Synopses & Reviews
Beautiful, fragile Dina Reich, a young woman in Jerusalems ultra-Orthodox haredi enclave, stands accused of the communitys most unforgivable sin: adultery. Raised with her sisters to be an obedient daughter and a dutiful wife, Dina secretly yearned for the knowledge, romance, and excitement that she knew her circumscribed life would never satisfy. When her first romance is tragically thwarted, she willingly enters into an arranged marriage with a loving but painfully quiet man. Dinas deeply repressed passions become impossible to ignore, finding a dangerous outlet in a sudden and intense obsession with a married man, with terrible consequences. Exiled to New York City, Dina meets Joan, a modern secular woman who challenges all she knows of the world and herself.
Set against the exotic backdrop of Jerusalems glistening white stones and ancient rituals, Sotah is a contemporary story of the struggle to reconcile tradition with freedom, and faith with love.
Review
"The pleasures of Ragen's book arise... from thought-provoking comparisons of Israeli Orthodox and American Jewish life." --Publishers Weekly
“Richness of faith and family lovingly evoked, with the other side--religious and cultural intolerance--equally given its due.”
-- Kirkus
“Sotah is a passionately honest novel. Gripping from start to finish.”
-- Maisie Mosco
Synopsis
Set against the backdrop of Jerusalem's ancient rituals, Sotah is a contemporary story of sacred and profane love, and a young woman's struggle to reconcile tradition with freedom. Ninety three weeks on the best-seller list."Sotah introduces a family with three daughters approaching the age of marriage: Devorah, Dina and Chaya Leah. In the strict orthodoxy of their world, a "Sotah is a wife suspected of infidelity who can be tried by ordeal to prove she is guiltless. Which sister could be capable of such a thought, let alone the act? Into the pious world of strict chaperoning and modest clothing, where a married woman's hair must never be seen by a man other than her husband--insinuates this serpent suggestion of evil. Ragen's powerful tale of three sisters spins endless questions: Which one? Could she? Did she? What changes could come into this orderly world because of unthinking actions?
Synopsis
Set within a closed heredi society, Sotah (which means wife suspected of infidelity in Hebrew) centers on the event all young girls eagerly anticipate: marriage. For the three daughters of Rabbi Reich, things are no different. But when the Reichs refuses a match between Dina, their devout middle daughter, and the young man she loves because of the economic disparity between their families, Dina is forced, at seventeen, to enter an arranged marriage with a man she barely knows who has been chosen by her matchmaker. Before long, Dina's restless yearnings - for romance and excitement - drive her into a dangerous flirtation. When her insular community learns of her transgression, they decide to subject Dina to an ordeal. Like the Biblically ordained ritual for the wife suspected of adultery, this trial will either destroy her or vindicate her. Forced into exile in New York, Dina must fashion her own traditions and find the courage to return to Jerusalem to reclaim her husband, her family, and her life.
About the Author
Naomi Ragen is the author of novels including The Tenth Song, The Sacrifice of Tamar, The Covenant, and The Saturday Wife. Her books are international bestsellers, and her weekly email columns on life in the Middle East are read by thousands of subscribers worldwide. Ragen attended Brooklyn College and earned her masters in English from Hebrew University. An American, she has lived in Jerusalem since 1971. She was recently voted one of the three most popular authors in Israel.
Reading Group Guide
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1) The Sotah was a woman accused of adultery who had to go through a purifying ritual to prove her innocence, or ascertain her guilt. Read Numbers 5, 11-28. How do the events in Sotah parallel the biblical ritual? What is Dina Reich guilty of? Does she reach purification, or teshuva?
2) Female family relationships are very important in Sotah. Describe the relationship between Dina and her sisters, the girls and their mother.
3) Joan opens Dina's eyes to the greater world, but Dina open's Joan's eyes and her heart to many things this modern woman is equally ignorant of. Describe their relationship and what they teach each other.
4) In the beginning of Sotah, we encounter Dina Reich as a young girl. In the course of the story she matures and changes. How would you describe the kind of transformation that takes place in her?
5) The word "sift" describes a pivotal concept in Sotah. Can you describe when the word is used, and what it means in terms of the story?
6) Attempts to find Dina a husband without the use of a matchmaker result in disaster. Describe the positive role of the matchmaker in the haredi world.
7) Compared to modern Western rituals of dating and marriage, the haredi world seems very narrow. Can you see anything positive in the haredi customs?
8) Statistics show that haredi women have a lower life expectancy than their husbands do. What elements in the life of Dina's mother and her sisters do you think could lead to that?
9) Moishe writes Dina: "I guess being a Chasid is pretty good training " (for being a soldier). What does he mean? Do you agree with him?
10) The idea of "chesed" is very important in Sotah. What is "chesed?" Can you describe acts of chesed in the book?