Rating: 
Summary: Fabulous
Review: Can't stop thinking and talking about this book. I have never been pulled into a story as I was with this one. I feel as if I knew these woman personally and I will carry them in my heart for a very long time. Bravo Ms. Diamant...Bravo.
Rating: 
Summary: A great book for character lovers
Review: I need a book to have detailed, interesting characters in order to keep my attention and grab at my heartstrings. This book had them. There were many characters but each was rich with characteristics that empowered me to create them in my own head. Just having had my first child, I was very interested in the midwifery tales and the mother-daughter bonds in the book. I don't over-analyse books but it is hard to find one that I remain interested in enough to finish it and this was definitely one I would recommend and someday read again.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful story.
Review: Based on a fleeting Old Testament reference to Jacob's daughter Dinah, Anita Diamant presents us with Dinah's wonderful life story in The Red Tent. Dinah is the only daughter of four mothers, and each of them -- Leah, Rachel, Zilpah and Bilhah -- is a different, compelling character, simply and gracefully rendered. Their relationships are complex: loving and jealous, joyous and painful, tender and harsh. The special rituals which come to pass in the red tent, the place of all things exclusively female, form an anchor for the tale as they were an anchor in their lives. I loved this novel... sucked it down like a milkshake and wished there were more. My one regret is that because this is so thoroughly perceived to be a "women's novel," it won't occur to my male friends to read it for its story, and the story is really the point. You'll laugh, you'll cry. Read this book.
Rating:
Summary: Completely Engrossing
Review: Not since Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden) have I been so engrossed in a novel. Ms. Diamant's telling of a story that dates back to the days of Genesis is so moving. Her style of writing pulled me in to the story so that I felt I was truly there with Dinah living through her each emotion and feeling. I've know the story of Jacob and his twelve sons since I was a child but never heard any reference to Dinah his daughter. Ms Diamant's story of Dinah's life was woven to such perfection that I wasn't sure what was fact and what was fiction. I've actually gone back to the Bible to read the story of Jacob again.
I think what also makes this novel so fascinating is the setting and time the story takes place. There are few novels that take place this far back in history and it is evident the reseach that was involved with the writing of this book. I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone. Plainly spoken, it's just a great story.
Rating:
Summary: Thank you for sharing my story....
Review: As a child, Dinah is cherished by her mothers. She listens to their stories, shares their joys, and learns what secrets the red tent holds through her own experience and her mother's. When Dinah curses her father and brothers for the death of her new husband, I felt the power of her words. After reading her story, and being thanked at the end for doing so, I felt duty-bound to remember her story, and pass it to others. The power there is incredible, and I hope to read more like it.
Rating:
Summary: Very Interesting - a must if you liked Mists of Avalon
Review: Yes, I realize that is partially based on a biblical character but let's face it she took a lot of liberties with the story. Nevertheless - I loved this book and was so sad when it came to an end. This was so interesting and I can't recommend it enough. I could just see how so many of the things she wrote about could have been possible. Please give this to a friend as a gift but be sure to read it yourself - you won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Good read --- if you don't care about endings
Review: I liked this book -- for the most part. I liked the stories Ms. Diamant writes about Dinah's four mothers. I liked Ms. Diamant's writing style. I liked the glimpses she gaves readers of what life may have been like in those days. I agree with her perspective on what women may have thought, loved and feared in those ancient times. I don't have a problem with the liberties she may have taken with the men of the story. As a matter of fact, I glad that their biblical, historical presence did not stop her from viewing them as the ordinary men that they were in their time. I liked the humanity -- and all the good and the bad that comes with it, that she dresses her characters with. So why the 3 star rating? Because Ms. Diamant runs out of inspiration after Dinah leaves her family and journeys to Egypt, which is about 2/3 into the story. After the climatic event, Dinah's story is not one of great interest. There are no other insights into what her life may have been like in that country, other than living in the garden or helping in childbirth. The other aspect that bothers me about the Red Tent, is that Dinah finds love at the end of the story. I think Ms. Diamant has the same problem most women have. We criticize men for their emotional insentitivity but harbor the hope of finding the one exception to the rule. This is why I don't read romance novels -- don't like them, so I have a real problem when a historical novel ends up being a romance novel.
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read for All Women
Review: We don't know much about the women in the Torah, since it is mostly told from the viewpoint of men. This fictional account of Dinah and her mothers may not be historical fact, but since it relies heavily on facts in the Torah up until the murder of Dinah's "husband", it can almost be taken as history. The Red Tent also had a couple of passages that actually made me cry, not an easy thing to do with words.
Rating:
Summary: The Best!
Review: After reading the story of Genesis I was urged by a friend to read The Red Tent. I must admit this was the best read that I've had in a long time. This novel paints a picture that provides texture and substance to the story of Genesis. Although the depictions are only half truths it enlightens you to what could have or even may have occurred. Dinah's story is filled with far more significance than that of the bible and you feel her plight and the betrayal that was handed to her. The story of her four mothers, Leah, Rachel, Bilhah and Zilpah was engrossing and potent. This is a novel that I will definitely read again and again!
Rating:
Summary: Avid Reader
Review: This was one of the best books I have ever read. I loved hearing this bibical story from a womans point of view. This is the story of Jacob and his sons from Dinah his daughters point of view. This is an Excellent read! A must!
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