"I look like thousands of other Orthodox women around the world, basking in the glory of their family and proud to be upholding a centuries-old tradition. I look like I should be happy, but I am troubled. These troubles are at the heart of this absorbing book." Sally Berkovic, an Australian journalist and social worker, holds fast to her faith but challenges the traditional roles Orthodox Jewish communities prescribe for women, in ritual life, in the study of Judaism and in positions of religious leadership. The birth of her daughters has forced Sally to recognize a painful irony. If her daughters feel excluded, as she did, they may simply leave the faith; yet, she argues, it is women who have the power to revitalize many aspects of Judaism to the benefit of the whole community, particularly the Orthodox. In this mix of history, polemic and autobiography, Sally confronts her daughters, and her readers, with the contemporary dilemmas of the modern Orthodox Jewish woman.
by Sally Berkovic