THE DOVEKEEPERS

THE DOVEKEEPERS by Alice Hoffman was read for the Just for Fun Reading Challenge 2011.

From the book jacket:

In 70 C.E., nine hundred Jews held out for months against armies of Romans on Masada, a mountain in the Judean desert.  According to the ancient historian Josephus, two women and five children survived.  Based on this tragic and iconic event, Hoffman's novel is a spellbinding tale of four extraordinarily bold, resourceful, and sensuous women, each of whom has come to Masada by a different path.  Yael's mother died in childbirth, and her father, an expert assassin, never forgave her for that death.  Revka, a village baker's wife, watched the horrifically brutal murder of her daughter by Roman soldiers; she brings to Masada her young grandsons, rendered mute by what they have witnessed.  Aziza is a warrior's daughter, raised as a boy, a fearless rider and an expert marksman who finds passion with a fellow soldier.  Shirah, born in Alexandria, is wise in the ways of ancient magic and medicine, a woman with uncanny insight and power.

The lives of these four complex and fiercely independent women intersect in the desperate days of the siege.  All are dovekeepers, and all are also keeping secrets - about who they are, where they come from, who fathered the, and whom they love.

This is an excellent book, probably one of the best books I've read this year - or any year.  The story is told in four parts, one by each of the women.  Each tells of her life before coming to Masada and then of how their lives came together.  The writing is descriptive and beautiful, and the reader can feel the pain each endured.

I didn't know anything about Masada before reading this book.  As I was reading, I kept thinking I should go to the computer and look up Masada and find out what happened.  But I couldn't - I didn't want anything to interfere with reading this and learning the story as told by Ms. Hoffman.  I did research Masada after finishing and found that Ms. Hoffman did an excellent job in following the historic details of this siege.

If you have any interest in early Jewish history, this is an excellent book to read.