It is a constant in my life: I either put in a hold request at my local library or, if I know that Alice Hoffman will be coming to town at a bookstore near me, I buy the book and look forward to her autographing the title page. Also, I am assured that Hoffman will always bring a tear to the eye somewhere in the book—not just at the end. And of course there are those subtle magical enchantments throughout some of Hoffman’s books that makes for delightful reading. However, it is the wisdom Hoffman’s characters reveal to the reader, on the sorrows of loss and the regeneration of love, that also have me returning to a new Hoffman story. Throughout this pandemic year, readers have been returning to stories that they have heard before to bring a semblance of temporary relief to the stresses of living with COVID-19. An Alice Hoffman story is an excellent tonic for our stressed hearts and minds. But where to start with Alice Hoffman? She has written nearly 30 novels over three decades, and which one will best soothe a weary spirit? To assist the reader, I have chosen seven Alice Hoffman novels to read this pandemic summer and into the fall. They are listed here alphabetically by title. But don’t stop at the end of this list: Alice Hoffman has also written several young adult titles as well as more adult novels. The Dovekeepers are the four women who preside over the dovecote at Masada, all of whom have come to Masada from various parts of Jerusalem and the Judean desert. Hoffman renders this iconic and historic incident with great skill: as the reader experiences the final days at Masada, we experience the escape of the two dove keepers who realize their destiny is not one of death, but of life and to tell the world what happened at Masada.
