Gathered: A Novel of Ruth

By Lee Ann Setzer

Book Overview

Author: ?+ Lee Ann Setzer Description:

Join Ruth on a richly-imagined journey from the land of her birth to the Promised Land. Both those who love the old story, and those who've never yet encountered it, will find something that resonates for them in this fresh and engaging tale.

Ruth thought her life was over. Widowed and penniless, she despaired of anything better than poverty and grief, whether in Moab or among her dead husband? s people. Following her mother-in-law back to Bayt-Lahm would be less lonely. Ten years among the people of Jacobs Street had taught her the forms of their Law.

Yet Bayt-Lahm turned out to be more than a sleepy village, and its Lord more than the voiceless, powerless statues of Moab's gods. At least one man in Bayt-Lahm had honor and virtue beyond measure. The widower Boaz taught Ruth, and all who met him, what loving the Lord could really mean. Could she bring him to love her, as well?

Product Details: Format: Paperback Print: Black & White Size: 6x9 Page Count: 190 ISBN: 9781555176853 Imprint: CFI Books Office Use: 1L344

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1555176852
• ISBN13: 9781555176853
• Release Date: May 2003
• Publisher: Cedar Fort
• Length: 189 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.1" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Tender Telling of a Timeless Tale

Bible stories. Literature that both divides and unites people in the complexities of our so-called modern life. Adam and Eve. Noah and the Ark. Moses in the Mount. David and Goliath. We listen to these stories as children; but what do we see when we revisit our Bible friends as adults? The Bible story of Ruth stands out, like the book of Esther, because it is the story of a Woman; a story hidden among so many other stories by and about Men and Man. But Setzer's retelling of the Story of Ruth is much more than scene-setting for the triumph of Ruth's descendant David. Ruth is the embodiment of the "stranger in a strange land", whose experiences we figuratively recognize in ourselves at varioius points in life: Lost, Different, Powerless, Hopeless. The story compels us to wonder: Is there a go'el in our lives? Gathered deals with some of the same intriguing details of the lives of Bible women as Diamant's Red Tent, leaving this reader wanting to know more. It treats the revered characters with the same respect (and paradigm, one might add) as Card's Sarah and Rebekah, though with a somewhat less-sharpened edge.

Storytelling at its best

An excellent piece of Biblical fiction that explores Ruth's experience as a convert. The author's command of the language and beautiful imagery bring the story of Ruth to life.

A Marvelous Read on Many Levels

This book by a first time author tells a time honored story that appeals to the reader as an historical representation of a popular Biblical figure, as a tale of universal truths of loyalty and love, or just as a lovely, sweet story of two women and their journey to another land and another way of life. It's well worth reading on any level. You will get something new from it each time you read it.