My mother handed me "The Red Tent" by Anita Diamant to read on a whim, only remembering that she had read it before and enjoyed it. However, this was such an appropriate book for me to read I can't believe I hadn't come across it sooner. No, not because I spend my "moon times" in a crimson tent with fellow females (although I kind of like that idea, in a weird way). I'll explain more in the Read More section, but for now, simply know that if you are looking for a moving book about mothers and daughters and like the idea of "woman's space," you might enjoy this very peaceful read. I certainly did.
Why was this book so appropriate for me to read? For one, it's "historical" fiction, taking a bible story and expounding on just a couple of lines of verse. Historical fiction is awesome, and if you have any recommendations for great books in this genre, please share in the comments. For another, this book is about Dinah, daughter of Leah and Jacob, from the Book of Geneses, and I have been reading the bible off and on throughout this year. (Don't remember why I'm reading the bible? Here ya go.) And lastly, it has a slew of stories about midwives and birthing and I am an absolute birth junkie. If you are into any one of those three things (historical fiction, the bible, or birth stories) then this book would be worth your time.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
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So, I just read this. I bought this and a book called the 19th Wife for our trip, along with the Sookie Stackhouse books. I was going to read the 19th Wife first, but I saw a blurb on the inside calling it the "heir apparent" to The Red Tent, so I figured I would read the Red Tent first.
ReplyDeleteIt started off incredibly heavy handed for me. I probably shouldn't have read the prologue, which just left a bad, on-the-nose, taste in my mouth. But, I got over it and was able to enjoy the book as a whole. But I couldn't avoid making comparisons to the Mists of Avalon and the other books in that series, which have very similar themes, and are some of my all time favorite books. I mean, Mists of Avalon is my all time favorite book. So, as good as it was, for me, it suffered by comparison.
I am not sure you would prefer Mists of Avalon to this, but I cannot imagine someone liking The Red Tent, but not liking Mists of Avalon, and vice versa, really. So, anyone who has read one and enjoyed it should read the other.
I will have to read Mists of Avalon. Any book that is deserving of being called your "all time favorite book" is definitely worth checking out!
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