Defiant: What the Women of Exodus Teach Us about Freedom

I really wanted to like this book more than I did. I agreed with the message. It even made me think about social justice in new ways. I just wasn't a fan of the author's “sanctified imagination” and literary license. It wasn't as academic or as bible-centered as I had hoped for. There are citations, but very little time is spent on the actual biblical text of Exodus or explaining her use of terms like “sacrament” and “oracle” that, even having been raised Catholic, confused me.

This is a weird thing to say, but I finished the book feeling lonely. Like I don't belong. It's something I have felt in various ways throughout my life, so it is nothing new. But her definition of womanhood and the solidarity of women made me feel “other”, even as an egalitarian woman who agrees with her overarching message.

I am not sure I will read another book by this author, though I may read some of her cited books.