Lilith's Ark: Teenage Tales of Biblical Women [Paperback]

Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2006

Not long after the world was created, Lilith, the first woman, was expelled from the Garden of Eden. She built an ark, a magic box, in which future biblical women could hide their most prized possessions. And so, Lilith’s Ark became a place for women to share their own experiences of adolescence with future generations of girls...

The women of Torah grew up at a time when gender roles were rigidly defined and girls were considered women at an early age. Still, the Torah hints that young biblical women faced challenges similar to those that teenagers encounter today: first loves, burgeoning identities, developing sexualities, and blossoming spirituality. Building on textual sources, Deborah Bodin Cohen has created a collection of midrashim about the teen years of 10 women in Genesis that will resonate with 21st-century readers.

Lilith’s Ark melds text, biblical commentaries, and historic details about the ancient world with the experiences of modern girls and women and the author’s own imagination. A discussion guide for each story enriches the reading experience. This is a book that will speak across time to the anxieties and aspirations of today’s growing girls.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This beautifully written collection is useful for young women of varied religious affiliations and the adults who mentor them. It speaks of heroism and creative spirit in a way that is attractive and encouraging."—Kliatt

(Kliatt )

"Cohen''s book is thus ideally suited for book clubs, religious classes, mother-daughter Rosh Hodesh groups, or any other discussion forum."—Lilith

(Lilith )

"A compilation of imaginative stories that provide new perspectives on the lives of the nine women in Genesis and on Eve’s midrashic precursor, Lilith . . . After all this time, Lilith’s Ark is giving voice to those ancient women who paid the price and reaped the benefits."—Ottawa Jewish Bulletin

(Ottawa Jewish Bulletin )

"The midrashim are faithful in style and beautifully written, with enough poetry to lift them and enough common sense to keep them grounded."—Deborah Stone

(Deborah Stone )

"Lilith''s Ark: Teenage Tales of Biblical Women is an engaging and refreshing book filled with midrashic stories about the teenage years of ten biblical heroines. Recommended for all adolescents, Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen skillfully brings the reader into the inner world of these young women. The book is filled with teenage power and heroism."—Mindy Shapiro, Director, Rosh Hodesh: It''s a Girl Thing! a program of Moving Traditions

(Mindy Shapiro )

"Teen girls today especially need role models who have lasted for more than a single season. I am impressed by Deborah Bodin Cohen''s novel and original approach to biblical women. She portrays our female ancestors in their teen years: anguishing over relationships, rebelling against parental authority, searching for identity. This is a wonderful context in which women and girls can engage in meaningful dialogue around these crucial issues."—Penina Adelman, author of Miriam''s Well, editor of the JPS book Praise Her Works, and co-author of The JGirl''s Guide: The Young Jewish Woman''s Handbook for Coming of Age

(Penina Adelman )

Review

"The midrashim are faithful in style and beautifully written, with enough poetry to lift them and enough common sense to keep them grounded."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 13 and up
  
• Paperback: 155 pages
• Publisher: The Jewish Publication Society (September 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0827608330
• ISBN-13: 978-0827608337
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #738,224 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #14 in Books > Teens > Religion & Spirituality > Judaism

More About the Author

Ever since I was a young girl, I have enjoyed stories. I wrote myths and fairy tales in elementary school. For a long time, I thought that I might be a journalist. But, my love for Judaism and its sacred stories led me to become a rabbi. Stories that I created for the classroom or pulpit became books that I was lucky enough to have published.

When I am not writing Jewish children's books and Jewish teen novels, I am the Rabbi for Lifelong Education at Temple Emanuel in Cherry Hill, NJ. I was ordained in 1997 from Hebrew Union College in New York City. I have worked at Jewish camps, led more Jewish retreat weekends than I can count, and enjoy teaching pre-schoolers, senior adults and everybody in between.


I grew up in Columbia, MD, and graduated the University of Michigan (Go Blue!). I am married to David Cohen ' an editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer. We are joyfully raising two children Arianna Shira, who was born in 2001, and Jesse Benjamin, who was born in 2008. Our family includes a Shetland Sheepdog named ToeWho (meaning: Chaos in Biblical Hebrew).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lilith's Ark: Teenage Tales of Biblical Women, October 12, 2006

By 

Jewish Book World Magazine (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lilith's Ark: Teenage Tales of Biblical Women (Paperback)

According to the author, "Lilith's Ark is a midrash, a story that grows from the Torah text and the imagination." Each chapter features a different biblical character-- starting with Lilith and Eve and continuing with Sarah, Hagar, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, Dinah, Tamar and Asenath. After each woman tells her story she places an item in the ark that represents an important aspect of her life. The ark is then passed on to the next generation. The stories are engaging, sensitive and thought provoking, similar to The Red Tent and The Harlot at the Side of the Road, but more appropriately written for teens. For each chapter there are "Discussion Themes"; "Discussion Questions", a section called" Extending the Exploration," which guides the reader toward more study and thought, and a section called "A Mother- Daughter Dialogue," which stimulates meaningful discussions between teens and adults. Also, an extensive discussion guide appears at the end of the book. This book could form the basis for a Mother-Daughter or Parent-Teen study group. Each month a different chapter could be read and discussed. The discussion questions encourage participants to share their thoughts and insights, helping teens and adults gain a better understanding of each other. For ages 12 and up. Reviewed by Diane Levin Rauchwerger

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A unique and power work of creative art, December 11, 2006

By 

Rabbi Renee Edelman "Rabbi Renee" (Community Synagogue, Port Washington) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lilith's Ark: Teenage Tales of Biblical Women (Paperback)

With Lilith's Ark: Teenage Tales of Biblical Women, Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen has created voices for the teenage young women of the Torah. Not unlike, The Red Tent, Lilith's Ark, brings us back to our ancient past, melding Torah text, Midrashic Commentary and modern psychology.

The ten women represented in the book, and connected by Lilith's Ark passed from generation to generation, teach lessons of self confidence, strength, passion, following dreams and journeying to the unexpected. Each of the lessons is important to the young women of today who are growing up in a intimate world of tremendous expectation and pressure and a global world where terrorism trumps rationalism. Rabbi Bodin Cohen teaches that our ancestors, Lilith, Eve, Sarah, Hagar, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, Dina, Tamar and Asenath, encountered the same fears and dreams of every woman. The Torah is not a relic of the past, rather stories of our lives and the lives of our daughters.

Lilith's Ark is a wonderful resource for teenage Rosh Hodesh Classes, Bar and Bat Mitzvah Divrei Torah writing and sermons. I have used it in teaching parents and children alike and it always creates an atmosphere for interesting, provocative discussion.
The stories are written with beauty and the heroine's with strength and honesty.

In Lilith's Ark, Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen has written a book that should be on every rabbi's bookshelf, every parent's bookshelf and every teacher's bookshelf. It is a unique and powerful work of creative art.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful contribution to Jewish literature, July 3, 2007

By 

Abbe Krissman (Jerusalem, Israel) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lilith's Ark: Teenage Tales of Biblical Women (Paperback)

This lovely gem of a book is a welcome addition to the wealth of Jewish literature, providing young Jewish women with powerful Biblical role models by telling their stories in a relevant and engaging way. I remember feeling alienated from Biblical literature as a teen, since most of the stories centered on men. The female Biblical heroines got short shrift in those days, which distanced me from an appreciation of my heritage. Rabbi Cohen's contribution of Lilith's Ark is a wonderful resource for youth group leaders and religious school teachers who work with adolescent girls. The discussion questions and extensions which accompany each story are of tremendous value to these busy professionals in facilitating discussion groups. It would also make an excellent bat mitzvah gift to increase the recipient's understanding of the heritage she has inherited. This book belongs in any collection accessible to teens and those who love and work with them. (Abbe Krissman, parent, grandparent, and former teacher)