The Book of Longings

Princess shared a tip "I was craving another historical fiction/biblical story after The Red Tent. This story was beautiful, what a fascinating perspective giving voice to the women that we never heard from. Excuse me while I go read the rest of Sue Monk Kidd’s books."

rurubyby shared a tip "Great read all around! Dont be turned off by this being a book with Jesus in it-he is a side character, and refreshingly so! This is a very thought provoking story,if you let it; and if not, it's an interesting look into the Old World through a seldom used lense. Hello Judaism! Historic cultural conflict! The women are varied and vibrant and the author did a great job portraying different types of relationships. The protagonist is very human and easy to identify with. Sidenote: while I dont subscribe to judeo-Christian beliefs, I can totally get behind this Jesus. Satisfying ending even though you think you know how it ends..."

amy_richard_39 shared a tip "This book made me rethink my views on Christianity (I’m agnostic) and made me wonder if women were mentioned more in religion if there might be more of an interest in that religion."

h_mccarthy shared a tip "Love this book. As Sue Monk kid said in her interview, if Jesus in fact did have a wife, she was the most silenced woman in history. A well-told story of a strong woman in the times of Jesus Christ. I highly recommend this book. "

jjghjjvv shared a tip "One of my most unexpected favorite books of the year! I am not religious at all, and don't believe you need to be to enjoy this book. This is Anna's story about finding her voice during a time period when women were expected to remain silent. I read a library copy of this book, and enjoyed it so much I bought my own copy to annotate."

WonderReads shared a tip "This book might genuinely be the best book that I have ever read. It's about the fictional wife of Jesus Christ and highlights the plight of women in Jewish culture during the time of Christ. I'm a Christian myself and I thought that the book beautifully described Christian love and reminded the reader that Jesus was human too, which I think a lot of people forget. Do yourself a favor and give this book a chance, even if you think you won't like it. It was done so cleverly and brilliantly."

jasmin_gibbons shared a tip "I read this book in 2 days. I could not put it down. My favourite book from Sue Monk Kidd. This is precisely the kind of historical fiction I love. Deeply researched details of the time period with an incredible character story."

morgan_hurley_4629 shared a tip "This was one of my favorite books I read last year! I highly recommend it, but remember it is a work of FICTION. The author is not trying to rewrite anything from the Bible."

leighanne_bryar shared a tip "As a not very religious person who has studied religion, I appreciate this imagined perspective of the part of Jesus's life that we know little about. I love the voice given to Anna."

cynthia_louise shared a tip "I enjoyed it. Most of it is centered around the female protagonist. Jesus is only a minor character. The portion in Alexandria is very interesting too. And I would say 90% of it is very well written. There's one or two chapters in the middle that may have been written by her daughter who helped out with the book. Not sure though."

amy_elizondo_1517 shared a tip "I am not religious yet I found this interesting take and spin on the life of Jesus and the life of Mary who so rarely is explored as more than just an aside to Jesus to be an enjoyable read. Thought provoking without complexity made it the perfect book to read when wanting to relax."

jessica_kent shared a tip "Phenomenal, feminist revision of female representation in the Bible. It centers around the story of Anna - wife of Jesus. It’s a fictional account, but sprinkled with well-researched anecdotes of the time and region."

hilary_wilson shared a tip "A book based on religious things is not typically the kind of book I would choose to read. But I enjoyed the strong female protagonist and the way it made me think about how religion and history have been skewed heavily to represent men rather than women."

kirsten_taylor_5079 shared a tip "This book is fascinating. I am not the religious type and it had me captivated from the start. It's historical, relatable and a deep sense of feminism."