Sarai is the first book in the Wives of the Patriarchs by Jill Eileen Smith, who wrote the a Wives of King David series, of which I read two of the three in that series. What can I say? After the Wives of King David series, I have to say that Sarai really did not entice my interest as much for some reason. I felt that it was dry for lack of a better descriptive word.
I enjoyed what the book made me think about and consider – what it would be like to be married over 50 years and then decide to give your husband your handmaid to produce an heir. I could not fathom that at all. This isn’t something I thought about while reading the story in my bible.
It also made me question the kind of faith Abraham had to believe for years and years and years that God would provide him a son, but then throws it aside when Sarai’s faith falters. They could have saved themselves so much agony and kept their relationship exclusively magnomous if they had stayed strong together and waited for God’s timing. Easy for me to say. They are human, I know. Although it does say a lot of Abraham that he did not take another wife all those years when he and Sarai did not conceive, but again their faith faltered and they get themselves into a disastrous love triangle.
I could not relate to Sarai’s barrenness and wondered at the fact that women were blamed for not conceiving more so than men. I liked the fact that Ms. Smith portrayed Abraham as a kindhearted man who took into consideration that he might be the cause of Sarai’s barrenness. But wondered why God didn’t just tell them and others in bible times the man determined the sex of a child? Why do eastern countries still blame the woman for barrenness or the sex of the child? These are all questions I asked as I pondered Sarai and Abraham’s story.
I liked the thought provoking questions the book brought about in me and how accurate the story was to the biblical account, but otherwise it left much to be desired.
“Available March 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”
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