by Kathleen Gilligan

Created on: January 03, 2009

"The Triumph of Deborah" by Eva Etzioni-Halevy

ISBN:978-0452289062

4/5 stars: I couldn't put it down

"Two women were standing on high places, shielding their eyes from the blazing sun with their hands, peering into the distance in search of the messengers from the battlefield. Each knew that her life depended on the outcome of the battle; but their lives depended on opposite results." ("The Triumph of Deborah" pg 3)

I received "The Triumph of Deborah" by Eva Etzioni-Halvey not too long ago and stuck it on top of my pile of ARCs. It sat next to my bed for a few days. One night I did some serious reading, and finished my LibraryThing May book ("The New Yorkers"). It was late, lol, or early depending on the way you look at it. "The Triumph of Deborah" caught my eye. I figured I'd pick it up and read a couple or pages, or maybe the first chapter, just to get a feel for it. I was rather tired. Well folks, I didn't stop at a few pages. I didn't stop at the end of the first chapter, or even at the end of the next one. I read all 362 pages at once.

If you've read some of my reviews, you know that I love historical fiction. I'm ashamed to admit that I never really considered reading Biblical historical fiction until recently. (Anita Diamant's "The Red Tent" is on by TBR list) I'm not sure why I never tried it. It's not because of the religious aspect, as I love reading about all different types. In any case, I'm glad I picked up this book, and will certainly be on the look out for more in the same genre.

I was hooked from the very beginning! It's been awhile since I've picked up a book that grabbed me like that. I very much enjoyed the story. The stories of three different women are told, each for at least several pages, and I was never confused as to whose point of view I was reading (in this case: Deborah, Nogah, and Asherah, and at times Barak). I found myself sympathizing with one of them, and then entirely changing my mind and agreeing with another. All three of the women were very strong characters, with Nogah being the most timid- but I think that worked for her. As for the man, Barak, even with all his womanizing he still managed to be oddly attractive. I could see why these women were drawn to him.

So would I recommend this book? Definitely. The good far outweigh the bad. The only problems I had with it, were at times I felt that the dialogue was a bit stiff; but that could just be because I'm unused to reading stories in that time period. I also felt there were a few places where modern phrases were used, like "a cranky child whose toy had been taken away" that didn't sit well for this time period. It was just something that didn't work for me. Both of these things were the reason I gave four stars instead of five. In any case, the story is amazing. Read "The Triumph of Deborah". If you liked this book, check out the author's other two: "The Garden of Ruth", and "The Song of Hannah".

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