Five Books of Miriam: A Woman's Commentary on the Torah Book

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.

Library Journal

In this wonderfully imaginative book, Frankel (The Classic Tales, Aronson, 1995), the editor-in-chief of the Jewish Publication Society, presents a chorus of women's voices-from Miriam "the problem," Leah "the namer," Lilith "the rebel," and Eve to "our daughters" ("today's Jewish women and the women of the generations yet to come"), our mothers, and our bubbes ("those who have lived long and seen it all"). The voices speculate and give valuable historical background on the Five Books of Moses as they are presented in the normal order of synagogue readings. What a lively and revelatory exchange it is, and how refreshing it is to hear the points of view of the usually silent women of tradition and the Old Testament. Highly recommended for Judaica collections.-Marcia G. Welsh, Guilford Free Lib., Ct.