one. If only we still cycled with the moon, and were allowed a week away from the world, to spend with our nearest and dearest women. That is a bond that few of us know these days, when we become so wrapped up in our very separated, compartmentalized lives.
I found the end interesting, and was wondering how others felt about Dinah's pronouncement that she never went away. That she saw her loved ones for a brief moment, but did not join them - that she essentially wandered the earth for eternity. Is this heaven? Is she in limbo? Once women's stories are once again told, once women are viewed as important enough to be remembered, will she then be able to rest? Can she rest now that the book has been written, read, and loved by so many? (I ask this philosophically, and not literally, of course.) Or is Diamant implying that this is the way for each of us - when we are gone, are we never really gone? It's a melancholy thought to imagine that we remain sentient, but not joined with our loved ones. Or, is Dinah unique? Is she a wandering spirit because she endured so much pain in life? Or did Diamant just mean that Dinah's spirit remained in story-waiting-to-be-told, not so much the actual spirit of Dinah the person, but the collective spirit of women's untold stories? Somehow, the ending just left me questioning, rather than feeling any sense of resolution.
Well, that's quite enough to start with. These are my musings and opinions on a book that really struck a chord with me. Feel free to disagree, but please realize that nothing is meant to offend or provoke; I detest rude conflict, and don't wish to cause or take part in it. I do look forward to discussing the book with others!
Kelli- what a cool idea!! Diane- I had never heard of Bookcrossing.com; maybe you could share more about it with those of us who have never used it?
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