Noah's Wife: The Story of Naamah

I recommend this book for children and adults. It opens the story of Noah up and it gives Noah's wife a name which she does not have in Genesis. It also has beautiful illustrations and a touch of God's sense of humor.

Gave it to church library.

I use this book all the time to encourage children to truly engage the stories of the bible, to see that they are about real people, facing real problems and finding creative solutions, knowing that God will love them through anything and help them to be the best they can possibly be. Sandy Sasso writes with sensitivity and humor. Children and adults alike will love this book.

Wonderful story to share with children of all ages. Expands the Biblical story of Noah adding God's call to females to be providers and caregivers of our environment.

Love the midrash on Noah's wife.

Not only is Sandy's story fun, it demonstrates the process of "playing" with Scripture, interacting with its questions and yours.

This delightful children's tale is based on an imaginative elaboration of the biblical text contained in the ancient Midrash Genesis Rabbah, which states that Noah's wife was named Naamah "because her deeds were neimim, Hebrew for "pleasing." The book focuses on what Naamah did during and after the famous biblical flood. It helps us see how women and men are partners in all that transpires. The author is the second woman who was ordained as a rabbi, but her book, which was awarded a Publishers Weekly "Best Book," is appropriate for and will be pleasing to people of all faiths. The illustrator has a master's degree in visual art and her art works appear in museums.While the Bible tells us that God instructed Noah to save the animals by taking two of every kind, and seven of some, aboard the ark that saved him and his family, Sasso reveals that God gave Naamah a different mission, to "take two of every kind of living plant and bring each one onto the ark." Sasso describes Naamah's difficulties and how she overcame them, and about her decision about weeds, such as dandelions. Sasso also reveals how the dove was able to bring back an olive branch to Noah and Naamah in the ark to show that the flood waters had receded: how could the dove find an olive when the flood destroyed everything?Children will enjoy this tale and learn much from it.

I read this book several years ago, when I didn't have children yet. I was studying botany as an undergrad, and I am still studying botany in my PhD program.I found a wonderful inspiration in this book about Noah's wife, gathering the seeds as Noah gathers the animals. People often forget that the plants around them are creatures, too. Plants shape our world and are necessary for life, just as much as animals. Naamah, as the wife of Noah, is given this important, life-sustaining task, and she succeeds in her mission.Beautiful book. Now that I have my own child, she loves to read it(and look at the pictures), too. I highly recommend this book. It is well-written and superbly illustrated.