Sappho's Leap

by Erica Jong

Book Overview

Always our keenest-eyed chronicler of the wonders and vagaries of sex and love, Jong has found the perfect subject for a witty and sensuous tale of a passionate woman ahead of her time.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393057615
• ISBN13: 9780393057614
• Release Date: May 2003
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 316 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

loved loved loved!

I rented this book from the library about a year or so ago. I LOVED it! I'm back here now b/c I'm putting it on my wishlist for Christmas! I want to read it again and again. I'd never read Erica Jong or anything about Sappho. I saw Erica on The Daily Show and they talked about this book and I ran to the library. You should buy this book! Greatness!

Surprisingly enjoyable

I read this novel quickly. It is a good story and has intriguing characters. I loved the ending. It was somewhat slow in the beginning but I quickly found myself looking forward to finding out what happened to dear Sappho. It is not historical fiction though, just complete and wonderful fiction. You'll have fun with this book.

Love Comes In Many Forms: Erica Jong At Her Best

Erica Jong is best known for her first novel "Fear of Flying" which was immersed in tremendous success. Pro-feminist, spiritual, poetic, tolerant and highly intellectual, Erica Jong has written numerous novels that deal with women, men, true love, lust, bad relationships, good relationships, the list is endless. Her novels are of the highest literary caliber, and the erotica she writes goes far beyond sensual pleasure. It becomes a religious experience.Erica Jong's "Sappho's Leap" is about the historic lesbian poet Sappho, who lived in thousands of years ago in the Greek island of Lesbos. From Lesbos, we get the term "lesbian." And it was Sappho who encouraged free love, female independence, equal rights and a lot of modern ideals that were considered unorthodox in her day. Sappho was enamored with women, as well as men, and this quasi-historic novel does not merely serve to titillate the reader with her erotic adventures, it is instead a great portrayal of the great Greek poetess, a mystic journey back in time and a fervent celebration of life.Sappho is born to an aristocratic family. When she was born, a prophetess announced that she would become famous one day. Aphrodite champions Sappho's cause and makes a bet with Zeus. Zeus and Aphrodite play a game with her life... will Sappho become the famous singer and Greek philosopher she wants to be ? Or will, as Zeus, insists, merely conform to women of her time and marry an unworthy man ? It is Sappho, in the end, who decides her own destiny. The novel is romantic, highly dramatic and full of historic accuracies, enhanced visually by the involvement of gods, goddesses and historic figures such as Queen Jezabel from the Old Testament and the fable writer Aesop. A good read for men and women alike, this novel is sure to touch you with its humor, sadness, and profound wisdom. Viva Erica Jong!