Spring Break
Biblical author goes from fact to fiction
Natalia Jones, Contributing Writer, nljones@smu.edu
Issue date: 3/20/07 Section: News
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While Etzioni-Halevy and her husband were living in Australia, they both sensed it was important for them to return to Israel.
"We felt very isolated in a spiritual sense and we felt that something was missing from our lives," Etzioni-Halevy said. "This is what really brought us back to Israel and to explore our roots."
As Etzioni-Halevy began to read the Bible again she said she became particularly entranced by the women of the Bible.
This fascination transformed Etzioni-Halevy from not just a Professor of Sociology at Bar-Ilan University, but also into a fictional biblical novelist. And now with the release of her second book, "The Garden of Ruth," it has brought her all the way to Flower Mound where on Tuesday she signed copies of her novel at the Congregation Kol Ami.
Although her experience as a sociology professor helped her in the process of researching her novels, Etzioni-Halevy said that moving from political sociology to writing fiction was like moving into a new land, which felt like a cultural shock.
"In academic books things are written in a completely different manner and (with fiction) it's much more letting your imagination work," Etzioni-Halevy said. "The difference is that in academic research you are supposed to show how clever you are, but in fiction you're supposed to conceal it. You don't want your readers to be aware of it. Some people may miss all of the research that went into it, but that's okay so long as they enjoyed reading it."
Etzioni-Halevy said that the reason she chose the story of Ruth for her second novel was because she was attracted to the mystery within the story.
Ruth, a Moabite woman, traveled to Bethlehem with mother-in-law Naomi after her husband died. Since widows during the time could not inherit their husband's properties, salvation for the two widows had to come from the next of kin who by law was bound to marry Ruth. However, the next of kin in the Bible is only referred to as the unnamed whom refused to wed Ruth. While the next of kin to the unnamed man did marry Ruth, it is this unknown man's refusal to marry Ruth that sparked Etzioni-Halevy's interest for writing the novel.
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