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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
The characters did not feel real to me at all; just cardboard. I've tried it twice now, but have given up.
challenging
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-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:
Yes
challenging
reflective
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:
Complicated
Kadish's historical novel The Weight of Ink is just as easily classified as literary fiction, and is the kind of thing one would read for a modern lit class or an ambitious book club. It tells the story of Ester Velasquez, a fictional Portuguese Jew who has fled from the Inquisition and is living in the home of a rabbi in London. This soft-hearted rabbi gives her access to learning generally forbidden to women, and boy, does she run with it! Soon she is writing letters to leading thinkers of the day, such as Spinoza, Hobbes, Van den Enden, and more, questioning the nature and even existence of God, the height of heresy in the 17th century. Yet there is no anachronism. Esther is a woman of her own time period who struggles mightily with her desire for knowledge and the places her thoughts take her, and through her experiences changes her ideas repeatedly. I found myself thinking heavy thoughts with her. Why did God give his children their passions and desires, if not to use them? Why would he create them with capabilities beyond what he allows them to utilize? What is the very nature of God? Though my conclusions are different than Ester's, I was fascinated to go on her intellectual journey with her, and can only applaud Rachel Kadish's mental power to take me on that journey.
In alternating chapters, the novel also focuses on Helen Watt and Aaron Levy, modern scholars who have stumbled upon Ester's papers, which had been sealed up in a wall for 300 years. In a standard work of historical fiction, these historians would be stock characters with maybe a romance or mystery thrown in. But in keeping with the philosophical tone of the book, they struggle with heavy issues of self-identity, purpose, and regret. I am in awe of Kadish's ability to make her characters so complex and alive, so relatable yet painfully flawed. The novel is set up as a sort of academic mystery; will Watt and Levy discover the secret of Ester's identity before a competing academic team is able to get their hands on crucial documents? And what will they learn about themselves, the world, and the greater existence along the way?
I loved this book because it was so well-written, because I learned so much about 17th century Jewry, and because it further educated me on the arguments of the major thinkers of the time period. Plus, it was just plain interesting, and kept me turning pages for hours upon hours. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5, because it doesn't get much better than this. The only thing that stops me from giving it a solid 5 is that it took me awhile to become captivated; the start was a little slow.
In alternating chapters, the novel also focuses on Helen Watt and Aaron Levy, modern scholars who have stumbled upon Ester's papers, which had been sealed up in a wall for 300 years. In a standard work of historical fiction, these historians would be stock characters with maybe a romance or mystery thrown in. But in keeping with the philosophical tone of the book, they struggle with heavy issues of self-identity, purpose, and regret. I am in awe of Kadish's ability to make her characters so complex and alive, so relatable yet painfully flawed. The novel is set up as a sort of academic mystery; will Watt and Levy discover the secret of Ester's identity before a competing academic team is able to get their hands on crucial documents? And what will they learn about themselves, the world, and the greater existence along the way?
I loved this book because it was so well-written, because I learned so much about 17th century Jewry, and because it further educated me on the arguments of the major thinkers of the time period. Plus, it was just plain interesting, and kept me turning pages for hours upon hours. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5, because it doesn't get much better than this. The only thing that stops me from giving it a solid 5 is that it took me awhile to become captivated; the start was a little slow.
So grateful for this suggestion from a friend. I don't think I would have picked this book up on my own, and I am better for it.
slow-paced
The greatest curse, he thought, was to be stuck in one's own time, and the greatest power was to see beyond its horizons.
This was....a book. It's an ambitious project involving two very separate time periods: Ester in 1660s London, and Helen and Aaron in the present day uncovering historical documents she scribed for a rabbi and her own documents she penned later on. The book flips between the two time periods, mostly using Ester's letters and documents as transition pieces. As you read about Helen and Aaron trying to secure the historical documents for their own review and notoriety against the college they work for, you also get Ester's story of being a woman with educational aspirations in a period where that was unnatural.
I approached this book with very little knowledge of the subject of the Jewish community in London, and a basic working knowledge of London history during the time period. I left the book with....not a whole lot more. The book appears to be well researched, but not a lot in the way of context or explanation is provided for the historical sections. I did some research on the side, but most of the characters mentioned in London were fictional (as is noted in the notes at the end of the book). I found myself getting a bit lost in some parts concerning very specific Jewish culture and history concepts, and I feel like the author had ample opportunity to provide some context (particularly in the present day parts) but didn't.
I also felt like the book was just...too much. At north of 600 pages, the book is very wordy for the stories that were told and could have used a bit of an edit. Both 1660s Ester and present day Helen/Aaron's stories are relatively complex (certainly much more than, "and here's what the next letter has to say"), and because of that it feels like neither story was handled with care, and the ending(s) felt rushed. The writing style is extremely wordy, full of metaphors and flowery language that sort of hid the story's thread in parts rather than enhanced it.
I found it a difficult read, and a lengthy one as well. The concept of uncovering documents and reading about a woman scribe in the 1660s was appealing, but I think the execution fell a little flat for me.
This was....a book. It's an ambitious project involving two very separate time periods: Ester in 1660s London, and Helen and Aaron in the present day uncovering historical documents she scribed for a rabbi and her own documents she penned later on. The book flips between the two time periods, mostly using Ester's letters and documents as transition pieces. As you read about Helen and Aaron trying to secure the historical documents for their own review and notoriety against the college they work for, you also get Ester's story of being a woman with educational aspirations in a period where that was unnatural.
I approached this book with very little knowledge of the subject of the Jewish community in London, and a basic working knowledge of London history during the time period. I left the book with....not a whole lot more. The book appears to be well researched, but not a lot in the way of context or explanation is provided for the historical sections. I did some research on the side, but most of the characters mentioned in London were fictional (as is noted in the notes at the end of the book). I found myself getting a bit lost in some parts concerning very specific Jewish culture and history concepts, and I feel like the author had ample opportunity to provide some context (particularly in the present day parts) but didn't.
I also felt like the book was just...too much. At north of 600 pages, the book is very wordy for the stories that were told and could have used a bit of an edit. Both 1660s Ester and present day Helen/Aaron's stories are relatively complex (certainly much more than, "and here's what the next letter has to say"), and because of that it feels like neither story was handled with care, and the ending(s) felt rushed. The writing style is extremely wordy, full of metaphors and flowery language that sort of hid the story's thread in parts rather than enhanced it.
I found it a difficult read, and a lengthy one as well. The concept of uncovering documents and reading about a woman scribe in the 1660s was appealing, but I think the execution fell a little flat for me.