Sotah (Readers Guide Editions)

Rating:
Summary: The Best Naomi Ragen book!
Review: Although this was mostly Dinah's story, it's easy to learn about the lives and choices (at least where a husband is concerned) of orthodox girls from all three sisters - Devorah, who has to marry a very unatractive (physically) man, and then learns how good he really his, Dinah, how follows the rules all the way, even when she has done no wrong, and knows it but follows anyhow, and Leah, who decides to take her fate into her own hands and succeeds. I think that the best lesson dinah, her family and us learn from this book is not following blindly, but checking things by ourselves before "jusmping in", because sometimes the majority can err, too!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Read!
Review: I first read the Sacrifice of Tamar, by N. Ragen, and found it to be excellent, (so good I had to buy this one!) but then I read Sotah, and it was even better! I am not jewish and this book gives a fastinating look into Ortodox jewish lives and the choices made in this culture. It was wonderful to read and begin to understand a lot more about people raised in this culture. Sotah even broaches into the non-orthodox world late in the book, and much like a "recovering catholic" has another non-religious jewish family come to terms and reconcile with their jewish past. The issues in this book (and Sacrifice of Tamar) would be faced by many in strict religious groups, and there is a great beauty in all of the realtionships and the different ways people come to look upon and reconcile with their faith. I would recommend this book very highly! This book has made me very interested in other books by this author!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Read!
Review: I first read the Sacrifice of Tamar, by N. Ragen, and found it to be excellent, (so good I had to buy this one!) but then I read Sotah, and it was even better! I am not jewish and this book gives a fastinating look into Ortodox jewish lives and the choices made in this culture. It was wonderful to read and begin to understand a lot more about people raised in this culture. Sotah even broaches into the non-orthodox world late in the book, and much like a "recovering catholic" has another non-religious jewish family come to terms and reconcile with their jewish past. The issues in this book (and Sacrifice of Tamar) would be faced by many in strict religious groups, and there is a great beauty in all of the realtionships and the different ways people come to look upon and reconcile with their faith. I would recommend this book very highly! This book has made me very interested in other books by this author!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent story, highly recommended reading
Review: I love this book. I read it a few years ago, and now I'm re-reading again. It left a very strong impression on me.

Rating:
Summary: Delightful!
Review: Sotah, the story of a young woman living in an insular utra-religious community, is an excllent book. It insightful, captivating, well written and very hard to put down. Living close to several insular communities similar to her's I found it very interesting and looking forward to reading her other novels.

Rating:
Summary: Difficult to rate
Review: There are so many wonderful reviews of this book that I just HAD to read it. I gave it only 3 stars because I felt it moved along too slowly even though that was probably intentional. However, by page 245, I found it so horribly depressing that I decided not to read any more. I guess each reader will feel differently about the facts of this story and must make her/his own decision about whether or not to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous, wonderful!!!
Review: This is one of the best books I have read in my life. I love the way Naomi Ragen writes. A true genius when it comes to expressing feelings and weaving a story together. I am in awe of this author! A great job!!! Thank you for writting this book. I look forward to reading more of the same author.

Tamara

Rating:
Summary: A compelling peek into an unknown world
Review: This novel gets 3 stars for literary style and 5 for content and sociological details. Even though the writing is not stellar and the plots and characterization can be predictable, you keep turning the pages anyway! Ragen makes a world that most of us know little about seem utterly real and sometimes almost physically oppressive. Read The Sacrifice of Tamar first, as that's her best!

Rating:
Summary: An Hasidic Romance Tale
Review: This novel is a great page-turner! I admire Ms. Ragen's ability to build both atmosphere & characters at the same time. While the outside world (including jews of other streams of Judaism) usually views the women of the Haredi world with either pity or contempt, the portrait of the women here is sensitively rendered. The distance of new arranged marriages is definitely there, along with how these marriage partners adjust and grow during different phases of their marriage. Excellent novel, hope it stays in print for awhile. Toda rabah, Naomi!!!

Rating:
Summary: My favorite Ragen book!
Review: This was Naomi Ragen's first book to be published in Israel, and it had made a huge impact. It exposed many secular Israelis to the inner workings of the Orthodox sect of the population and the actual people that chose that way of life.

The story itself might seem a little to predictable, but the twists and turns (even at their least surprising) highlight the main motive of the book, and helps its core message clearer.