So, odds are, if you're a woman, you've heard of this book. And, if you're not a woman, I'm sorry. Better luck in your next life.

Just kidding. I am a firm supporter of the penis. (No pun intended) Even have one for home use. And I'm pretty fond of the man attached to it as well.

Anyway, this book is the story of Dinah, a woman who is only very briefly mentioned in the Bible as a woman whose rape is avenged by her brothers.

Actually, I'm not much of a novel person myself. In fact, they're rather wasted on me. I always skip to the end when things get good to see how everything turns out. (Wish I can do that in real life). I'm not much for suspense in my personal or literary existence. It gives me the willies. Besides, fiction doesn't really light my fire. I like books about theories or intellectual concepts. It's an odd chance that, aside from my horror short stories that I do adore, you'll ever catch me reading a novel.

However, that being said, I do highly recommend this book. Not because of the book, which wasn't bad at all (but had too many damn people in it with too many weird names. Made my brain go all whirly), but because of what the book represented.

This book tells the story of the Bible from a voice you have never heard before - the wives, the mothers, the daughters, the sisters - THE WOMEN.

This is the story of Dinah told through her own voice. Little more than a footnote in biblical history ... but through her voice, we see a world previously undiscovered. We hear about the rituals and stories, the rights of passage, the duties and responsibilities of being a woman during this time.

All these unsung heroines ignored for all these years. While we celebrate the triumphs Joseph and Moses ... we have forgotten the women who gave birth to them, who fed them, who cared for them .... the women who enabled their glory.

Even though this is fiction, it gives you a sense of how incomplete history is ... how one-sided are our stories.

If you go back in time and ask a woman what is was like in the Renaissance, or a slave in ante-bellum South (and after) or a Japanese American about their experience during World War II ... you would get a much different viewpoint than the one history tells you.

History is in the voice of the oppressor. Some say "winner" - I say "oppressor" ... because, just because you win doesn't mean you have to silence the loser. It's your choice to extiguish their voice. In my book, that makes one an oppressor.

I love that show "Unsolved History." I can never figure out what time it's on so I often miss it. ( I know what you're thinking - why don't I invest in a TV Guide? Good point. Let's move on.) So, when I do catch it - I'm tickled forest green.

Not too long ago, the show was about Custer's Last Stand at Little Big Horn. If you don't know what this is, it's part of American legend. According to history, it's the fateful battle at Little Big Horn between courageous Custer and his men and the savage Native Americans led by Sitting Bull. It's known because Custer and his men are portrayed as gallant American solidiers who, although far outnumbered by the Native Americans, bravely fought on and were soon slaughtered them. It's seen as the symbol for patriotism and courage.

What about the Native Americans? What's their side of the story? The one we never learned about in history class?

Well, "Unsolved History" went to Little Big Horn and reconstructed what happened. Objectively and Unbiased.

What they found out was that Custer and his men attacked a Native American village packed with men, women, and children. They ambushed them and, as the women and children were fleeing for their lives, they began murdering them.

No wonder the Native American men were so pissed. Nothing like someone killing your defenseless women and children to get one in the mood for scalping.

The point of that little sidebar is that for every one voice we hear, there are thousands more waiting for their turn. Silenced because of race, class or gender. Often, because we don't hear them, we think that they were never there. That what we know must be the "truth" because noone stood up to correct it.

But maybe they were screaming all along. Shouting their protest, their experiences, their life right into our ears. It's not that they didn't speak. It's that we chose not to listen.

If you read "The Bible" - then I strongly suggest you read "The Red Tent". For nothing else, than to open your eyes - and your ears - to the voices, the people, and the struggles that, for far too long now, history has chosen to forget.

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