The Dovekeepers

Author/Guide: Alice Hoffman

Why a Booktrail?

70 CE – The story of 4 women in Israel at the time of the Roman siege in Masada in 70 CE, when nine hundred Jews held out for months against armies of Romans on a mountain in the Judean desert.

ISBN: 978-0857205421
Genre: Fiction, Historical

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What you need to know before your trail

The Masada massacre was a real life event which took place towards the end of the First Jewish Roman war between 73 to 74CE on the large hill top of Masada in current day Israel.

Against this historic backdrop, four women come to the city, each one of them quite literarily taking a different path. Yael, Revka, Aziza and Shirah all have a story to tell and their reasons for being there.

The four lives intersect in the desperate days of the siege, as the Romans draw near. These women are dovekeepers who looked after the doves in the fortress and all are keeping secrets — about who they are, where they come from, who they are inside and what they are searching for.

With overtones of mythology, magic, archaeology, these women have a lot to tell.

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Travel Guide

The Masada massacre and the historical significance of this is the amazing backdrop to this story of four very different women who come to the town of Masada and become involved with the events which follow.

These women as the title of the book refers to are dovekeepers as they are the ones to look after the birds that are kept in the fortress overlooking the town. In the town, jewish rebels are holding out against the encroaching romans and each one in turn narrates a part of the overall story as well as their own.

The author states that many events in the book are real and the overriding story is one of historical truth. some of the character in the book are real and even items mentioned in the stories such as artifacts are now actually displayed in museum in and around the country.
These Dovekeepers are fascinating women –

“There were seven hawks circling above me, echoing the seven sister, stars that gather in the sky. I wore the white garments of a dovekeeper. Perhaps they thought I was ready to take flight and considered me a sacrifice.”

They are The Assassin’s Daughter. The Baker’s Wife. The Warrior’s Beloved. The Witch of Moab.

The author Alice Hoffman says she was inspired by a visit to Masada and used the historian Josephus’ account of the siege as inspiration for her story of these four very different and remarkable women.

If you get the chance to watch the CBS mini series, we recommend this too!