The Bitterwood Bible and Other Recountings is a stunning work of art that is worth revisiting again and again. It is beautifully written, in a lyrical voice with precise language that is a joy to read. It is a prequel to Sourdough and Other Stories, with each tale a stand-alone wonder, their visceral darkness and beauty drawing the reader in. The delicate strands of love, power, enmities old and new, and the mysterious Bitterwood Bible of the title, thread through the stories to weave the collection together into a glorious whole. A number of characters reappear throughout the tales, sometimes just as a glimpse, at other times to tell their own stories. At its core, these are the stories of women, clever and cunning and vulnerable, carving their way through a hostile world and refusing to be circumscribed by their traditional roles.