Anita Diamant's *The Red Tent* is a novel by the American author and journalist. Published in 1997, it became a bestseller and has been translated into 25 different languages. It was also adapted into a television miniseries in 2014. The novel tells the story of Dinah, a girl mentioned briefly in the Bible, specifically in the early chapters of Genesis, which focus on her father Jacob and his ten sons. Through the voice of Dinah, Jacob's only daughter, the novel takes us to Jacob's early life ...

This was a truly compelling read, and I'm honestly at a loss for words to describe just how beautiful the writing is. Anita Diamant has woven a deeply intricate and poignant story in *The Red Tent* that utterly captivated me, and I think I'll be moonstruck by it for quite some time! If you're looking for thought-provoking book reviews, definitely consider this one. *The Red Tent* follows the life of Jacob's daughter, Dinah, a minor character in the Book of Genesis. Diamant essentially expands u...

Are you ready to go into the Red Tent? JACOB’S DINASTY: THE REALITY SHOW We have been lost to each other for so long. My name means nothing to you. My memory is dust. This is not your fault, or mine. The chain connecting mother to daughter was broken and the word passed to the keeping of men, who had no way of knowing. Dysfunctional family falls short to describe Jacob’s household.Nowadays, it would easily be a high-rating TV reality show!Jacob, a weak man put into the stressful place o...

Anita Diamant - image from her site Anita Diamant's *The Red Tent* offers a female perspective on the biblical tales of Jacob, father to the twelve tribes of Israel, and his family—people with some serious issues who’d be right at home on HBO, complete with enough blood and betrayal to keep you hooked. Dinah was Jacob's only daughter, and it’s through her eyes and her retelling of others’ stories that we see the world of that time: the social organization within the family, how they related to o...

In Hebrew literature, there's a form called Midrash, which is essentially an interpretation of Hebrew texts. Even though I'm not Jewish, I'd personally categorize *The Red Tent* as Midrash. Why? Because Anita Diamant doesn't stray one bit from the Jacob and Dinah story in the Bible. Many people who read *The Red Tent* and then revisit the biblical texts are surprised to find that there are household gods and concubines, that Jacob used some rather superstitious means to breed spotted goats, tha...

I was at Border's Express one day, hunting for a book to curl up with for a good long read. A clerk actually approached me and asked if I needed help finding anything. I KNOW, weird, right? Customer service? Who knew that still existed? Anyway, I told her what I was looking for, and she pointed me to *The Red Tent* by Anita Diamant. My first thought was, "Oh crap! A religious book!" I know I'm risking offending the churchgoers out there, but please don't throw stones. Think totally repressed rel...

Anytime a work of fiction targets a Judeo-Christian audience, it's tricky to rate. Should religious doctrine be taken into account, or should we judge it solely on its merits as a good story? I think some of the more negative reviews of *The Red Tent* are in regards to its biblical inaccuracies. Let me start by saying that if you're a moral conservative who believes in the Old Testament, I'd advise caution before reading this book by Anita Diamant. That's not to say you shouldn't read it; just ...

Based (very) loosely on Dinah's story from Genesis, *The Red Tent* by Anita Diamant is a remarkably easy read. Dinah's story deserves to be fleshed out; the Bible offers an interesting, yet underdeveloped and uncertain account. Diamant does a fairly decent job developing her female characters, but the male characters are largely flat, stereotypical, and unnecessarily negative. In the Bible, Jacob and Joseph are more well-rounded; they are human, with both faults and virtues, moments of greatnes...

My frustration with "The Red Tent" stemmed primarily from the way the characters were depicted. I enjoyed Anita Diamant's writing style and how she addresses contemporary socio-cultural issues. The characterization itself was quite vivid. My issue was with the *presentation* of those characters. Of course, people in the Bible were real people with flaws and strengths, but I didn't appreciate how many were portrayed as petty and conniving. And I *especially* disliked the sexual depictions. I unde...

My mom gifted me "The Red Tent" for Christmas, mainly because she was itching to read it herself. I glanced at the summary on the back and was intrigued, but wasn't planning on diving in right away until she practically demanded I read it ASAP so she could get her hands on it. So I did. Devoured it in a single day. I'm a pretty fast reader regardless, but give me a truly captivating book, and I'll finish it in record time. "The Red Tent" was just that – excellent. I was hooked from the very fi...