Five Books of Miriam - by Ellen Frankel (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Weaving together Jewish lore, the voices of Jewish foremothers, Yiddish fable, midrash and stories of her own imagining, Ellen Frankel has created in this book a breathtakingly vivid exploration into what the Torah means to women. Here are Miriam, Esther, Dinah, Lilith and many other women of the Torah in dialogue with Jewish daughters, mothers and grandmothers, past and present. Together these voices examine and debate every aspect of a Jewish woman's life -- work, sex, marriage, her connection to God and her place in the Jewish community and in the world. The Five Books of Miriam makes an invaluable contribution to Torah study and adds rich dimension to the ongoing conversation between Jewish women and Jewish tradition.

From the Back Cover

Ellen Frankel, folklorist, writer, scholar, has written the book that lets the Torah speak to women and that welcomes women into its sacred pages. In The Five Books of Miriam, she helps us discover the stories, conflicts, and dreams of the many women - named and nameless - who populate the biblical landscape. Building on the centuries-old tradition of Jewish commentary, Frankel expands the conversation about what the Torah means to women. The Five Books of Miriam includes folktales and folklore, homespun wisdom, Yiddish lore, songs, midrash, modern scholarship, and feminist criticism.

Review Quotes

"A wounderful weave of women's voices that invites the reader to participate in a conversation both thousands of years old and utterly new"-- Judith Plaskow, author of "Standing Again at sinai: Judaism from a Feminist Perspective"This book is a masterpiece that should be in every libary."-- "Publishers Weekly"""The Five Books of Miriam" has the spin of the storyteller, the feel of the folklorist, and the wisdom of the scholar. All women should carry this portable Miriam around with them. This is a necessary, strong, and witty commentary." -- E. M. Broner, author of "The Telling"