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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
I loved this book from the first sentense, it is complicated, and challenging to read. But in its complexity lies the beauty of the story. The way lives intersect, the way stories; our stories are told, or often mistold. And how those stories are lost to history, sometimes found; but mostly just melting away; make those stories no less brilliant.
While I appreciate the quality of writing, I thought this novel was somewhat dense with a less-than-satisfying payoff. It was transportive, however, and the back and forth between time periods was well done if not a little jarring.
I devoured this book!! One of my all time favorites. I cannot recommend this book enough.
18: The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish.
Recommended by more than one reading friend, this book was intense and interesting, containing layers of complexity worth unraveling. I am very glad to have read it with a book club and to have thus had a forum for discussing it. Everyone there enjoyed it as well, and they, too, were pleased to have read it. If I am critical, it is merely of the book's length being possibly a hundred pages...or maybe even a little more than that...longer than what might have been necessary for its stories. But at its length, it was a reading investment worthy of its subject, ultimately...and perhaps the length was necessary for that in some ways, spending that kind of quality time getting to know these individuals and experience some of their struggle with them.
Ester, Rivka, and Rabbi HaCoen Mendes's lives in the mid-1600s are highlighted and shared in a portion of the lengthy then-and-now(ish), back-and-forth story, and Aaron Levy and Helen Watt's academic investigation into writing produced then and newly discovered in the early 2000s, as well as their lives and interaction comprise the now(ish) portion of the story. Additionally, there is a small cast of other characters involved in each of the two timelines as well. I'm especially a fan of the two Patricias working in the library's conservation lab and rare manuscripts room in the 2000s and the very important roles they play, albeit quite silently...and some other characters, too, whom I won't say much about here for the spoiling nature of that sharing.
Rabbi HaCoen Mendes serves as the blind seer or prophet--a Tiresias of sorts--and he needs Ester to write for him, while he also provides home and more for her, given her family's tragic turns that brought her to him, leading to her being an orphan and dependent. Interestingly enough, Aaron, in contrast, claims to never really understand Shakespeare's The Tempest, though he sees all of this unfold and even at times while sitting in an establishment called Prospero's. But the story and these characters unfold themselves in valuable and interesting ways--and again, better that it is discovered and learned and appreciated through discussion of the book with others--rather than Kadish telling us what to think of it all as part of the story. That's a nuanced and valuable component of literary fiction, if you ask me, to figure out some things for yourself rather than have the author dump them all on you, telling you exactly what to see/know/think.
While the book is a recent winner of a National Jewish Book Award, I did not feel like I learned as much about Jewish history or its impact on current practices or culture here nor developed a better understanding of Judaism from reading this, necessarily, not like I do or have reading Chaim Potok's The Chosen or nearly anything by Michael Chabon. But I do appreciate the portrayal of these characters of Jewish faith and the history shared here, including how much I learned about Spinoza and other philosophers of that time.
I enjoyed the history, the presentation of ideas from, and the representation of, an era in time when it was forbidden for women to be learned, to read, to write, even, for certain to own their own written ideas and the implications of that on anything written at that time, and all sorts of new possibilities revealed in the sharing of that history. I have long enjoyed the theory that William Shakespeare was possibly a constructed identity, for instance, for a woman. And while this story takes a slightly different angle, I enjoyed and appreciated this perspective and possibility as well.
While I did not love this book quite as much as Pillars of the Earth for its presentation of an historical era long gone, I did very much appreciate and enjoy its depth and breadth and its portrayal of characters with great inner strength; numerous characters were carrying and/or fighting their own stuff, and they were not, as it was happening, necessarily admired or valued for their efforts. They struggled alone. These folks will live in my head for much time, yet, to come. They were believable and richly developed, and were not easily rescued from their difficulties by some other force or convenience but rather wrestled on their own...both gaining at times and then sometimes losing again.
Recommended by more than one reading friend, this book was intense and interesting, containing layers of complexity worth unraveling. I am very glad to have read it with a book club and to have thus had a forum for discussing it. Everyone there enjoyed it as well, and they, too, were pleased to have read it. If I am critical, it is merely of the book's length being possibly a hundred pages...or maybe even a little more than that...longer than what might have been necessary for its stories. But at its length, it was a reading investment worthy of its subject, ultimately...and perhaps the length was necessary for that in some ways, spending that kind of quality time getting to know these individuals and experience some of their struggle with them.
Ester, Rivka, and Rabbi HaCoen Mendes's lives in the mid-1600s are highlighted and shared in a portion of the lengthy then-and-now(ish), back-and-forth story, and Aaron Levy and Helen Watt's academic investigation into writing produced then and newly discovered in the early 2000s, as well as their lives and interaction comprise the now(ish) portion of the story. Additionally, there is a small cast of other characters involved in each of the two timelines as well. I'm especially a fan of the two Patricias working in the library's conservation lab and rare manuscripts room in the 2000s and the very important roles they play, albeit quite silently...and some other characters, too, whom I won't say much about here for the spoiling nature of that sharing.
Rabbi HaCoen Mendes serves as the blind seer or prophet--a Tiresias of sorts--and he needs Ester to write for him, while he also provides home and more for her, given her family's tragic turns that brought her to him, leading to her being an orphan and dependent. Interestingly enough, Aaron, in contrast, claims to never really understand Shakespeare's The Tempest, though he sees all of this unfold and even at times while sitting in an establishment called Prospero's. But the story and these characters unfold themselves in valuable and interesting ways--and again, better that it is discovered and learned and appreciated through discussion of the book with others--rather than Kadish telling us what to think of it all as part of the story. That's a nuanced and valuable component of literary fiction, if you ask me, to figure out some things for yourself rather than have the author dump them all on you, telling you exactly what to see/know/think.
While the book is a recent winner of a National Jewish Book Award, I did not feel like I learned as much about Jewish history or its impact on current practices or culture here nor developed a better understanding of Judaism from reading this, necessarily, not like I do or have reading Chaim Potok's The Chosen or nearly anything by Michael Chabon. But I do appreciate the portrayal of these characters of Jewish faith and the history shared here, including how much I learned about Spinoza and other philosophers of that time.
I enjoyed the history, the presentation of ideas from, and the representation of, an era in time when it was forbidden for women to be learned, to read, to write, even, for certain to own their own written ideas and the implications of that on anything written at that time, and all sorts of new possibilities revealed in the sharing of that history. I have long enjoyed the theory that William Shakespeare was possibly a constructed identity, for instance, for a woman. And while this story takes a slightly different angle, I enjoyed and appreciated this perspective and possibility as well.
While I did not love this book quite as much as Pillars of the Earth for its presentation of an historical era long gone, I did very much appreciate and enjoy its depth and breadth and its portrayal of characters with great inner strength; numerous characters were carrying and/or fighting their own stuff, and they were not, as it was happening, necessarily admired or valued for their efforts. They struggled alone. These folks will live in my head for much time, yet, to come. They were believable and richly developed, and were not easily rescued from their difficulties by some other force or convenience but rather wrestled on their own...both gaining at times and then sometimes losing again.
Good story. Even if the silly implying in the end with a “possible” connection to Shakespeare was totally unnecessary.
Too long.
Too long.
Beautifully written historical novel. Read almost like a mystery, going back and forth between time periods. Well developed and interesting characters. Recommend.
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
While the writing was lovely this book was WAY too philosophical for me and spent too much time on reflection and religious theory. I listened on audio but would likely have quit if I’d read in “ written “ format. That being said, the narrator was fabulous, I really enjoyed the Jewish history, which was very interesting and occurred at 3 different time periods during the book. I liked the protagonists and appreciated the feminist perspectives. I was a bit frustrated by the ending.
Catching up…
This one was recommended to me by my GR friend, DeB quite a while ago. Her review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3411457819
Because of its size, (560 pages), I opted to read it as an in-between book. (In-between my other books.)
I am not typically a fan of period pieces, and usually avoid them. It doesn’t mean I don’t like historical fiction, I do, but…
I usually prefer the WWII era.
However…
Lately, it seems I am going back in time more.
And…
I am grateful to have many of you encouraging me to do so.
Now…
This story finds us crossing time, when a cache of mid-17th-century papers are found in modern-day London. An academic and her Ph.D. student are on a mission to fit the pieces of the puzzle together to find out who wrote these pages.
And…
That takes readers to meeting another central character, a brilliant young Jewish woman working with a blind Rabbi at the time of these papers being produced.
What was her role with these papers? And will they be able to discover it? And what story do these papers tell?
The images of these different times and places and well-fleshed-out characters, brought to life through detail and well-crafted writing, are the gift of this book.
And…
There is also the complexities of being Jewish and choosing to enter into interfaith relationships that are central to the novel.
So…
How does that affect the story? The characters? The community?
And…
What does it mean to choose survival over martyrdom?
The author interweaves her themes and characters’ journeys so skillfully, as readers we can’t help but be drawn into their lives and struggles.
And…
For me, when one of the characters began to suffer from rapidly advancing Parkinson’s Disease, I couldn’t help but be affected. Watching my own mother’s decline from the disease prior to her death was difficult and painful.
There was…
So much to appreciate about this story. The “weight of ink” refers to the special ink used in the 17th century that was so heavy it created holes in the parchment.
But…
Mostly the title reflects the transformative power of the written word.
And…
Isn’t that what draws us to read? The idea that we can truly be transformed through written words?
This is…
Amazing taut, gripping storytelling.
One last thing…
Be sure to read the Author’s notes for her insights and background into the writing of this story.
And…
I loved when I read what another reviewer shared about this book, that I felt I had to include in my review…
“The Weight of Ink has the brains of a scholar, the drive of a sleuth, and the soul of a lover.”
Beautifully stated. Thank you, DeB for this recommendation.
This one was recommended to me by my GR friend, DeB quite a while ago. Her review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3411457819
Because of its size, (560 pages), I opted to read it as an in-between book. (In-between my other books.)
I am not typically a fan of period pieces, and usually avoid them. It doesn’t mean I don’t like historical fiction, I do, but…
I usually prefer the WWII era.
However…
Lately, it seems I am going back in time more.
And…
I am grateful to have many of you encouraging me to do so.
Now…
This story finds us crossing time, when a cache of mid-17th-century papers are found in modern-day London. An academic and her Ph.D. student are on a mission to fit the pieces of the puzzle together to find out who wrote these pages.
And…
That takes readers to meeting another central character, a brilliant young Jewish woman working with a blind Rabbi at the time of these papers being produced.
What was her role with these papers? And will they be able to discover it? And what story do these papers tell?
The images of these different times and places and well-fleshed-out characters, brought to life through detail and well-crafted writing, are the gift of this book.
And…
There is also the complexities of being Jewish and choosing to enter into interfaith relationships that are central to the novel.
So…
How does that affect the story? The characters? The community?
And…
What does it mean to choose survival over martyrdom?
The author interweaves her themes and characters’ journeys so skillfully, as readers we can’t help but be drawn into their lives and struggles.
And…
For me, when one of the characters began to suffer from rapidly advancing Parkinson’s Disease, I couldn’t help but be affected. Watching my own mother’s decline from the disease prior to her death was difficult and painful.
There was…
So much to appreciate about this story. The “weight of ink” refers to the special ink used in the 17th century that was so heavy it created holes in the parchment.
But…
Mostly the title reflects the transformative power of the written word.
And…
Isn’t that what draws us to read? The idea that we can truly be transformed through written words?
This is…
Amazing taut, gripping storytelling.
One last thing…
Be sure to read the Author’s notes for her insights and background into the writing of this story.
And…
I loved when I read what another reviewer shared about this book, that I felt I had to include in my review…
“The Weight of Ink has the brains of a scholar, the drive of a sleuth, and the soul of a lover.”
Beautifully stated. Thank you, DeB for this recommendation.