As in Eden

by R.M. Lamming

These are the dilemmas facing the women in this novel. Using stories from the Bible as her starting point, R. M. Lamming breathes life into its female characters who have been condemned to live in the shadows of their male counterparts until now. With bold imagination she skilfully rewrites the ancient stories, laying bare the predicaments of Eve, Claudia Procula and Martha, amongst others, with great compassion and insight. As in Eden is a beautifully composed exploration of the lives women lead which will not fail to draw the reader in.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Mythology, Religion

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Serena Solange · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book tells select biblical stories from the woman's point of view. Eve tells her side of the story, Sarah hers etc. Although this book shares an interesting perspective I must admit I did not enjoy it. Truthfully I found the women's stories more whiny then insightful.

[Laura Patterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't think I was really enjoying this novel in the beginning but that's because I have never fully read the Bible. In order to entirely understand where each story is going you need to know some of the bigger Bible stories. The interesting thing about this novel is that each story is a familiar story from the Bible but it is written from a woman's point of view. It is interesting how the author was able to show how women may have interpreted the events in the Bible differently.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although Lamming's book is described as a novel, it seems to be more a collection of short stories. Each chapter is told as a first-person narrative by a woman in the Bible who is generally overshadowed by her male family members, and reveals an insightful and distinctly feminine perspective on the traditional stories. The book begins with Eve, describing the terrifying flight from Eden, and continues through both the old and new testaments. Among the narrators are Moses' adoptive Egyptian mother, Lot's wife, Sarah the wife of Abraham, Martha the sister of Lazarus, and the wife of Pontius Pilate. In each case, the women discuss the emotions, reactions, and motivations of the famous Biblical episodes in which they appear. Through their well-crafted voices they provide a fresh, unique look at these familiar tales.

What struck me most about the book was the haunting way in which the stories are told. In each case, the woman is speaking directly to a friend or relative, who always remains silent and unseen. In some cases, the speaker's narrative is periodically interrupted by household concerns, which lends an extra note of realism to the setting, but can also be a bit confusing as the speaker jumps back and forth between her past and her present.

Another point of confusion to some readers is that Lamming assumes her audience already knows the stories as they're written in the Bible. In her retelling, she makes direct references to the original stories but doesn't explicitly summarize them. While this may be awkward for someone who isn't familiar with the originals, it creates a much more realistic voice for the characters as they're not forced into recounting a history that their unseen listener would already know. It also builds a level of rapport with the modern audience, who can easily slip in and take the place of the characters' companions, mentally nodding in recognition as the storyteller makes references to her past.

The only criticism I have of the book is that a few of the stories felt a little too long and drawn out. A few times this made it hard to push on and keep reading, and I personally think the collection would have been made stronger by shortening the longer chapters and making up the length by including a few more women.

[Susie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started 5.22.10.
Finished 6.2.10.

I would give this book 3.5 if I could. I enjoyed it, I really did. The premise is fantastic, and is what drew me into this book in the first place - it's a series of short stories, bible stories, told from a woman's point of view, where in the original bible story, her role is overshadowed by the male main character. I enjoy having both points of view in anything I read, and this is really just another form of that. From Eve to Lot's wife to the Pharoah's daughter to Pontious Pilate's wife, each story was fascinating to me. And the writing was excellent. The stories are told in first person, and take the form of a conversation or letter to a friend or relative, so there's an assumption that you're already familiar with the character and the circumstances surrounding the story that you're about to read.

And there's where it went a little downhill for me. I'm not quite as familiar with a lot of these stories as I'd like to be or perhaps as I should be. So there was a bit of refreshing to be done on my part. So I suppose I take some of the blame for this book not getting a higher rating from me. In addition to my somewhat lacking familiarity, however, there seemed to be a lot of noise in some of these stories. By that I just mean that there was a lot of extraneous background and/or aside information that I just didn't need. A number of the stories just could've been a bit more concise. Overall, though, it was a wonderful read, and I'm really glad that I read it.

[Laurel B · Rating 4 out of 5]

As in Eden tells the Bible stories of Adam & Eve, Lot, Lazarus, Abraham, and Pilate from the point of view of the women who were there. We see Eve living with her choice and being cast out of Eden. The birth of Cain and Abel and how their lives intertwined.

I really enjoyed the story of Martha, Lazarus' sister. Her story is used to teach us about hospitality. No one ever stops to think about how much she missed out on, and what a struggle she found it to do her duty. Care for her brother and younger sister and get little in return.

Seeing each of these story's from the woman's view was comforting. It was refreshing to see a story from the Bible told differently, but keeping the same facts. It focused more on the subplots of the story rather than the event itself in some cases.

I feel the women are so often overlooked that we miss out on how truly important they are. What role they play in order for events to occur. They were placed on a pedastool in this book and it was well written and deserved.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

It falters a bit when the narrative pushes into New Testament territory -- the stories become a bit too long and too rambling, compared to the pared down concise intensity of its earlier, Old Testament tales. But it's a minor disappointment in an otherwise sterling, imaginative re-telling of the Bible through the eyes of its women. It has the same ambiance, the same power, the same compelling nature as many of its forerunners, such as Nino Ricci's "Testament" and Colm Toibin's "The Testament of Mary". Subverting & confounding expectations in equal measure, this is addictive, profound reading from start to finish

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm a strange hypocrite in that I don't believe any of the stories in the Bible, don't believe in any religions, but I find fiction based on those stories being true to be fascinating. I suppose it stems from a childhood love of Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade. But I digress. As In Eden retold a number of the Bible's more famous tales from the viewpoint of women mentioned, occasionally only in passing, in the original tales. Interesting, but still not enough to make me a believer....

[Bertrand Brasil · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Raramente um novato na área se anunciou de maneira tão confiante, nos últimos anos, quanto R. M. Lamming.” (Guardian)