The Sacrifice of Tamar: A Novel Paperback – Picture Book, July 20, 2010

WARNING: This book deals with a rape and its aftermath. This may be a trigger for some people.Tamar is a young, pretty woman from a strict, ultra-Orthodox Jewish community. At 21, she is married to a respected rabbi, and she is treated with affection and deference by his congregation. Tamar has grown up obeying all the rules of her faith, and she views her marriage and her secure life as her reward. But one night, everything she believes is shattered. While she is watching her nephew, a strange man breaks into the apartment and brutally rapes her. Fearing that her husband and her neighbors will blame or reject her, she does not tell anyone, nor does she call the police. When she finds that she is pregnant, she is horrified. Will her husband divorce her for adultery? She would have no escape-because her rapist was a Black man. The son she gives birth to is White-and grows up to be a brilliant Biblical scholar and a strikingly handsome man. When he falls in love with a girl he met in Israel, the family-which now includes two daughters-moves there to be near the young couple. Both father and son obtain good positions in the community. Everything seems wonderful until the first grandchild is born-and this child is Black. Read the book to find out what Tamar really has to sacrifice in the end. What I have described is the bare bones of the plot. The book is rich with the fascinating customs of the Hasidic Jewish people, and it also goes back through the years to show how Tamar and two of her friends grew up in their community- and how it influenced their choices. This novel is multi-layered. It challenges the reader to think about a lot of life's difficult questions. It's not a light read, but a moving one that lingers in the mind and heart.

I am surprised by the aversion the Hasidic community, as described in this book (fiction), held towards people of dark or black skin. I understand the contempt for the rapist, but the racial disgust, even for a helpless infant, was hard to read or accept. At times, the references were so brutal that one would think black skin were freakish, like a third arm or leg, an ugly stain, a defect, a challenge that takes lessons learned to overcome; really, not unlike how Jews were perceived in Nazi Germany, and by many in Poland and the Ukraine during that tragic time. Skin colour, to me, appeared to be a greater problem for Tamar than the actual rape. Rather sad... As well, I was surprised by the preferred standard of beauty--- blond hair and blue eyes. Interestingly, this appears to be a feature in Ragen's writings. In Sotah, the alluring protagonist was also blond, with green or blue-green eyes; her daughter, too. I do not contest this preference, as attributed to Tamar and her community. I am sure there are Jews who have very Nordic or Germanic features, just as there are Jews who are black, like the Ethiopian Jews. However, because Jewish people are ethnically diverse, I never imagined that a religious community, many of whom were holocaust survivors, would think and spew the very racial ideology that once tormented them. I was quite startled by this possibility, and, the more I read, increasingly annoyed. To conclude, I did not like reading this book at all. I did not even like the ending, which seemed more like resigned love than love, itself. However, it is very well-written overall and bravely attempts to address some important issues within the Hasidic community, especially for women. I respect that. In addition, the book may also be seen as a provocative reminder to all people of faith to apply their tenets, rather than merely observe them, in sincere and meaningful ways.

Oh the restrictions that religion brings upon us! Naomi Ragen, as always, brings us to the point where we must question at what point the Torah is correct or not correct. I am frum and my heart just breaks for all the frummas out there who are under question by their communities. If Hadassah's father (The Rebbe) understood that his daughter was a bad influence on the other girls, then I believe he would have understood Tamar's predicament and would have done what should have been right by her. Once again, another good read by Naomi Ragen.

It was a moving, thought provoking story. It was the story about how women have been held back and kept in subservient roles through history and still today. Even though the story was written specifically about Hasidic Jews living in the United States, it was the story of many women in different societies. Once I started reading it, I was unable to put this compelling book down.

This book captured my wife's interest to the point that it was almost a single session read. Having some knowledge of the culture, she ask many question regarding the reaction to the dilemma presented in the story, It is an encompassing and fascinating read. I wish the author would have included a dictionary section to define culturally unique words and expressions.

Kind of dragged at times, still a good read and a good story. A real look into the lives (and trials) of the haredi.

what I liked the least is that I realised halfway through that I had definitely read the book before. when I googled it, I found that it was first published in the 1990s. however I thought that was an excellent read.

our tour guide in Israel mentioned this book on numerous occasions so that is why I got it. It is one that I've had a hard time putting down because it is so good. In it the author gives insight into the Jewish culture within the American culture which I found rather interesting. I'd definitely recommend this book to others.

I really enjoyed this book - found it engrossing, but also emotionally draining in places. The strictures placed on the women by their faith and consequently their husbands/fathers/brothers, etc can be difficult to comprehend by non Jews, but fascinating nevertheless. In stark contrast to this, the camaraderie and support of some of the women was uplifting (sadly not all the women). Tamar seems to live her entire life overshadowed by a single evil act, at the hands of another. Sadly, her misinterpretation of the Jewish Law governing her conduct means that she suffers in silence - I found the injustice of it hard to take, but found the ending, with her new strength of character, very satisfying.I also finally understand the importance of being able to live as a Jew is Israel, both symbolically and spiritually.Well worth reading, but not an easy ride.

Excellent. I couldn't put it down!

The most interesting book I have read in a long time. A complex story that draws you right into Jewish culture.

She kept the baby

I loved this book, but from the trilogy, it is the one I thought a little slow. However, it is an insight of the intolerance of ultra-religious groups. If only writing about it could influence change... Braun Hashem!