The Song of Hannah
Eva Etzioni-Halevy
(Plume, 294 pages, $14)
Scripture gives us only a
glimpse of Hannah, the barren woman who prays for a son, promising she will
dedicate the child to God's service.
Here, the Book of Samuel Ð
named for that boy, whose name means "asked of God" Ð is expanded
upon by an Israeli novelist who puts flesh on those bare biblical bones.
Hannah was a second wife;
Pninah, mother of many, was the first. Eva Etzioni-Halevy, a political
sociologist in Tel Aviv, weaves an imagined fabric of both women's lives, from
childhood friendship to marital competition to resignation. The story is told
in alternating voices, as entries in their diaries.
Husband Elkanah's prodigious
passion is matched Ð exceeded, even Ð by the sensual Pninah. The spiritual
Hannah feels her fulfillment is in this man, who loves her differently but
deeply: "Am I not better to thee than ten sons?" he asks in I Samuel:
1-8. Destiny prevails when Hannah's son becomes a powerful, just priest in his
people's ancient temple.
In a historical endnote, Ms.
Etzioni-Halevy talks of elements she has incorporated. Some, such as polygamy,
are known facts of the time period; others, such as women's literacy, are
possible conclusions drawn from sacred texts. The result is a thought-provoking
new look at an old Bible story as the Bible doesn't tell it.
Harriet P. Gross