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We see Mary–young, strong, and inquisitive–as she first meets Joseph, a serious-minded young carpenter who is steadfastly devoted to the religious traditions of their people. The two become betrothed, but are soon faced with an unexpected pregnancy. Aided by a great and abiding love, they endure challenges to their relationship as well as threats to their lives as they come to terms with the mysterious circumstances surrounding the birth of their child, Jesus. For Mary, the pregnancy is a divine miracle and a privilege. For Joseph, it is an ongoing test not only of his courage but of his faith–in his wife as well as in his God.
Exquisitely written and imbued with the truthful emotions and richness of detail that have earned Elizabeth Berg a devoted readership, The Handmaid and the Carpenter explores lives touched profoundly by miracles large and small. This powerful and moving audio is destined to become a classic.
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Since then, Berg has written subsequent novels, most of them, like Durable Goods, sincere, unpretentious, somewhat sentimental, and focused on an event that changes a woman's life. In Joy School (1997), a continuation of Katie's story, the crucible is her first taste of romance; in What We Keep (1998), it's a girl's abandonment by her mother; in Until the Real Thing Comes Along (1999), it's a woman's love for a gay man. All are grounded in the realistic minutiae of family life: irksome marriages, tempestuous parent-child relationships, love, betrayal, and resolution.
Although her books have received mixed reviews from critics, Berg remains immensely popular with readers who appreciate her fine powers of observation and honest descriptions. Her command of authentic details is on best display in her medically-themed titles. Before she became a full-time writer, Berg was a registered nurse, where she accumulated an endless store of observations related to sickness, healing, and the emotional toll that health crises take on people. In Range of Motion, Berg wrote about the experience of a comatose man; in Talk Before Sleep, about a nurse caring for a good friend who is succumbing to cancer; in Never Change, about a nurse treating an incurably ill man who also happens to have been a childhood acquaintance.
Although Berg's plots can occasionally be predictable, equally predictable is her taut, intelligent foray into the forces that shape ordinary people's lives -- especially women's lives -- and her exploration of the infinite resilience of the human spirit.
Berg hasn't managed to get her way when it comes to titling her books, usually getting overruled by her agent and editor. She wanted to call Durable Goods The King of Wands, after a tarot card; Range of Motion would have been Telling Songs; and Open House would have been The Hotel Meatloaf. Perhaps Berg should be thankful for her handlers?
Durable Goods was never meant to have a sequel, Berg says in a publisher's interview, but she ended up writing Joy School (and later True to Form) because she missed the original characters. Berg explains: "There was just a time when I was lying in the bathtub, and I thought about Katie, and I got out of the bathtub and started writing about her to see what she was up to."
chapter one
Nazareth
january, 4 b.c.
Joseph
Outside, a thunderstorm raged. a great wind frightened the animals and bent the trees low to the ground, shaking their leaves almost off their branches. But inside the house of just-married Simon and Esther, there was light and laughter. A long table covered with a striped cloth was pushed up close to the wall, and it was laden with earthenware platters decorated by palm fronds and piled high with eggplant and olives, with spit-roasted beef and lamb and fish, with rounds of flatbread, with grapes and oranges and figs and sweet cakes.
Beneath the table, sixteen-year-old Joseph sat cross-legged in silence, watching sandals and ankles and hems of tunics go by. No one had seen him--he was almost totally obscured by the tablecloth--and he enjoyed the anonymity. He was of course a man now, but he could not resist on occasion returning to the pleasures of boyhood. This was one such pleasure: to sit hidden and watch the elders as they drank ever more wine and acted ever more foolish. In the corner, he saw old Samuel weaving as he stood with his feet far apart, trying to focus on the face before him. Wine had sloshed from his wooden cup to dribble down his mantle. "You will soon be on the floor," Joseph muttered, and was startled to hear a voice say, "I am surprised he is not already."
Joseph turned to see a girl squatting just behind him. "You have found the seat of honor," she said. "May I join you here?"
There was something familiar about her. "We are known to each other?" he asked.
She nodded. "You have seen me many times. And you spoke to me when last you saw me. You came to the well when I was there last summer. I was gathering water with my mother; you were passing by with your father, Jacob."
"Your memory serves you well. And I remember now, also. You are called Mary." She was a wonder to behold, with her black curls escaped from her braid, her cheeks flushed dusky rose, her gaze so direct and yet mysterious. She tucked her hair behind her ears, and he saw the lines of her high cheekbones beginning to assert themselves. Her lips were full and pink. He was suddenly dry-mouthed, his heart knocking about in his chest like a caged animal wild to be released.
"Yes, I am Mary," she said. "And you are called Joseph."
And her voice! Low and musical, laughlike. The utter completeness of her beauty was astonishing; it made for a rush of emotion in him so strong it felt like anger.
"You have . . . grown," he told her, and his voice cracked, causing him to blush to the center of his soul.
She appeared not to notice but instead stared calmly into his eyes. "And you also."
"How old are you?" he asked.
"Newly thirteen. And you?"
"Seventeen in two days."
They regarded each other carefully, and then he ducked down and pointed to the people before him who had joined hands and made a circle to dance. They whooped and called out to one another, stamped their feet, threw their heads back and laughed. "They rejoice so!" Joseph said, caught between wanting to admire them and to ridicule them. "It is as though King Herod has died and the Messiah has come, both together!"
She came closer and peered from beneath the cloth to see the dancers, then sat next to Joseph. "It...
books4meBM
Posted January 31, 2010
Good change of pace for a book group looking for something to read in
December.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 13, 2007
I am a Berg fan as well. I had not realized she wrote this book until I was looking up a book of similar content. I really liked how she handled the story of Mary and Joseph and their love for each other. It was quite beautiful. I was determined to read it at first because of poor reviews I read about it. In my opinion, not so, it was excellent. I loved it, and it will stay with me for some time. Thank you Ms. Berg
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted April 7, 2007
This is the first book of Elizabeth Berg's that has felt lifeless to me. As I read it, I couldn't get away from the fact that it seemed to be a comfortable exercise for her, but was unnecessary to share in book form. Everything about Berg's writing has led me to believe that she is a woman of sound judgement. Wonder what happened here?
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 26, 2007
This book was boring and I couldn't finish it. I am an Elizabeth Berg fan and was really disappointed. I hope her next book is more like her previous writings.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 19, 2006
I have enjoyed all of Ms. Berg's previous novels. I have given them as gifts and, as a bookseller, have recommended them. However, this latest endeavor is a failure. It did not hold my interest and no matter what your religious beliefs are, none of the characters are believable or relateable. I couldn't sustain enough interest to read past the first 50 pages. A huge disappointment from a talented writer.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 12, 2006
This was the first book I ready by Elizabeth Bert and I really enjoyed it. You can see and feel the characters. Will there be a sequel to this book?
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 22, 2007
...to get a rational grasp on the true story of Mary and Joseph and the birth of Jesus, and yet those who actually need the more 'truthful' story that is told here will call it 'sacrilege.' It's very unfortunate a book like this will be lost on the deaf ears of those who refuse to believe Jesus had siblings, or that Mary and Joseph were anything but perfect. Though these people will proclaim themselves the most pious, they obviously have a very faint knowledge of biblical history or the context of the time in which Jesus was born.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 1, 2006
I have always enjoyed Elizabeth Berg's books but was very disappointed with this one. If you are going to write a story about the Holy Family get your facts straight. Our Holy Mother,Mary, was conceived without sin and died without sin.Would God have entrusted His Son to a woman who was not pure in all ways? She could have never behaved the way this character is portrayed. To think of Mary keeping a truth from Joseph is unbelievable. Joseph would never have behaved the way this character did also. For God to have chosen him as the father of Jesus, Joseph was a man of great faith. He would have never had a doubt of how Jesus was conceived. Another sore point of the story is Mary and Joseph having other children. Jesus is Mary's only son as she is the ever-virgin. This story could have been so beautiful if it was written with the truth.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 4, 2011
Not even close to E. Berg's previous work. I could not even finish it. Save your time and money!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.i liked this story but dont read this if you are crazy literal about you bible stories.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.GrammaKB
Posted April 6, 2009
In her effort to humanize Mary and Joseph, Berg created simplistic characters and strayed from the chronology that is generally recognized by Biblical scholars. Furthermore, this novelette reads like an outline or a proposal, not a fully developed narrative. It's hard to believe that this was written by the same Elizabeth Berg, some of whose other works I've enjoyed.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.lilpiggie
Posted March 9, 2009
Elizabeth Berg makes it very clear that The Handmaid and the Carpenter is a fictionalized interpretation of what the lives of Mary and Joseph may have been like in bibical times.
The story begins with the main characters as children and develops into a teenage romance full of innocence. There is the obvious turn of events when Mary is spoken to by an angel who tells her that she will conceive the Christ-child.
Given the awesome responsibility that Mary and Joseph were presented with and the difficulties they must have encountered with non-believers, I had expected this book to address the social implications since that can only be speculated. While Ms. Berg never claimed to take that direction, the direction that she took was simply to tell their story and offer bits of interesting details on that time period.
I read this along with my book club and our consensus was that this very short book was simply a retelling of a bible story with some lovely wording, but no depth. A look into the social aspect might have been compelling for discussion, but this was not what Ms. Berg chose to do. Some of us even speculated if this had been intended to be a children's or young adult's story because of its simplicity.
For that sort of reading, I would recommend it, but for those expecting a new perspective on Mary & Joseph, you would be sadly disappointed.
alwaysreadingLL
Posted March 9, 2009
I have read several of Elizabeth Berg's novels and was prepared to enjoy myself. What a disappointment! Half way through this unimaginative book, I stopped to re-read the back cover, wondering if it was meant as a children's book. It was chosen by our book club based on Berg's reputation and we were all similarly disappointed. So much could have been done with this plot. Instead, it is historically inaccurate, simplistic in plot and the characters were terribly undeveloped.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 9, 2009
This is the age old story of Mary and Joseph but from their point of view. Finally, you are able to picture the entire story as if it were happening to you or one of your friends. Although it may not be scripturally based, the story is definitely entertaining and well written.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 26, 2006
I have enjoyed previous books by this author and was hoping that, in 'The Handmaid and the Carpenter,' Berg would confront the ridiculous fairy-tale story of Jesus' conception and other so-called miracles that fly in the face of reason. Instead, this book upholds the notion of a supernatural being, angels, and virgin birth. It seems a shame to encourage religious irrationality.
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Posted November 19, 2010
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Posted June 3, 2009
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Posted February 2, 2012
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Posted January 26, 2011
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Posted December 15, 2009
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Overview
We see Mary–young, strong, and inquisitive–as she first meets Joseph, a serious-minded young carpenter who is steadfastly devoted to the religious traditions of their people. The two become betrothed, but are soon faced with an...