sue monk kidd the book of longings review

However, in order to keep the small luxuries, she has been allowed as a women she appears meek and mild while her thoughts are anything but that. One day Ana is taken to the market with her mother and father in the best clothes where she quickly realises, she is going to be betrothed to a man far older than her purely because he wants a son, a common practice of the time but one Ana hoped she had escaped, however, in the market she meets a young man Jesus who helps her when she falls although because of his lesser stations the guards think he attacked her and don’t listen to her when she tries to correct them.Īs we approach the ¼ mark in the novel, Ana feels a connection to Jesus in that brief meeting and thinks of him often but she never gives voices to these thoughts even as she makes the displeasure over her betrothal known to everyone around her. Ana also has a close relationship with her adopted brother, Judas who taught her compassion for those less fortunate than herself and always hated her father for the connections he has with Rome leading to her father casting him out of their home. However, she does tell Ana about the women of Alexandria who read and write and aren’t looked down upon for it and gives her some religious practices to follow. Hated by her mother she has a close relationship with her aunt, Yaltha who her parents took in under mysterious circumstances but Yaltha is forbidden to speak of her past. Ana is born into a life of privilege as her father is a wealthy man but she has skilled more suited to a young boy of her time not limited to her love of reading and writing which her father has indulged.

The novel opens in Sepphoris in 16-17 CE where we are introduced to Ana, the wife of Jesus. However, this was one of the books I picked for my Goodreads 2020 reading challenge to challenge myself.

Review: The Book of Longings wasn’t initially on my radar despite the interesting synopsis as I don’t tend to read any literary fiction and I rarely read historical novels outside of YA historical.

Genre: Literary Fiction/Historical/Romance

Sue monk kidd the book of longings review