Sarah Laughed: Sonnets from Genesis

By Judith Goldhaber

Poetry. SARAH LAUGHED is the second collaboration between poet Judith Goldhaber and artist Gerson Goldhaber, a husband-and-wife team from Berkeley, California. Following the formal model of their... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0976155419
• ISBN13: 9780976155416
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Ribbonweed Press
• Length: 166 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Genesis Shines with a New and Amazing Light!

The collaborative team of Judith Goldhaber (text) and Gerson Goldhaber (illustrations) that produced the absolutely charming and delightful Sonnets from Aesop can be welcomed back with the same degree of cheering and hat-tossing for "Sarah Laughed: Sonnets from Genesis". At first sight, Genesis would not seem particularly fertile ground for the quirky Goldhabers, but Judith has allowed herself to stray most pleasingly from the straight and narrow Masoretic text now and again. For instance, following Jewish legends which made an admirable attempt to combine the two conflicting "Creation" accounts preserved in Genesis, Adam is presented as a man with two wives. Eve, whom we all know, was the second. The first was Lilith. In both Arabic and Hebrew, the name means "woman from the night". According to legend, Lilith and Adam didn't get along, so she ran away, and God was forced to replace her with Adam's rib. Judith Goldhaber cleverly eschews the obvious cliches. Instead she presents Eve as a wife possessed by such jealousy for the headstrong runaway that she asks the serpent to tell her truly, "Was Lilith fair? Did Adam adore her?" This is indeed a book that can be savored and enjoyed both for its innate charm and its striking insights into some of the familiar Old Testament stories.

Imagine! Genesis as a page-turner!

This amazing book is a telling of Genesis not only from the Bible but also from Jewish folklore and literature, so it's full of fascinating surprises. The sonnets are thoughtful and graceful, and the colorful paintings are Chagal-like and soul-satisfying. To tell the truth, I couldn't put it down--I had to keep turning page after page. I had already read Fables from Aesop by the same authors and am so happy to have discovered both wonderful books.

Sarah Laughed: Sonnets from Genesis

"Sarah Laughed" is a spectacularly delightful as well as significant little book. It presents the ancient Biblical stories in fresh, vivid, concise, and often humorous ways. The story of Cain and Abel amazes. The book has wonderful drawings starting with the cover. It is a fairly "quick read" and I consider it a perfect gift.