Product Description

From the internationally bestselling author of Sarah comes the riveting story of the remarkable woman who walked beside Moses.

Although she is a Cushite by birth—one of the people of the lands to the south—Zipporah grew up as the beloved daughter of Jethro, high priest and sage of the Midianites. But the color of Zipporah’s skin sets her apart, making her an outsider to the men of her adopted tribe, who do not want her as a wife. Then one day while drawing water from a well, she meets a handsome young stranger. Like her, he is an outsider. A Hebrew raised in the house of the Egyptian Pharaoh, Moses is a fugitive, forced to flee his homeland. Zipporah realizes that this man will be the husband and partner she never thought she would have.

Moses wants nothing more than a peaceful life with the Midianites, but Zipporah won’t let Moses forget his past—or turn away from his true destiny.

She refuses to marry him until he returns to Egypt to free his people. When God reveals himself to Moses in a burning bush, his words echo Zipporah’s, and Moses returns to Egypt with his passionate and generous wife by his side.

A woman ahead of her time, Zipporah leaps from the pages of this remarkable novel. Bold, independent, and a true survivor, she is a captivating heroine, and her world of deserts, temples, and ancient wonders is a fitting backdrop to an epic tale.


Look for the Reader’s Group Guide at the back of this book.

Also available as an ebook

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #67024 in Books
• Published on: 2006-04-25
• Released on: 2006-04-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In his enjoyable but uneven second installment in the Canaan trilogy (Sarah), Halter takes his cue from the biblical story of Moses to imagine the life of Moses's little-known wife. In Midian, the pride of High Priest Jethro is his lovely and wise adopted daughter, Zipporah, a Cushite, yet he can't find a husband for her because she is black. Zipporah dreams about an Egyptian prince who waits for her at the bottom of the sea; Moses (literally the man of her dreams) arrives on the scene just as marauding shepherds attack. Zipporah's heart is stirred by the handsome vagabond, but so is the lust of her beautiful, cruel sister. When Moses chooses Zipporah, she realizes that before she can love him unreservedly, she must first make him face his destiny. Halter includes many rich cultural details and plenty of steamy sex, and he strikes a balance on miraculous occurrences, offering plausible ideas for some (the burning bush may have resulted from volcanic activity) while leaving others open to divine activity. Though it opens well, the book loses energy and culminates in a disappointing conclusion. Although this is not as engaging as The Red Tent, it should appeal to the same readership. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Halter continues with the second installment of his trilogy on biblical women, which began with Sarah in 2004. He again uses the frame of a biblical story--here, Moses' relationship with Zipporah, the daughter of Jethro--but this time the tale he tells is more overtly feminist. Zipporah is a Cushite, a black woman, and though she has found love and acceptance in her adoptive family, it's unlikely she will find a husband. Then she has a dream about an Egyptian prince, and before long, Moses appears--but a diffident Moses, very different from the biblical version. The focus here is clearly on Zipporah rather than Moses or even God. The great happenings of Moses' life, including the 10 plagues, mostly occur offstage. The strongest part of the book, not surprisingly, is the intense rendering of Zipporah. Halter builds her character not only by re-creating her most intimate thoughts but also by providing vivid details of her daily life in the desert. Less successful is the exploration of race relations, which seems forced. The last book in the triology will focus on Lilah, sister of Ezra. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
Praise for Sarah, the first book in Marek Halter’s Canaan Trilogy


“A worthy heiress to Anita Diamant’s bestseller The Red Tent, and an entertaining read, with a heroine who uses both her brains and her femininity to astonishing effect.” —Atlanta Journal-Constitution



From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews

typical biblical fiction
I truly wish that the author hadn't carped quite so much about Zipporah being "black skinned". The Israelites were more interested in where she came from and what she was doing than her skin tone. Took alot away from what could have been a good book instead of just a fair book. Don't waste your money on this one.

Ancient reading
This book opened my eyes to the possibility of Moses' wife being a strong woman, who faced much adversity in a time where women were treated as submissive and not as leaders. They had extremely important roles within the family they belonged, but were not looked upon as decision makers. Zipporah defied the more common female characteristics as a willful, intelligent and vocal partner to Moses. What an eye opener!

Karen

Excellent Read!
Zipporah, Wife of Moses is absolutely wonderful! If you are familiar with the scriptures of the bible specifically the story of Moses you will really appreciate this narrative by the author Marek Halter. I didn't know what to expect and I wasn't disappointed. The beginning was slow and the terms and characters were sketchy in the very beginning but oh when I got to the heart of things I couldn't put it down. Give it a moment and take time to enjoy...its worth it! I am now starting on Sarah. I have found the author to be interesting indeed.