Out of the Garden: Women Writers on the Bible

Out of the Garden: Women Writers on the Bible
by Celina Spiegel, Christina Buchmann

Out of the Garden: Women Writers on the Bible
List Price: $19.00
Our Price: $4.36
You Save: $14.64 (77%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.10 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


(Click here)
Buy this book at online book store in your country
Canada | UK | Germany | France

Book Summary Information

Author: Celina Spiegel, Christina Buchmann
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1995-05-10
ISBN: 0449910172
Number of pages: 368
Publisher: Ballantine Books

Book Reviews of Out of the Garden: Women Writers on the Bible

Book Review: Claiming God for Themselves Too: Women Write About the Bible
Summary: 4 Stars

Throughout history, religion has been man's domain: written by and for him alone. Christianity and Judaism are just two more example of male-centered religious theory. Right? Maybe. But "Out of the Garden: Women Writers on the Bible" is a startling wake-up call, and it is a powerful voice for those who feel that women (as well as the feminist movement) can find their own places within the Bible. The combination of essays provided here are strongly convincing in the argument that they present: women are important figures in the Bible, and it was written with them in mind, too. An important factor in the book is that its essays are written by women with a wide diversity of religious backgrounds, from many sects of Protestanism, to Catholicism, to Judaism. This is a powerful message of unity for women, and for religion. Many of the essays shine as personal examples of the Bible touching women's lives. Patricia J. William's personal essay was especially moving, because she tied in her own life experience with a Bible story; specifically, that of the adoption of Moses. If women can relate the Bible and the Christian and Jewish religions to their own lives, is this not important evidence in itself that they are not excluded in these theories' teachings and reachings? The only problem with this book is its tendency to make wild interpretations of Christianity and Judaism, and sometimes it is questionable whether more than the one author writing the essay could ever see a feminist message in a particular passage or story. However, this does not take away from the book's resounding message, that women should not be discouraged from claiming Christianity and Judaism as their own as men have done since its conception. "Out of the Garden" is an important book to add to any feminist theology collection, or to read in order to find out just how the Christianity of men can be looked at from the perspective of many different women.

Summary of Out of the Garden: Women Writers on the Bible

"Essays of considerable literary erudition and sophistication that... dislodge dull stereotypes to enable both women and men readers to see the Bible with fresh eyes."
--Los Angeles Times Book Review
As the one work that has held moral and religious sway over the Judeo-Christian tradition for thousands of years, the Bible is unsurpassed in world literature. For women, its meaning is particularly complex; traditionally, the Bible has been used to keep women in their place, but it has also been a book of enduring inspiration. Out of the Garden marks a new stage in women's relations to the Bible: this is the first collection of essays in which women read and respond to the Bible out of pleasure and curiosity--free to explore what is really relevant to women's lives.
Drawing on their own experiences and interests, Louise Erdrich, Cynthia Ozick, Fay Weldon, Phyllis Trible, Rebecca Goldstein, June Jordan, Ursula K. Le Guin, and twenty-one other writers boldly, imaginatively--and sometimes reproachfully--address the Old Testament stories, characters, and poetry that mean the most to them. Thoughtful, challenging, and playful, these beautifully written essays explore the Bible in fresh new ways. Out of the Garden reclaims the Bible for women and shows readers that the Bible is a source we can return to again and again.
"A many-splendored achievement...This grand collection is a bold revitalization of our relation to our tradition. It offers the reader the gorgeously varied company of strongly delineated temperaments as they take on the compelling, threatening figures of our imaginative forebears."
--Harold Bloom
Author of The Book of J and The Western Canon

Personal Transformation Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Ultimate Guide to Christian and Spiritual Anthologies and Essays
Words I Wish I Wrote: A Collection of Writing That Inspired My Ideas ImageWords I Wish I Wrote: A Collection of Writing That Inspired My Ideas
by Robert Fulghum
Harper Paperbacks; Published: 1999-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.94
Price in other shops: $14.95
Whispers of the Dead: Fifteen Sister Fidelma Mysteries (Sister Fidelma Mysteries) ImageWhispers of the Dead: Fifteen Sister Fidelma Mysteries (Sister Fidelma Mysteries)
by Peter Tremayne
St. Martin's Minotaur; Published: 2004-05-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.79
Price in other shops: $14.95
Thou Shalt Not Kill: Biblical Mystery Stories ImageThou Shalt Not Kill: Biblical Mystery Stories
Carroll & Graf; Published: 2005-11-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.50
Price in other shops: $15.95
The Storytellers' Collection: Tales of Faraway Places (Storytellers' Collection) ImageThe Storytellers' Collection: Tales of Faraway Places (Storytellers' Collection)
by Melody Carlson
Multnomah Books; Published: 2000-08-05; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $1.75
Price in other shops: $16.99
A Stay Against Confusion: Essays on Faith and Fiction ImageA Stay Against Confusion: Essays on Faith and Fiction
by Ron Hansen
Harper Perennial; Published: 2002-04-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.00
Price in other shops: $14.95
Spiritual RX: Prescriptions for Living a Meaningful Life ImageSpiritual RX: Prescriptions for Living a Meaningful Life
by Frederic Brussat
Hyperion; Published: 2001-08-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.99
Price in other shops: $19.00
Spiritual Literacy: Reading the Sacred in Everyday Life ImageSpiritual Literacy: Reading the Sacred in Everyday Life
by Frederic Brussat, Mary Ann Brussat
Scribner; Published: 1998-08-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.98
Price in other shops: $18.00
Soul Food: Stories to Nourish the Spirit and the Heart ImageSoul Food: Stories to Nourish the Spirit and the Heart
by Jack Kornfield
HarperOne; Published: 1996-10-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.95
Price in other shops: $16.95
Soul: Archaeology of the Spirit--Readings from Socrates to Ray Charles ImageSoul: Archaeology of the Spirit--Readings from Socrates to Ray Charles
by Phil Cousineau
HarperSanFrancisco; Published: 1995-01-19; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.65
Price in other shops: $14.00
A Rare Benedictine (Brother Cadfael Mysteries) ImageA Rare Benedictine (Brother Cadfael Mysteries)
by Ellis Peters
Mysterious Press; Published: 1989-11-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $11.99
Price in other shops: $25.00
Similar Books and other products
HarperCollins Bible Dictionary ImageHarperCollins Bible Dictionary
by Paul J. Achtemeier
HarperOne; Published: 1996; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $28.89
Price in other shops: $47.50
The Cake Bible ImageThe Cake Bible
by Rose Levy Beranbaum
William Morrow Cookbooks; Published: 1988-09-20; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $20.08
Price in other shops: $35.00
Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction ImageReading the Old Testament: An Introduction
by Lawrence Boadt
Paulist Press; Published: 1984-01-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.50
Price in other shops: $19.95
Reckless Appetites: A Culinary Romance ImageReckless Appetites: A Culinary Romance
by Jacqueline Deval
Ecco Pr; Published: 1995-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.43
Price in other shops: $12.00
Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy ImageSimple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy
by Sarah Ban Breathnach
Amazon Remainders Account; Published: 1995-10-31; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.04
Price in other shops: $21.00
Texts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives (Overtures to Biblical Theology) ImageTexts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives (Overtures to Biblical Theology)
by Phyllis Trible
Augsburg Fortress Publishers; Published: 1984-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.00
Price in other shops: $16.00
The Dance of the Dissident Daughter: A Woman's Journey from Christian Tradition to the Sacred Feminine (Plus) ImageThe Dance of the Dissident Daughter: A Woman's Journey from Christian Tradition to the Sacred Feminine (Plus)
by Sue Monk Kidd
HarperOne; Published: 2007-01-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.74
Price in other shops: $13.95
Wisdom from Gift from the Sea ImageWisdom from Gift from the Sea
by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Peter Pauper Press; Published: 2002-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.54
Price in other shops: $5.95
Home Cooking: A Writer in the Kitchen ImageHome Cooking: A Writer in the Kitchen
by Laurie Colwin
Harper Perennial; Published: 2000-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.98
Price in other shops: $12.00
Gift from the Sea: 50th Anniversary Edition ImageGift from the Sea: 50th Anniversary Edition
by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Pantheon; Published: 1991-10-08; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.75
Price in other shops: $16.00
Book store. Illustrated catalog of books on different categories