Salomé: A Novel
Ebook
What if reality TV met one of our oldest stories of blood revenge, lust, envy, and coming-of-age? Though the story of Salome has been told down through the ages, this new rendition from a woman's perspective portrays mother-daughter forgiveness based on the story of the sensuous young woman who danced for Herod then demanded John the Baptist's head on a platter at her mother's instigation. Lush language and a riveting storyline combine to create this small jewel from debut novelist Patti Rutka.
"Patti Rutka joins the choir of artists, poets, and storytellers
who for millennia have been exploring new angles of the biblical
anecdote, demonstrating once more that the Bible is not written for
children; the strong sexual content and the graphic violence of the
account makes this story appropriate for a mature audience
only."
--David Trobisch
Bangor Theological Seminary
"Painters, playwrights, and composers typically have interpreted
the role of Salome as one of dangerous, feminine seductiveness.
Instead, author Rutka focuses on the tension between Salome's love
for her mother and sister. Here we meet one who's not merely a
sultry, dancing girl, but a sensitive artist displaying feelings;
no longer a goddess of immorality, but a disciple of forgiveness;
not so much a shallow contortionist as a human being caught in a
moral twist. It's refreshing!"
--Milton P. Ryder
Pastor Emeritus, First Baptist Church of Boston
"Salome is truly a midrashic novel carefully grounded in the
biblical narrative. Patti Rutka's way with words leads us into
Salome's dance and its consequences and into the world of the
Jewish community struggling to find their identity in the Greco
Roman world. Salome is a gripping read which carries all the
interpersonal and political intrigue arising from the struggles of
Herod and Herodias for power and control in a world where men
command and women are expected to obey."
--Ann Johnston
Bangor Theological Seminary, Emerita
Product Details
- Title : Salomé: A Novel
- Author: Rutka, Patti
- Publisher: Resource Publications
- Publication Date: 2010
- ISBN: 9781498274340
Patti Rutka is a theology student at Bangor Theological Seminary in Portland, Maine. She is the author of the forthcoming novel Jairus's Daughter.