Journey to the Well

"Journey to the Well" is a stand-alone novel by Diana Wallis-Taylor. Marah, a young girl of 13 lives in the village of Shechem. When her aunt Reba arranges for her to marry an older man, she is fearful of what her life will be. The story goes through the ups and downs of her life as she loses one husband after another. First was Zibeon, the man her aunt arranged who had a mother obsessed with having a grandchild. Next was Shimei, the brother of Zibeon who had a shameful secret. He presents Marah with a bill of divorcement before the wedding even takes place. Next is Jesse, whom Marah loved since childhood. He too had lost his first wife, leaving behind an infant son named Caleb. Marah becomes his mother and loves him as if he were her own. After Jesse dies in an accident, Marah marries Haman, a man who claimed to be Jesse's cousin. When he is killed for being found a murderer, the gentle and respectable man from the caraven named Ahmal offers Marah his home and the offer of marriage. When Ahmal goes missing for 3 years, Rueben, a man claiming to be his half-brother appears to Marah, and robs her of her dignity. When Rueben sets out for a journey, Marah takes a walk to Jacob's Well. There she meets Jesus, in which he tells her of everything she has done in her life. And as she comes to believe, she finds healing and forgiveness to all which she has done. I loved the story. From just reading the Bible passage, you would think the Samaritan woman was one who lived in sexual sin. What woman would go through 5 husbands, only to currently live with a man who was not her husband? But through the story we see that, that woman was a normal person like any of us. Her life was just full of tragedy. Yet she believed her life to be God-willed, and tried to make the best out of everything in life. By the end of the book when she meets Jesus, and you see the dialogue found in the Bible, we know Marah. We know why she responds the way she does and we know what she has gone through in life. The research that the author did in the book is greatly evident. While reading, I felt like I myself was thrown into first century Samaria. She herself says in the 'author's note' of the book that it was a story 25 years in the making. I blindly got the book after seeing the description of it in a catalogue. I enjoy biblical fiction and the synopsis sounded intriguing. I was not disappointed. I always enjoy reading more into the life of a certain biblical figure. Even if it is ficitionized. And if you enjoy any type of biblical fiction, I am sure this will be the right book for you. :)

oh, how God blessed me through this book! as someone else said in their review, it does indeed give you a better understanding of the biblical incident. it creates an environment around the woman, the village, its people, its history through the passage of time. by the time you arrive at the part where Jesus meets the woman by the well, you know her so well, she could be one of your relatives or close friends. you know her thoughts, her feelings, the events of her life, everything about her. and when you read her dialog with Jesus, which is in the Bible, and we have read it so many times, it has an altogether different depth and meaning, because, well, you know this woman He is talking to. i also loved the fact that the author depicts Jesus smiling a lot, and even laughing. that is how i like to think of Him, too. the point is, no matter what point in your life you may be at when this book comes your way, i think you will discover what i discovered when, with my eyes full of tears, i finally closed this book: i was the woman at the well.

This book was 25 years in the making. The author paints an amazing story which will take you back in time - a time when Jesus lived. I have to admit I had always thought of the 'woman at the well' to be a woman of poor moral character. Diana describes a tale of a faithful woman, a woman after God's own heart, who is thrust into circumstances beyond her control. How quickly people judge someone without knowing all the facts...but once all the facts are known, and they can't pin it to one bad choice that brought about all the bad luck. People start to speculate things or imagine stuff. You can't win - especially back then. There is no redemption except through Jesus. Forgiveness, love, compassion...those are just a few things Marah finds at Jacob's well that day. The author not only tells the tale of Marah and how women were treated back then, but she also tells of other characters that could have or did intersect with her life. Some of the people discussed at length were Reba, Zibeon, Shimei, Jessie, Hamon, Ahmal and Jesus. To me, a good book brings the bible to life in a very creative way. I love that it caused me to turn to scripture and see what else I can glean from its pages. Diana Wallis Taylor walks you through Jesus' time customs and the many people he met and healed along the way. After reading "Journey to the Well", scripture will come alive for you and you'll find yourself (like I did) digging though its pages and coming to your own conclusions of what could have happened back then. Finding Hope Through Fiction [...]

I don't know if it's because this was ingrained in me from years of Sunday School, but my impression of the woman at the well was always negative. I mean, she had five husbands so to my childhood mind back then, anyone who had five husbands couldn't be good! For some reason, I never thought of her situation to be not her fault. I mean seriously, why did becoming a widow, abandonment or abuse never get brought up at all in Sunday School? Reading this book put that story in a totally different light and helped me to understand her a whole lot better. I felt so sorry for Marah throughout the book. To be forced to marry at the age of 13 is just unthinkable. You're barely out of your childhood and then forced to become a married woman. Her aunt was NOT a nice character so it was good that she had Hannah as a surrogate mother to help her out throughout the years. Each man that she ends up with brings other joy or unhappiness for Marah. However with each husband, we see how she is able to adapt and begin a new life for herself, no matter how much heartbreak or sorrow she had felt before. I don't think I could have been as strong as she had been and I admired her greatly for it. The situation with Shimei was rather interesting. The issue mostly likely did happen back during that time period but it would have been taboo and never brought up in polite society. It was totally unexpected to read in the book but it does shed light on the lives of people during that time. Taylor does her research for this book and it's a wonderful blend of history, Biblical fact, and a page turning story. If you're a Biblical fiction fan, you will enjoy this book for its rich storytelling and descriptive narrative. If you're not a fan of Biblical fiction because you think that it's sacrilegious to add things to the Bible, you will still enjoy this book. Everything from the scene at the well is included in this story keeping that whole passage intact. What Taylor does though, is draw out the story and helps you to understand what exactly Marah was going through and why she became a believer. It's one of the best Biblical fiction novels I've read this year and I hope to read more of Taylor's works in the future. HIGHLY recommended.

Wow. This story was amazing. I read Journey to the Well from start to finish and absolutely loved it! In this fictional account of Marah's life, you will see that there is so much more to the Samaritan woman that Jesus spoke to at the well. She had a history that fit her name, Marah, which meant bitter. She was not a heartless woman, but a wounded woman who needed love. That is so true of all of us. Journey to the Well shows you the history of her life leading up to the meeting when Jesus told her, "What you say is true. You have had five husbands and the man you are with is not your husband." This is a powerful story from start to finish. The entire gamut of emotions is covered in this extraordinary story of redemption. I will be thinking about it for some time. The spiritual impact is powerful.