*Jane Yolen is the award-winning author of over three hundred children's books including Last Laughs- Prehistoric Epitaphs and Last Laughs- Animal Epitaphs, Bad Girls (with Heidi E. Y. Stemple); Owl Moon, a Caldecott Medal Winner; the How Do Dinosaurs . . . ? series, and Sea Queens. She has been called the Hans Christian Andersen of the Americas. Jane lives in Western Massachusetts and Scotland. *Barbara Diamond Goldin is the author of many picture books and story collections. She received the prestigious Sydney Taylor Body-of-Work Award in 1997. A former teacher and children's librarian, Barbara is now a library director in Western Massachusetts, and she also leads writing workshops and speaks about writing to school and library groups around the country. < Vali Mintzi is an illustrator, graphic designer, and puppet-theater designer. She is the illustrator of The Girl With the Brave Heart- A Tale from Tehran (Barefoot Books) as well as several children's books in Hebrew. She lives in Jerusalem with her architect partner and three daughters.
Two award-winning children's-book authors team up for a more
modern, feminist take on stories of girls and women in the Hebrew
Bible. In biblical times, wells were the centers of social life for
teenage girls-where future husbands and thirsty animals might
appear and news and gossip are traded. Via 14 stories that range
from Eve, the first woman and mother, to Esther, who becomes savior
and queen of her people, readers learn about these and other
complicated subjects including marriage, motherhood, infertility,
widowhood, and inheritance as well as female roles and experiences
as judge, prophet, and leader. Each chapter offers a story overview
identifying female heroism, as well as annotated sidebars
anticipating readers' questions, followed by an "Imagine" segment
in the character's voice by Goldin and a poem by Yolen. The authors
demystify the concept of midrash-noncanonical exploration of or
commentary on a story or text-empowering readers to consider their
own searching examinations of the subjects presented. Most of the
commentary is from Jewish sources, but some include commonalities
with other faiths, particularly Christianity and Islam. While the
presentation is a little staid, this book is solid,
well-researched, well-organized, and especially appropriate for
young people preparing for or celebrating coming-of-age rituals. A
much-needed, thoughtful updating of Bible stories about women that
functions as both storytelling experience and classic reference
tome.
- Kirkus Reviews (STARRED REVIEW)
Yolen and Goldin have collaborated on a text suitable for students'
first serious foray into Biblical analysis or midrash with a focus
on women. ("Still we must never forget that even in the stories
about men, there are women.") Nine chapters discuss a total of 14
women and girls from the Hebrew Bible. A working familiarity with
the stories of Eve, Rebecca, Deborah, Esther, etc. is assumed. The
opening page of each chapter notes the relevant Biblical verses for
reference, but Yolen and Goldin move right into retelling and
commentary. Using the Jewish tradition of marginalia, they include
sidebars anticipating readers' questions, such as "So many men in
the Bible have more than one wife-why?" They also discuss differing
interpretations and additional insights held by Jewish tradition.
Drawing connections among all three Abrahamic faiths, Yolen and
Goldin often include references to Islamic practice and belief.
However, the authors say little about the commonly held Islamic
belief that Abraham was prepared to sacrifice his son Ishmael-not
Isaac, as in Jewish and Christian tradition. Both authors present a
more detailed imagining of the women's stories at the conclusion of
each chapter, Goldin in prose and Yolen in verse. Mintzi's artwork,
done in a variety of blues, oranges, browns, and reds, skillfully
communicates the landscapes. VERDICT A solid source of study and
reflection for libraries with religious patrons.
-School Library Journal
That women are given the short shrift in the Hebrew Bible is no
news, but as Yolen and Golden point out in their introduction,
their stories have been more fully explored in Jewish midrash -
defined in part as "a Jewish story that explains, clarifies, or
elaborates" a Bible passage - and lately from a feminine
perspective. The authors delve deeply into history and motivations
in this collection of 14 biblical tales that highlight women, young
and old, who have been imprinted on Western consciousness. First
there is a recounting of the relevant story, with sidebars that
explain terms and customs (e.g., the marriage of cousins or
problematic issues such as the binding of Isaac). Following are
short original works, including poems, that take readers inside the
minds of the women. Each chapter features a lovely full-page piece
of artwork. This organization, though somewhat clunky, nevertheless
makes for an informative book. The authors don't shy away from
difficult subject matters - for instance, Naomi's instructions to
Ruth about enticing their kinsman Boaz. At the conclusion, readers
are encouraged to come up with their own midrashim.
-Booklist
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