New Book on Noah's Wife

 

The Ark and the Dove by Jill Eileen Smith

Have you ever wondered what it would be like if God gave your husband an unusual command to keep your family safe?  The author has given this much thought and study as she wrote this novel.  It gave me a new respect for Noah and his family and the unusual task God gave them.

Jill Eileen Smith uses her sanctified imagination and research at the Ark Encounter to flesh out a story of obedience to God against the background of the culture’s unbelief.  Scripture does not name the wives who made this journey with their husbands.  Nor is it specific with the types of technology that would have been necessary to house, feed and dispose of waste from an ark full of animals.  With her research she enables readers to see what life aboard the ark would have looked like.  Those of us who lived through 2019 and 2020 can appreciate what life in a confined space with just your family was like, let alone needing to care for the many animals that daily depended on them.

I could really empathize with Noah’s wife.  Her desire was to have a healthy relationship with each of her daughters-in-law.  (I do not have a Keziah among mine!)  As a woman, I am sure she valued the relationships with her family and made it a priority to maintain them, even with a difficult family member in close proximity.  I also appreciated how she trusted her husband and didn’t try manipulate him even when she didn’t understand him.

This book seemed very realistic in the way the characters related to each other.  Even though the outcome was already known, it was still very interesting to read about their daily life.  Readers who enjoy Biblical fiction will enjoy this book and the way it brings Noah and Zara’s story to life.  I received an arc from the publisher, in exchange for this, my honest review.