The Dance of the Dissident Daughter :
A Woman's Journey from Christian Tradition to the Sacred
Feminine
by Sue Monk Kidd
Hardcover, 238 pages
Published by Harper San Francisco
Publication date: June 1, 1996
ISBN: 0060645881
Reviews:
Oxana, 5/24/99 Feminine Journey to Self
Powerfully and beautifully written account of a woman's journey into herself and toward the Feminine Divine.
An invitation and guide to women's search of her own truth.
Georgia, 10/18/98
I found this book to be compelling and rich. It paralleled my own spiritual journey in a way that I had not found in print before. The tensions that the author described in her own life and spiritual formation were extremely genuine. The authenticity captured me early in the book and I read it in one sitting. For those who are currently at the beginning of the journey, it is a nice roadmap, although it might raise anxieties for some. I am recommending this book to many friends who are in my spirituality group in an Episcopal parish.
DDL, 9/14/98 This book is changing my life
Every woman should read this book. Sue is right when she says that many of us are "asleep" and that includes, men, too. We all need to become aware of the Feminine Divine and that ~ as I heard Sue the other day quoting a 90-something-year-old nun ~ "...God is a lot more than just 2 men and a bird!" I urge every woman, but especially those "involved" in the church, to read this book with an open mind.
Wanda Harward, 10/31/97, Christian Women's Spirituality
The author does an excellant job showing the internal battle experienced by a person when they "wake up" one day and realize that their spiritual belief system is repressive. She was raised Southern Baptist and was the wife of a Southern Baptist minister when she "awakened" to realize there was more to a spiritual relationship with God than the paternalistc and narrow path she had been taught. The author chronicals her journey through fear, anger, rejection, and acceptance toward a more whole and balanced relationship with the Divine Feminine and the Divine Masculine that is God.
C., 10/19/97, Thought-provoking narrative
of spiritual/intellectual growth
A friend grabbed me and thrust this book into my hands - it was changing
her life, she said, and she needed to discuss it with someone. Kidd's naievete
and trust in institutions tried my patience at the start of the story, but
the path she takes is interesting, and brings her to conclusions that are
honest, consistant and heartfelt - even unsentimental. Even when I disagreed
with the author, the book led me to consider questions - the authors and
my own - deeply and unsparingly. An interesting book for a discussion group.
R., 07/30/97, A woman shares her spiritual
journey with others.
"Sometimes another woman's story becomes a mirror that shows me a self
I haven't seen before." Sue Monk Kidd writes these words and holds
up such a mirror in this thought-provoking account of her gradual disenchantment
with the traditional, patriarchal Christian Church that was at the center
of her personal and professional lives. As she becomes open to questions
about feminine images of the Divine, she develops a feminist religious perspective
without becoming anti-male or anti-church. She researches the subject extensively,
and one of the great delights this book offers is the many voices of women--poets,
theologians, and feminists--echoing through its pages. Kidd's story is a
traveling companion both for those already in the midst of such a journey
and for those who have yet to begin. It is well worth reading and reading
again.
K.H., 03/05/97, A Christian author's
journey exploring feminine spirituality
On a rainy autumn afternoon, Sue Monk Kidd's teenage daughter is on her
knees stocking shelves at the local drugstore. Two middle-aged men walk
by and one comments, "That's how I like to see a woman...on her knees."
They laugh. The author, observing from another aisle, does not. Thus begins
a slow, arduous, and painful epiphany for this well-known Christian author
as she journeys the 'road less traveled', exploring feminine spirituality
and its sudden impact on her life. I found this engrossing book well-documented,
painful, and provocative. If you are a woman questioning the present social
mores and your role in life, or a man who wishes to honor his wife and/or
daughter(s), this book will give you a fresh perspective on the importance
of female spirituality.