A very... different... retelling of the Noah's Ark story. I enjoyed the highly imaginative first half immensely but the second half was bizarre. Still an interesting, thought-provoking read, appropriate for snow days! ( )

When I saw this novel tucked away in a local charity shop, I pounced immediately. How could I resist a story about the Ark so soon after ferreting deep into the history of its legend? Originally published in Dutch in 2001 (the author is Flemish), it has been translated into English by John Nieuwenhuizen and takes us into a strange and foreign world of fishermen and nomads, boat-builders and prophets. And, at the heart of the tale, is the rumour of a great boat being built in the middle of a desert by a crazy old man, and the young woman who travels with her family to answer the call for workers...

For the full review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2018/03/30/in-the-shadow-of-the-ark-anne-provoost/ ( )

Every Bible character except Ham is pretty much unlikeable. The author made Noah sickly, even though in the Bible Noah lives a long life after the flood. There is a dwarf advising Noah that the author creates. The dwarf really is running the show.

Noah hires help, idea never mentioned in the Bible. And hides the truth about the purpose of the Ark. In the book he need help to build a boat. But the Biblical Ark was really box shaped, no need for special skills to form the bow, no rudder needed.

Exactly why the others are unrighteous are condemned isn't clear. Noah is outraged by the killing of animals for food, yet believes that after the flood it will be allowed. That makes him and God hypocrites. Everyone who does this will be killed, but once I kill all those people, hey you can go ahead and do it now.

In the book there are signs of rising water and rain storms.
Like many others the author loves the imagery of a desperate rush to try to get in the open door as the rain goes on.
In this book every one believes Noah about the upcoming flood. Jesus said the people of Noah's day took no note until it was too late. ( )

Following on the commerical success of Anita Diamant's 'The Red Tent,' publishers have struck on Belgian author Anne Provoost's retelling of the story of Noah's Ark as their next great hope...
However, although it does tell a Biblical story from the perspective of a young woman, in many ways the two are not very similar books.
Where 'Red Tent' is in many ways a very historical, 'how it might have been' kind of tale, Provoost is more concerned with the mythic and especially the allegorical elements of the story. The cultures of the tribal peoples she portrays are more symbolic than based in archaeological research.
Through the classic story of Noah, focusing on a young woman, the daughter of a shipbuilder, who becomes Noah's son Ham's concubine, Provoost explores the themes of righteousness and evil, the hubris of claiming to be 'chosen,' and the pettiness of a god that would destroy the innocent in favor of one family of no particular merit or virtuousness... especially since, as Provoost points out, the flood failed to eliminate evil from the world. (But is this due to a failing in the Unnameable's plan? Or is it due to the failings of the chosen family... including allowing non-chosen stowaways on the ark, and secretly making sacrifices to the old gods while on the ark... (they even sacrifice the dove.... how symbolic!))
Interestingly, in the story, the characters (and Provoost? it's hard to tell) do not question the existence of deities - just their motivations and justifications.

An interesting book - but it doesn't really absorb you in the feeling of life in a different time, as some historical fiction does. Also, it's very thought-provoking... but I can't help feeling that some of this is just that the reader has to question "What exactly did the author MEAN by that ?" because it's not always very clear.. ( )

I just finished this book and found it to be like the Red Tent. The tone of the writing evoked responses in me. I felt more involved with the book than others I have read. It is a bit scattered, however, and sometime hard to follow. ( )