Naomi Ragen books

Naomi Ragen is an American-Israeli author known for novels about Orthodox Jewish women challenging tradition, including Jephte's Daughter and The Covenant.

Plays

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Women’s Minyan 2006 Buy

Standalone Novels

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Jephte’s Daughter 1988 Buy
Sotah 1992 Buy
A Woman Under Suspicion 1992 Buy
The Sacrifice of Tamar 1994 Buy
The Ghost of Hannah Mendes 1998 Buy
Chains Around the Grass 2001 Buy
The Covenant 2004 Buy
The Saturday Wife 2007 Buy
The Tenth Song 2010 Buy
The Sisters Weiss 2012 Buy
The Devil in Jerusalem 2015 Buy
An Unorthodox Match 2019 Buy
An Observant Wife 2021 Buy
The Enemy Beside Me 2023 Buy

Naomi Ragen has spent her career writing about Orthodox Jewish women navigating tradition, faith, and personal freedom. Her debut, Jephte’s Daughter, published in 1988, drew both praise and controversy for depicting an arranged marriage in Jerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox community. Sotah and The Sacrifice of Tamar continued to examine the costs women bear in highly traditional religious societies.

Her later novels have broadened in scope while keeping the same core concerns. The Ghost of Hannah Mendes traces a Jewish family across centuries. The Devil in Jerusalem is based on a true case of a cult leader in Israel. An Unorthodox Match and An Observant Wife explore the possibility of love and partnership within Orthodox life. Ragen writes from personal experience as an American who moved to Jerusalem, and her fiction carries the authority of someone who has lived inside the world she describes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books has Naomi Ragen written?

Naomi Ragen has written fifteen books across two series.

What was Naomi Ragen's first book?

Naomi Ragen’s first book is Jephte’s Daughter, published in 1988.

What is Naomi Ragen known for?

Ragen is known for novels that explore the lives of Orthodox Jewish women who struggle against rigid religious and cultural expectations. Her debut Jephte’s Daughter caused controversy for its frank portrayal of arranged marriage and abuse within ultra-Orthodox communities. Her fifteen books over thirty-five years have consistently examined faith, identity, and women’s autonomy within Jewish tradition.

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