In honor of Sefiras Haomer, I am reading And Rachel Was His Wife with my children. It was written by an anonymous author and published by Feldheim in 1990. It is the story of Rabbi Akiva and his wife, Rachel, through the eyes of Rachel’s close friend, Leah. Leah is a fictional character, but she is typical of her time period. Full of personality, and with a sense of humor, Leah shares her thoughts about the state of affairs in Eretz Yisrael towards the end of the second Beis Hamikdash. As many young women in that time period, she has conflicting feelings about the Romans, who brought material improvements to the land, along with their culture. She also struggles to understand Rachel, who seems perfectly content living in abject poverty and not seeing her husband for twenty four years. Through Leah’s eyes, we watch the simple shepherd Akiva transformed into a scholar and a leader.
We just finished part 1. It’s been a while since I read the rest of it. So far, we’ve really enjoyed it. My kids are begging me to keep reading whenever I suggest moving on to another activity.
Hope you enjoy it! Click on the link above to purchase the book on amazon.com.