Yiddish anyone? (also known as Catch-up Post #1)

Sorry I’ve been so quiet for so long. Between college applications and the required school reading, I haven’t been able to find much time for reviews. So this should hopefully make up for lost time.

THE YIDDISH POLICEMAN’S UNION BY MICHAEL CHABON

This is yet ANOTHER murder mystery. I didn’t know what to expect when I saw it on the “Buy2, Get the 3rd” table at Borders. I do LOVE Michael Chabon (See my review of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay) and murder mysteries, but I couldn’t see the two coming together very well. However, in classic Chabon style, the plot and characters are more complex than the book jacket would have you believe. Here’s the set up: It is the present time in the Federal District of Sitka, Alaska. In 1948, the state of Israel collapsed, leaving the world to decide what to do with the Jewish residents of that country. So the US “temporarily” set up the Federal District of Sitka as a safe haven for Jews while a more permanent solution was searched for. Now, sixty years later, Sitka is set to revert back to US control, while the residents try to decide what to do next. Detective Meyer Landsman, a down-and-out policeman who is divorced from his one true love, lives in a dump of an apartment and tries to stay as drunk as possible. One night, another man living the apartment complex is murdered in the middle of the night, and Landsman is awoken to investigate. As the facts unfold, Landsman’s past, along with that of his partner Berko Shemets, is revealed. It is a story about chess, murder, religious fanaticism, and love. Not one to read if you are looking for some light fare, but for a deep and beautiful plot, I’d give this to many people. Plus, it comes complete with extensive use of Yiddish and a glossary to accompany. Honestly, who wouldn’t want to learn a little Yiddish?

MRS. DALLOWAY BY VIRGINIA WOOLF

More required school reading! This novel is not for the faint of heart, as it has no chapters, and sentences sometimes take up almost a whole page. This is one of those books considered a classic; that is, a book that everyone has heard of but no one actually wants to read. And with good reason. Woolf often changes speaker midsentence, making it hard to keep facts straight. Basically it’s one day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, the wife of a British politician in post-World War I London, as she goes about planing a party that she is hosting that night. In between shopping and meeting with old acquaintances, she reflects on her life and remembers her past. The story is also told from the point of view of Peter Walsh, one of Clarissa’s old loves, and Septimus Warren Smith, a man who is greatly troubled because no one can understand him. I think that the book is so deep that it makes it inaccessible. However, there were passages which I enjoyed immensely. I wouldn’t really recommend it.

A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN BY BETTY SMITH

I started this book simply because I needed something to read. The story didn’t seem particularly interesting, but I was willing to give it a try. As I started reading it, I became engrossed. As Anna Quindlen says in her forward to the book, it’s hard to say what it’s about because the plot develops slowly, more like real life than the often unrealistic time of other novels. It is the story of Francie Nolan and her childhood in the poor Williamsburg section of Brooklyn at the turn of the century. It’s the story of her brother Neeley, and her mother Katie, and her father Johnny. It’s the story of one very poor family learning to cope with life and each other. And it is beautiful. I mean, if a book can be beautiful. It will make you laugh and cry, sometimes simultaneously. It’s just a really great book. Read it.

LAMB BY CHRISTOPHER MOORE

I received this for Christmas from my mother, and it seemed like an interesting choice. I’m not very religious, and considering it’s the story of Jesus, I was a little worried. But after reading the prologue, I was intrigued. The basic premise is that it’s the “greatest story never told”: the stuff that the Gospels don’t talk about, what happened between the birth of Jesus and when he next appears at age thirty. And who better to tell the story than Levi who is called Biff, Christ’s best friend? Two thousand years after the crucifixion, Jesus orders Biff to be ressurected to tell his side of the story. It’s one of the funniest books I’ve ever read. I had a smile on my face right up until the end, when…well, you know what happens…the whole death, then ascension into heaven three days later, thing. Moore makes light of things, but there is always a serious undercurrent. I’d recommend it, unless you’re very devout (which is cool with me) and/or don’t want to see Jesus as a humorous character.

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~ by jtotheill on 4 January 2009.