Scan barcode
huddycleve's review against another edition
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
A very fun book with good doses of touching moments, both quotidian and complex/dark. My main reason for not giving 4 stars or higher, is that characters ruminate briefly on a “history” of Israel-Palestine — that curiously says very little about the bloody conflicts that have taken place over the decades, most notably the genocidal ethnic cleansing campaign that Israel has waged since its founding. However I am unsure if this is the author’s own bias, or meant to be a reflection of the characters discussing the matter (the issue is initially broached by a Polish gentile, who gives the short and fluffy history of the ethnostate).
bizlette's review
funny
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
lk222's review against another edition
4.0
Debut author Max Gross tells a truly unique (and Kirkus starred) story of a Jewish village so isolated in the forests of modern day Poland that it was overlooked by the Nazis during World War II. The town, Kreskol, is utterly disconnected from the world, unaware of the devastation to their tribe, and blissfully free of taxes and electricity. However, a possible murder situation forces the Kreskolites to enter the forest and seek assistance from the gentile authorities. But who to send on such a harrowing journey? They elect the orphaned bastard of the local courtesan. If he goes missing in the woods it will be no terrible loss. This effort to connect with the modern world flips Kreskol—and the world at large—upside down.
I’ve read few (possibly zero?) non-Holocaust related books with a primarily Jewish cast, so this was a particularly fun discovery. The Holocaust is involved, and the Kreskolites’ realization of the atrocity creates an exceptionally interesting viewpoint, but it is not the major plot line. I read this as more of a non-sinister version of “The Village” meets “Fiddler on the Roof” with an overarching theme of “what-happens-when-the-sheep-stray-from-the-shtetl.” It’s a fun, curious, Yiddishism-filled journey of “what if…” that both celebrates and critiques the culture of an insular Jewish community forgotten by society.
I’ve read few (possibly zero?) non-Holocaust related books with a primarily Jewish cast, so this was a particularly fun discovery. The Holocaust is involved, and the Kreskolites’ realization of the atrocity creates an exceptionally interesting viewpoint, but it is not the major plot line. I read this as more of a non-sinister version of “The Village” meets “Fiddler on the Roof” with an overarching theme of “what-happens-when-the-sheep-stray-from-the-shtetl.” It’s a fun, curious, Yiddishism-filled journey of “what if…” that both celebrates and critiques the culture of an insular Jewish community forgotten by society.
fschulenberg's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Thought provoking narrative about a forgotten place and the dramatic happenings that ensue. A reminder of the collective pain and consequence that comes from silencing groups of people.
mimsterzoo's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
kleonard's review against another edition
5.0
What if a small Jewish community in Eastern Europe was passed over by the Nazis and the following regimes, completely separated from the rest of the world? What would happen if the modern world "discovered" it, and its people discovered the modern world? The Lost Shtetl poses these questions as a meditation on assimilation, colonization, and community. Focusing on a few characters and told in a first-person plural voice, the book is a triumph of imagination that engages in narratives of hope, tragedy, identity, and autonomy. A great read for book clubs and community reads.
Perhaps because this was an eARC, the asterisks that should have linked to definitions of terms weren't working. For print copies, it would disturb the reading flow less if the terms were footnoted at the bottom of pages, rather than set as endnotes that would require a read to flip back and forth in the book.
Perhaps because this was an eARC, the asterisks that should have linked to definitions of terms weren't working. For print copies, it would disturb the reading flow less if the terms were footnoted at the bottom of pages, rather than set as endnotes that would require a read to flip back and forth in the book.
lisas1's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
carlyellefsen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
tgh124's review against another edition
4.0
In a history of unspeakable horrors, a wished for preservation. From the first page, you are into the story, all the fully fleshed characters, the Shtetl and it's own small diaspora. Beautiful story.