The Red Tent

By: Anita Diamant

Narrated by: Carol Bilger

Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

Deeply affecting, The Red Tent combines rich storytelling with a valuable contribution in modern fiction: a new perspective of female life in biblical society. It is a vast and stirring work described as what the Bible might have been had it been written by God's daughters instead of sons. Far beyond the traditional women-of-the-Bible sagas in both impact and vigor, The Red Tent is based upon a mention in Genesis of Jacob's only female offspring - his daughter, Dinah.

Author Anita Diamant, in the voice of Dinah, gives an insider's look at the details of women's lives in biblical times and a chronicle of their earthy stories and long-ignored histories. The red tent of the title is the place where women were sequestered during their cycles of birthing, menses, and illness. It is here that Dinah hears the whispered stories of her four mothers - Jacob's wives Leah, Rachel, Zilpah, and Bilhah - and tells their tales to us in remarkable and thought-provoking oratories.

Familiar passages from the Bible take on new life as Dinah fills in what the Bible has left out - the lives of women. Dinah tells us of her initiation into the religious and sexual practices of the tribe; Jacob's courtship with Rachel and Leah; the ancient world of caravans, farmers, midwives, and slaves; her ill-fated sojourn in the city of Sechem; her years in Canaan; and her half-brother Joseph's rise in Egypt.

Skillfully interweaving biblical tales with characters of her own invention, the author re-creates the life of Dinah providing an illuminating portrait of a courageous woman and the life she might have lived. A new view of the panorama of life in biblical times emerges from the female perspective, and the red tent itself becomes a symbol of womanly strength, love, and wisdom.

The Red Tent is one of those extremely rare publishing phenomenons - a little promoted, but dynamically successful book (over 250,000 copies sold) that owes its success to enthusiastic word-of-mouth endorsements. Now, for the first time, this sweeping saga, which has struck a chord with so many modern-day women, comes to life as a much-anticipated audiobook.

Don't miss Anita Diamant at the 92nd Street Y.

©1997 by Anita Diamant (P)2000 by Audio Renaissance, An Imprint of Renaissance Media, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Book Sense Book of the Year Award Winner, Adult Fiction, 2001

"The oldest story of all could never seem more original, or more true." (James Carroll, author of An American Requiem)
"Carol Bilger narrates with a warmth and melodiousness that echo the rhythm of the musical interludes that separate chapters." (AudioFile)

A wonderful book!!! I can’t wait to read again and again.

It has been a very long time since I have read a book this good and once that I enjoyed so much. I wept at so many beautiful moments. I hung on every detail of this life story. I don’t usually read a book more than once but this one I can absolutely see myself reading again..

Not Biblically Accurate

I thought this would be biblically accurate with fictional details. Unfortunately, there are details in the book that are directly opposed to the biblical account regarding this family.

Reader is boring!!!

The reader plainly reads the book all in on voice, one intonation. No change from person to person at all. Sooooo boring.

Story of Motherhood

As a new mother myself, this book got me through the midnight feeds and made me feel more connected to my daughter. The story lays out a life well lived, there’s love and light, tragedy and sorrow. Most important is memory and a mothers love. It’s the sort of book that makes you stop and write down the nuggets of truth to come back to and share with other mothers. It makes you sad for the way of life we’ve lost, the community we don’t have to support us in our birthing and mothering, but somehow makes you feel strong and capable all at once. I would recommend all mothers read this book and share it with their daughters.

highly-recommended -- fun, moving, thot-provoking

This tale re-writes the bible story of Joseph, from the imagined perspective of the women involved. A fascinating read, rich as a fictional story and richer still as a subversive critique of the bible. The story dramatized how attuned the bible was to the male perspective - and how amazingly unattuned it was to the female perspective. As a man, I personally didn't feel insulted like the other reviewer (Andrew) felt by the portrayals of men, but maybe I'm just liberal. I also appreciated seeing how monotheism co-existed with polytheism for so long (long after Abraham smashed idols in his dad's shop), and how women and men may have viewed the introduction of monotheism very differently.
All in all, a fun, moving, thought-provoking, and beautifully-written story. Highly recommended.

Makes you think...

I did not want to enjoy this book. My wife and I recomend three books a year to each other and this was one of my three this year. 12 hours of audio is daunting when it's not something you want to read, but this novel, based on a few chapters of Genesis is fantastic. It follows Dinah, the only daughter of Jacob, son of Issac. I referenced my Bible when reading it to see where the story came from and where it ventured into unknown territory. The story is a saga of one woman's life in biblical times and is enthralling. My only problem with it was some of the descriptions of womenly things were blunt...not vulgar but blunt. I got over it early in the book and went onto reccomend it to friends and family.

Women-secular lives in a biblical era

Raised as a strict protestant, I think I know the Bible pretty well. This author took an era out of the Old Testament and spun a compelling story around the land, the lifestyles and some facts out of the Bible. But, what I liked the best about this book was a deep exploration of women and their relationships in a very male dominated world. Sharing and caring for each other throughout their lifetimes takes on a larger impetus than in other times and places. This close examination of their lives helped me re-evaluate my own relationship with the women in my life.

Fabulous story--NOT Christian Fiction.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. If you don't have the time to sit down and actually read the book, the audiobook is the next best thing. But, really, if you have time to read the actual book, do it.

What didn’t you like about Carol Bilger’s performance?

The narrator is not as expressive as I would have liked. She didn't use different voices for different characters, and her voice was always very soft. I also thought the seemingly random insertion of music throughout the book was odd and distracting.

Any additional comments?

I read this book for the first time nearly 12 years ago, and I loved it. The book is filled with strong female characters and describes their struggles as they try to live full lives in a time that was very difficult for women.

For those who think this is "Christian Fiction" just because the story is based very loosely on Biblical characters, think again. First, characters are based on people who are mentioned in the Old Testament, which means they lived before Christ. As a result, nothing of their lives or stories could ever be considered "Christian." Second, the author is Jewish. She even wrote a non-fiction book called "Living a Jewish Life." Why in the world would anyone expect a Jewish author to write Christian Fiction? Do your research, folks.

Interesting Historical Fiction

I enjoyed this audiobook. It provides an interesting perspective on historical events. The book is credible and well-narrated. You may find it a bit long, but power through and you will find the main character endearing. If you are not into women's literature or women's studies, this book is not for you.

Excellent Book

I'm so glad I didn't look at the reviews before I ordered and listened to this book. It was compelling, interesting and thoroughly enjoyable. The narrator had a good voice that I found pleasant to listen to. I was so interested in the time period that I pulled out my Torah to see what it said. I am confused by all the reviewers that said the book was so inaccurate. I thought it covered the scripture well and was so interesting in how the author filled in the gaps. Well if you are open-minded and want to explore women's relationships (relevant to today as well as historically), read this book. It has the depth to hold one's interest and is very entertaining.