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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
I really enjoyed this biblical retelling, which takes the minor figure of Jacob's daughter Dinah from Genesis and presents a possible version of her life's story. In the process, author Anita Diamant goes far beyond what scripture has to say about either the heroine or her society, but the setting she conjures is immersive and compelling. I'm reminded of Jean M. Auel's The Clan of the Cave Bear and Richard Adams' Shardik in the ancient worldbuilding, as well as works like Gregory Maguire's Wicked or Madeline Miller's Circe in the reclamation of narrative by a maligned and forgotten figure. As with those latter books, Diamant's novel offers both a different perspective of a familiar tale and the occasional claim that particular events have been misrepresented before now.
It probably helps to go into this title already knowing about Dinah and her family history, yet with an open mind for the inevitable divergences from the canonical record. Those who do will find a tough woman hurt by patriarchal attitudes and healed by the solace of female friendships. It's not a very flattering depiction of certain men we expect to be heroic and/or devout, but that challenging aspect only makes it a more rewarding read in my opinion.
[Content warning for bestiality, incest, rape, sexualization of children, miscarriage, eugenics, and childbirth. All of which are present in the original text, but may be tougher to engage with at this level of detail.]
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
It probably helps to go into this title already knowing about Dinah and her family history, yet with an open mind for the inevitable divergences from the canonical record. Those who do will find a tough woman hurt by patriarchal attitudes and healed by the solace of female friendships. It's not a very flattering depiction of certain men we expect to be heroic and/or devout, but that challenging aspect only makes it a more rewarding read in my opinion.
[Content warning for bestiality, incest, rape, sexualization of children, miscarriage, eugenics, and childbirth. All of which are present in the original text, but may be tougher to engage with at this level of detail.]
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
Hard pass. I couldn't get over the audiobook narrator having a very singsong tone, but even if the narrator would have been better, I found the writing to be unbearably awkward. The discussions around sexual intimacy, motherhood, childbirth, and pretty much any bodily function were so awkward. Like the author wanted to be cheeky or suggestive, but not too much because of the people the story was centered on. It was weird. It made me feel weird and uncomfortable, and I would have much rather read a sentence directly talking about Jacob's penis rather than the stiffness of his sex or that Bilhah desperately wanted to be a mother rather than that her breast yearned for the suck. Lmao.
Absolutely not. Onto the next.
Absolutely not. Onto the next.
The book started out a bit slow but quickly pulled me in. It is a great historical story with many names familiar to those who have read the Bible.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
My alltime favorite book of all time ever even though Fran Lebowitz says favorite books are for children
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I found it really hard to get into the writing style but the story was interesting