This was an amazingly told story, and if the author had changed the names of every character, moved the context to almost any more primitive culture, it would have been wonderful. But I kept realizing that, at every turn, the author betrays the characters of the real history of the family of Jacov, and shreds every measure of decency in everyone's story to aggrandize the one-chapter person of Dinah.
There is nothing wrong with a little story embellishment, so long as it doesn't move into downright lies. But this tale is riddled with lies. The author claims that Rivkah - Rebeccah - is a diviner of some sort, and a rather self-absorbed woman, which is not suggested in the history of these people at all. She tells that the circumcision of Shechem and family and friends was Jacov's idea, instead of the notion of his sons, the brothers of Dinah. And the author assumes the idol worship of the wives of Jacov where there is no cause to make such an assumption. In fact, Jacov's father's wife is chosen from these same people BECAUSE they are not of the idol worshiping kind. He is sent to the same people - the people of his mother - and he is sent by his mother, to find a worthy position in life and a suitable bride. He gets four. On that count the author is correct though making more assumptions on the brides Zilpah and Bilhah.
If this tale had taken place in a galaxy far, far away, and if all the names had been changed - if the author was not trying to re-write scripture to her own ends above God's, it would have been wonderful. BUT I only rate it a three because it plays so fast and loose with the truth. It is almost as if it were written by a Clinton.
There is nothing wrong with a little story embellishment, so long as it doesn't move into downright lies. But this tale is riddled with lies. The author claims that Rivkah - Rebeccah - is a diviner of some sort, and a rather self-absorbed woman, which is not suggested in the history of these people at all. She tells that the circumcision of Shechem and family and friends was Jacov's idea, instead of the notion of his sons, the brothers of Dinah. And the author assumes the idol worship of the wives of Jacov where there is no cause to make such an assumption. In fact, Jacov's father's wife is chosen from these same people BECAUSE they are not of the idol worshiping kind. He is sent to the same people - the people of his mother - and he is sent by his mother, to find a worthy position in life and a suitable bride. He gets four. On that count the author is correct though making more assumptions on the brides Zilpah and Bilhah.
If this tale had taken place in a galaxy far, far away, and if all the names had been changed - if the author was not trying to re-write scripture to her own ends above God's, it would have been wonderful. BUT I only rate it a three because it plays so fast and loose with the truth. It is almost as if it were written by a Clinton.