Review: THE RED TENT by Anita Diamant

TITLE: The Red Tent

AUTHOR: Anita Diamant – Web
GENRE: Christian, Biblical History

PUBLISHED: Picador (September 15, 1998)

FORMAT: Paperback

SOURCE: Library

SYNOPSIS:

In this retelling of the story of Dinah found in the Biblical book of Genesis (Chapter 34), THE RED TENT by Anita Diamant (1997) is captivating in plot and depiction. The only mention of Dinah in the Bible was about her supposed rape by a Shechemite prince. It is thoroughly about women, and truly for women. The length of the book was a bit much because it’s from her preteens to death. But if you can withstand the “life story” length, it is worth the read.

REVIEW:

THE RED TENT answered a lot of questions I’ve had about life in bible times, especially about women. The red tent is where the women of that time gathered during their monthly flow and where they birthed babies. It answered for me what the interaction between men and women was like. It was truly a male driven society and there was little interaction between the genders.

It is apparent that Anita did her homework and researched the pagan background of that era. There are many things I did not know about why God said “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” It is because of how many gods they worshipped during that time.

I enjoyed the embellishments of the story at times, but know that there are some which were definitely wrong. The important one was how Jacob and Leah married. Anita portrays the switching of Rachel for Leah as Rachel’s fault but Biblically it was Laban who switched them, swindling Jacob. I strongly disagree with the details she gave in the marriage between these too. It could not have been a happy one as Anita portrays. (She seems to be an optimist and twists the story in a positive light even through the tragedy of Dinah’s life.)

Nonetheless, I consider this story a worthwhile read because of how close the Bible is to my heart. I have always had trouble reading the mysterious words of the Bible and for someone to depict a story from the female point of view, makes me bubble with questions and curiosity. Now that I have a tid-bit of an idea about the role of women, maybe I will understand the Old Testament stories better. It is an eye-opening portrait of a woman of the Bible and the life she might have lived.

RATING:

I’d give this book a 3. Good: No regrets. I found this quote on Anita Diamant’s website. She wrote: “The amazing word-of-mouth support from readers and from book groups, has made THE RED TENT a publishing phenomenon. First printed in 1997 with no advertising budget and few reviews in major newspapers or magazines, this book only found its audience through the loyalty of readers, and the support of independent bookstores.”

I thought it was amazing that this book found me. Let me know what you think if you read it.

Review: EAT PRAY LOVE by Elizabeth Gilbert

TITLE: Eat Pray Love

AUTHOR: Elizabeth Gilbert
GENRE: Memoir
PUBLISHED: 2007

Reviewed for MOMENTS magazine

SYNOPSIS & REVIEW:

What is all the hype around EAT PRAY LOVE by Elizabeth Gilbert (2007), especially now that there is a movie based the book? I had to dip my toes into this international phenomenon and find out for myself. It’s a memoir about her life after a messy divorce and a sticky rebound-relationship falls apart. She’s floundering as many women do after such emotional trauma. What is different about Elizabeth Gilbert is that she packs her bags and chooses three countries in which to soul search: Italy, India, and Indonesia.

She begins her year journey seeking pleasure in Italy, primarily through the foods in this delicious country. Yes, there is beauty to behold in the architecture, but she went with the intentions of indulging herself in the pleasures of taste on her “no carb left behind” diet. Her silly anecdotes made me laugh out loud and one can’t help but be encouraged to live free of calorie counting. But this fun-loving section draws to a close and she dives into a deeper, more difficult section to read.

India was her place of seeking a higher power through prayer and meditation. I think it is wonderful when someone realizes their life needs to change and they seek out a sense of wholeness to their obvious brokenness. But sadly Gilbert goes down a path of mystical, New Age meditation. I found out only after the fact that it is called a “coming-of-New-Age” memoir. This entire section pained me to watch her put so much effort into something so cultish. She’s seeking out God and goes to a guru? Weird. She doesn’t intend to impress religious matters upon people, but the amount of information she poured into the second section about “god” and meditation says the opposite. She’s giving a first person account to life at an Ashram in India and eventually by the end of the book says that she was praying to her future self? This section was disappointing to say the least even though she may have found some inner peace.

In her pursuit of balance in Indonesia, she visited with an old medicine man. She also discovers that Bali isn’t all that balanced itself and seems to have only brought her life back into the circle of losing herself in another relationship. But you can congratulate her because, from the sounds of it, she doesn’t disregard her wants and desires for the needs of another male companion. For that I can appreciate her soul searching journey. She found herself in her travels and kept being that person even after she committed to a love affair. It’s the “Runaway Bride” finally realizing she can like her own kind of eggs.

RATING:

I’d rate this book at 1: Poor. Waste of good reading time. I’m glad I borrowed it from the library instead of buying it. She really didn’t give enough of a description of each country to make me want to get out there and travel. The entirety of the book is told as if from a chatty, silly friend who likes to drop the F-bomb and talk about her weaknesses, depression, and insecurities.


Read the published article that appeared in MOMENTS magazine in Oct 2010.