Woman of Valor
"Immersive and captivating!"
What would you do if you had a second chance at first love? That's Sally's dilemma.
Sally Lieberman chose to become an Orthodox Jew in her twenties because it was comforting, calming and full of community and family. It didn't hurt that religious observance brought her to the man of her dreams-her patient, sexy husband, Barry.
Ten years in, Sally has everything she ever wanted, a passionate marriage with three children and a best friend she can count on. She loves everything about her chosen life.
Until her son is abused at school, and she's shocked by her husband's response. That's when Sally's first love finds her online and wants her back-something she dreamed about long before she became a religious wife.
It would be easy to abandon the community that is abandoning her-but she's not the same person she was when she first fell in love with John. Sally is caught between two worlds. Can she give up the life she's built with Barry?
Experience the sensory-rich, food-filled Orthodox community of Skokie, Illinois in Woman of Valor, and see why Sally Lieberman loves this often-difficult, yet surprisingly-inspiring way of life-even when everything seems stacked against her. Ask yourself what you would do if you had a second-chance with your first love.
What Readers Say...
"...a brave heroine who inhabited two worlds and chooses the one readers least expect..." Nancy Sharp, author of Both Sides Now
"...an important story of faith, love, devotion and self-determination..." Barbara Stark-Nemon, author of Even In Darkness
"A deeply relatable tale in an intriguing setting." Tammy Pasterick, author of Beneath the Veil of Smoke and Ash
"Woman of Valor is a must-read!" Ly Ky Tran, author of House of Sticks: A Memoir
"...a heartfelt, satisfying read." Rochelle B. Weinstein, bestselling author of What You Do To Me
"I was hooked from the first page!"
"I was on the edge of my seat, could not put it down and finished the book in one sitting."
"I couldn't put it down!!"
"The story is captivating, the writing is vivid and superb."
"A five-sense immersion into a rich world of Jewish faith and family life."
"Great story full of vivid characters, human frailty, suspense, deep love and passion"
"A stunning read about faith, temptation, and the ripple effect of consequences."
"The story takes some surprising twists and had me holding my breath sometimes unsure of how some things would work out."
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When Sally Lieberman's Orthodox family is faced with a traumatic scandal, the fallout pits husband and wife against each other. Sally, anguished and unmoored, grapples with the shocking revelation, while finding strength and comfort through running. There, she questions her Jewish identity, her marriage, and ultimately the man she believed was the love of her young life. What ensues is a moving story of family, sacrifice, and the power of mature, fulfilling love. Golodner is a wonderful writer who tackles tough subjects with sensitivity and wit while delivering a heartfelt, satisfying read.
Rochelle B. Weinstein, Bestselling author of This Is Not How It Ends
The literary and film worlds have devotedly explored the constraints imposed on women in contemporary religious Jewish communities, often concluding that escape from those communities is the only redress for strong thoughtful women. Lynne Golodner's Woman of Valor offers a different premise and alternate solutions to the tropes of misogyny, communal insularity and subjugation that characterize many representations of ultra-orthodox communities. Sally walks the reader through her life, beginning 10 years into her choice to become an orthodox Jew, willingly leaving her secular upbringing on the heels of a humiliating, ruinous breakup with her first love. Occasional doubts and memories of her former life sometimes intrude but do not disrupt - until events at her son's school and a casual reconnection to her former lover change everything, calling into question her choices and threatening her hard-won stability and contentment. Golodner's skill in developing Sally's character- flawed, authentic and dimensional- keeps the reader engaged in real conflicts without resorting to caricature. Sally's resolution of these dilemmas avoids the all-or-none dichotomies, and is nuanced in a believable way. This Woman of Valor tells an important contemporary story of faith, love, devotion and self-determination.
Barbara Stark-Nemon, author of Even in Darkness & Hard Cider
An engaging and thought-provoking exploration of identity, faith, family, and love. What if? This essential question is in some ways at the heart of Woman of Valor. What if my life were different? Lynne Golodner has written a brave heroine who inhabited two worlds and ultimately chooses the one readers least expect -- but where there is symmetry and beauty in rules and tradition.
Nancy Sharp, author of Both Sides Now
Set in a world most will never experience, Lynne Golodner's fascinating novel about an Orthodox Jewish woman's fight to protect her children from a threat within her community explores the most universal of themes. This thought-provoking story of a marriage in crisis raises tough questions about family love and loyalty, devotion to one's faith, and what it means to truly belong to a community. A deeply relatable tale in an intriguing setting.
Tammy Pasterick, author, Beneath the Veil of Smoke and Ash
Overflowing with wisdom and a testament to deep, abiding love, Lynne Golodner has penned a riveting and propulsive account of a mother and wife caught between worlds, a past she ran away from that returns to haunt her and an uncertain future that threatens the sanctity of her home. Exquisitely written and profoundly human at its core. WOMAN OF VALOR is a must-read.
Ly Ky Tran, author of House of Sticks: A Memoir
