#BlogTour The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd

 It's my turn on the BlogTour The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd.

About the Author

Sue Monk Kidd is the author of The Secret Life of Bees, one of the most beloved novels of the 21st century. It spent 2.5 years on the New York Times bestseller list, and has sold over 8 million copies worldwide. It was long-listed for the Orange Prize (now the Women’s Prize for Fiction) and made into a film starring Sophie Okonedo, Alicia Keys and Jennifer Hudson. Sue’s subsequent novels, The Mermaid Chair, The Invention of Wings and now The Book of Longings, were all New York Times bestsellers.

Sue is also the author of several non-fiction books including the New York Times bestseller Travelling with Pomegranates, co-written with her daughter Ann Kidd Taylor. Sue lives in Florida. 

Follow @suemonkkidd on Twitter, Visit suemonkkidd.com, Buy The Book of Longings

About the book

Ana is born in Galilee at a time when women are seen as possessions, only leaving their fathers’ homes to marry. Ana longs to control her destiny. Taught to read despite her mother’s misgivings, she wants to be a writer and to find her own voice. A voice that will speak for the silenced women around her.

Betrothed to an elderly widower, Ana almost despairs. But an encounter with a charismatic young carpenter in Nazareth awakens new longings in her, and a different future opens up. Yet this is not a simple love story. Ana’s journey will bring both joy and tragedy, but it will also be enriched by the female friendships she makes along the way.

The Book of Longings is an exquisite tale of dreams and desire, and of the power of women to change the world

Review

I absolutely loved this book. I was impressed by the way the author has interspersed the read with the topics of faith, religion, the marginalisation of women and the changing perception of Christianity as the concept absorbed new ideas over time.

It is very much a story of the invisible, oppressed gender - made silent and forced to bow down to the whims of a male dominated society. Ana is a girl who yearns to be acknowledged and treated like the son her father wishes she were. She is a scholar, and yet the society she lives in will never let her be one. The reality of her situation comes in the form of a rude awakening when she is more or less given away like chattel. It changes everything.

The author is an excellent storyteller, which is especially evident in the way Jesus - with all his centuries of reputation and status as a martyr for the cause - becomes almost inconsequential in comparison to Ana. Instead the plight of women and girls takes centre stage in this reimagining of life during the times of Jesus of Nazareth. I think the most poignant aspect of that is the fact not very much has changed at all and depending on what country you live in - nothing has changed at all.

Aside from the very real possibility of what the life of the real man would have looked liked, as opposed to the changed narrative we all know, which of course portrayed a man of virtue, the suggested scenario is probably more likely. I am sure scholars and zealots will have plenty to grumble about when it comes to this story, but it doesn't change the fact it's a cracking read.

Buy The Book of Longings at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher : Tinder Press pub date 21 April 2020) 18th March 2021 I £8.99 I Paperback. Buy at Amazon com.