The Red Tent

On the get go you may not think of The Red Tent a book written by Anita Diamant as a book to be read by professional woman. I always loved this book and I was pleasantly surprised that while working at AOL, the women's networking group recommended this book for their book club. The discussion at AOL was lively & wonderful, specially since I hadn't thought to see it as a book to help me professionally.

The book's title refers to the tent in which women of Jacob's tribe must, according to the ancient law, take refuge while menstruating or giving birth, and in which they find mutual support and encouragement from their mothers, sisters and aunts.

Take a look at the book on my favorite website, The Wiki!!! See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Red_Tent

The following is from SparkNotes:

The Red Tent

As its title indicates, the red tent is one of the most important and recurring images of the novel and symbolizes the private and magical world of women. It is the red tent in which each of the children in Dinah’s family are born, and it is the red tent where each girl becomes a woman. But it is more than just a place of birth and maturity; it is also a sacred gathering place for women. In the red tent, the women sequester themselves for several days each month, taking time out from their daily duties as mothers and wives to spoil themselves with cakes and rest upon the straw. It is in the tent that they forge, break, and rebuild their bonds to one another, as occurs between Leah and Rachel. Outside of the tent, men rule society and the families. But inside the tent there are only women, and therefore women make the rules. They share special songs and rites that only the sisters of the tent are privy to. In a story that uncovers the bonds between women, it is fitting that so much of the action occurs in the red tent.

For the full article go to: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/redtent/themes.html