Red tent

Out of the sands of the desert rises a moving story, before which even Sinuhet bows... Dinah, the only daughter of the Jewish forefather Jacob, refuses to accept the role of the disgraced wretch assigned to her by the chronicles of the Israelites in Genesis 34. A kindly helper to the resolute mother Lea, a diligent student of the midwife and, most importantly, an astute listener to the conversations held by her father's many female partners in the tent reserved for days when religious regulations deem them "unclean," she recounts the cruel history of her tribe's nomadic journey through the deserts of the Middle East. But her feminine view of history is not "kitchen" - and certainly not "pavilion". She would only like to point out the true state of affairs, especially when events come to a tragedy spurred by the rich prince's interest in her charms... Anita Diamant's biblical apocryphal account of the determination of the human heart to rise from the sands of time despite the patriarchy's scorn is as immediate as the voice of the Egyptian healer Sinuheth. They're not going to outdo him. Dinah's confession about the power of starting over, come what may, has travelled the world and in 2015 was made into a film starring Rebecca Ferguson. Right. It matches the Euphrates and the Nile, on whose banks it is set, in the vigour of its delivery, and assures us that love always was, is and will be in earnest. "A fascinating picture of the everyday of antiquity and the depth of its terrors. Yet you don't get the feeling that it's a novel. And that's the trick." - The New York Times. "Despite the proclivities of certain feminists, the author has remained true to the idea that the biblical age was a killing carousel of childbirth, spitting out offspring, and premature deaths for marginalized women mothers. She has found a hiding place for her heroines where men are strictly forbidden to enter, and has spun a gripping tale of love, betrayal and revenge without compromising on historical facts." - The Guardian. "Diamond has brought to life an ancient world of caravans and shepherds, early farmers, midwives, slaves and artisans... Her resurrected Dinah is a compelling narrative with a timeless message." - The Christian Science Monitor. "At the beginning of your sacred book there is a passage which seemingly describes my rape and goes on to describe the blood feud of my honor. No one said a word about it, what a skilled midwife I was, about songs, that I used to sing, or bread, that I baked for my greedy brothers. I'm left with nothing but a few confused details about those few weeks in Shechem. And yet there is so much more to tell..." - excerpt from the book.