visibility and influential political support they are seen by the
　　　　  general public as marginalized individuals and, unlike monks, as
　　　　  having no special niche or status in the larger society. Yet this
　　　　  has not deterred women from becoming renunciates. On the contrary,
　　　　  Bartholomeusz records that between 1989 and 1992 their numbers
　　　　  increased considerably. The push to acquire ordination and
　　　　  recognition as bhikkunis or nuns who are members of the sangha,
　　　　  comes, ironically, from the foreign nuns who feel the need for such
　　　　  acceptance most. Bartholomeusz documents their various organizations
　　　　  as well as the ordination ceremonies performed, (predictably) in
　　　　  America. Tessa Bartholomeusz's Women Under the Bo Tree contains a
　　　　  fund of information for scholars and students of Buddhism. The life
　　　　  histories of several of the present day Sri Lankan lay nuns that she
　　　　  documents provide rich insights into the personalities of the
　　　　  individuals concerned, their contributions to the movement, and the
　　　　  sociopolitical and feminist implications of their institution. The
　　　　  reader might wish the book had leas of a textbook format where each
　　　　  chapter is framed by an introduction and a conclusion. However, in
　　　　  focusing attention on an important segment of Buddhist society --
　　　　  female renunciates, who though often neglected by male historians,
　　　　  both lay and clerical, have yet continued to surface throughout
　　　　  Buddhist history -- this book serves an important function.