Reviews are starting to dribble in, which is fun. I got a little mini-review in Jewcy, and something a bit longer from Lilith. Here’s a taste:
Ruttenberg no doubt began her book with a moment of teenage rebellion in order to make her gradual commitment to a life of Jewish practice seem all the more striking. But the true beauty of her story is found not in this large transformation (teenage atheists are a dime a dozen) but in the moments of small transformations. This is where Ruttenberg’s prose is at its powerful best….
Ruttenberg sprinkles her text with brief quotes from mystics and other religious teachers…. Throughout, though, it is her voice that emerges most strongly as we accompany her on her religious journey, “the strange and brambly path we didn’t know that we’d been trying to find all along.â€