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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
Rape, Pedophilia, Sexual assault
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Racism, Violence, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Genocide, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Grief, Religious bigotry
Minor: Homophobia, Suicide, Police brutality
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
To be honest, I was always going to love this book, regardless of how good it was. A gay Orthodox Jewish main character? What more could I ask for? But the further I got into the book, the more I loved it. Every part was written with real skill, and the plot was so engaging, I could barely put the book down, and I my thoughts going back to it when I did. The writing was captivating, and I felt myself drawn into late nineteenth century Jewish Chicago almost immediately. I'm delighted to have found a new favorite author.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
This is the first Jewish book I have ever read that felt truly for us. The cross section of Jewish and labor history is fully on display in the novel and the author really did his research. The spiritual and fantastic side of the novel was just as marvelous. Cannot recommend this novel enough.
CONTENT WARNING: death of a parent, death, grief, antisemitism, murder, violence, blood, gore, rape
This was one of my most anticipated book releases of 2021. It’s an amazing mash-up of historical fiction and fantasy, with the Jewish immigration experience, culture, and mythology liberally splashed across it’s pages. Basically, my dream book. And let me tell you: This book literally blew past all of the exceedingly high expectations that I already had in place.
The first thing that I noticed, about three pages in, was how incredibly seen I felt in this story. Although I grew up nearly a century after the events in this story, I grew up in a household with a parent who immigrated from Eastern Europe in response to antisemitism, and both of my parents spoke Yiddish fluently in the house. So when I saw Yiddish words casually splashed across the pages, I was overjoyed. It is really the very first time I’ve seen my own experiences mirrored so closely in a book. And if you’re not familiar with Yiddish terms, have no fear — there’s a glossary included in the book.
Alter’s experiences in America aren’t quite what he expected. While his father originally brought him to American in search of a better life, what he found was the same hateful attitudes that he’s known all his life, although now it wasn’t state-sponsored any longer. He was still exposed to discrimination, and lack of opportunities, and the many ways in which innocent immigrants with few choices are taken advantage of. The book doesn’t sugarcoat this, and unfortunately, children are often the ones most at risk. While groups of immigrants were typically identified by their nation of origin, Jews were just … Jews. It didn’t matter what country they came from, they were all one group in America. And the story focuses on the push towards the erasure of their Jewish identity to become more assimilated, and the inner struggle that it caused:
“I hated the idea that to be considered a worthy American, I had to hack away parts of myself, become a more acceptable Jew, an invisible one. And I hated that in spite of my resentment, a part of me deeply wanted to anyway.”
At the heart of the story is an amazing combination of murder mystery and a figure in Jewish mythology, known as a dybbuk. When Alter is possessed by the dybbuk of his murdered friend, he knows that he has to solve the murder to release his friend’s soul and free himself. I loved how it played out, and kept me engaged from start to finish. There were so many plot twists, and although I tried to figure out who was behind everything, I made a lot of wrong guesses before figuring out the true villain just before it was revealed.
Another really fascinating aspect of the story was seeing Alter’s acceptance of his sexuality come into play, especially with the historical and religious points of view. Living as an openly gay man at the times wasn’t always an option, and in the religious Jewish community, there is a focus on getting married and having children. But Alter struggles with his sexuality, both in terms of his own internal feelings about it being wrong and how society will view him. It was painful to see him go through this process, and I honestly just wanted to reach into the book and give him a huge hug and let him know that there’s nothing wrong with him. Yeah, I got really attached to him.
Fortunately, he’s surrounded by some awesome people. Raizel, a female neighbor that he had a disastrous matchmaking effort with, was one of my favorite characters. She’s smart and a total badass. I love that she stepped out of traditional gender roles for the times as well, and really embodied feminism — she wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she believed in, to get her hands dirty, and to basically do whatever it takes. The other main side character is Frankie, and I think he defines the other side of immigration. He’s much more assimilated than Alter, but even he is held back by the simple fact that he’s Jewish, no matter what he does to hide it. Even so, he manages to make his own way in a difficult world, offering protection to those weaker and more innocent than he is, taking strength where he can find it, and always striving to make something better of himself in his own way.
Overall, this was one of the best books that I’ve read this year, and I’m now an Aden Polydoros fan for life. The creepy, gothic vibe, the engaging characters, the storyline that kept me flipping page after page until late into the night, the world that I could easily see myself or my ancestors living in, and the incredibly beautiful writing all came together in a way that just spoke to my soul. If there’s one book that you read because of my reviews, let this be it!
This was one of my most anticipated book releases of 2021. It’s an amazing mash-up of historical fiction and fantasy, with the Jewish immigration experience, culture, and mythology liberally splashed across it’s pages. Basically, my dream book. And let me tell you: This book literally blew past all of the exceedingly high expectations that I already had in place.
The first thing that I noticed, about three pages in, was how incredibly seen I felt in this story. Although I grew up nearly a century after the events in this story, I grew up in a household with a parent who immigrated from Eastern Europe in response to antisemitism, and both of my parents spoke Yiddish fluently in the house. So when I saw Yiddish words casually splashed across the pages, I was overjoyed. It is really the very first time I’ve seen my own experiences mirrored so closely in a book. And if you’re not familiar with Yiddish terms, have no fear — there’s a glossary included in the book.
Alter’s experiences in America aren’t quite what he expected. While his father originally brought him to American in search of a better life, what he found was the same hateful attitudes that he’s known all his life, although now it wasn’t state-sponsored any longer. He was still exposed to discrimination, and lack of opportunities, and the many ways in which innocent immigrants with few choices are taken advantage of. The book doesn’t sugarcoat this, and unfortunately, children are often the ones most at risk. While groups of immigrants were typically identified by their nation of origin, Jews were just … Jews. It didn’t matter what country they came from, they were all one group in America. And the story focuses on the push towards the erasure of their Jewish identity to become more assimilated, and the inner struggle that it caused:
“I hated the idea that to be considered a worthy American, I had to hack away parts of myself, become a more acceptable Jew, an invisible one. And I hated that in spite of my resentment, a part of me deeply wanted to anyway.”
At the heart of the story is an amazing combination of murder mystery and a figure in Jewish mythology, known as a dybbuk. When Alter is possessed by the dybbuk of his murdered friend, he knows that he has to solve the murder to release his friend’s soul and free himself. I loved how it played out, and kept me engaged from start to finish. There were so many plot twists, and although I tried to figure out who was behind everything, I made a lot of wrong guesses before figuring out the true villain just before it was revealed.
Another really fascinating aspect of the story was seeing Alter’s acceptance of his sexuality come into play, especially with the historical and religious points of view. Living as an openly gay man at the times wasn’t always an option, and in the religious Jewish community, there is a focus on getting married and having children. But Alter struggles with his sexuality, both in terms of his own internal feelings about it being wrong and how society will view him. It was painful to see him go through this process, and I honestly just wanted to reach into the book and give him a huge hug and let him know that there’s nothing wrong with him. Yeah, I got really attached to him.
Fortunately, he’s surrounded by some awesome people. Raizel, a female neighbor that he had a disastrous matchmaking effort with, was one of my favorite characters. She’s smart and a total badass. I love that she stepped out of traditional gender roles for the times as well, and really embodied feminism — she wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she believed in, to get her hands dirty, and to basically do whatever it takes. The other main side character is Frankie, and I think he defines the other side of immigration. He’s much more assimilated than Alter, but even he is held back by the simple fact that he’s Jewish, no matter what he does to hide it. Even so, he manages to make his own way in a difficult world, offering protection to those weaker and more innocent than he is, taking strength where he can find it, and always striving to make something better of himself in his own way.
Overall, this was one of the best books that I’ve read this year, and I’m now an Aden Polydoros fan for life. The creepy, gothic vibe, the engaging characters, the storyline that kept me flipping page after page until late into the night, the world that I could easily see myself or my ancestors living in, and the incredibly beautiful writing all came together in a way that just spoke to my soul. If there’s one book that you read because of my reviews, let this be it!
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Antisemitism
Moderate: Death
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
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
I wasn't really expecting a lot from this book, so the fact that I labeled it 4 stars is saying something. If I'm being perfectly honest, it's probably more of a 3.5 star for me, but I'll put it as 4 stars on Goodreads because of the representation that's in the book. This book is about Alter and how he experiences a tragedy that deals with one of his friends. When he's trying to find out what happened, he enlists the help of a girl who lives in his building and a boy from his past that he's tried to forget.
Kind of a little spoiler-y here, so skip this paragraph if you don't want to read any spoilers, but the fact that this book had a smidge of fantasy in it was a little surprising to me. I guess you'd label it as magical realism, but it's still a spirit possession. After Yakov died, his spirit inhabits Alter's body because he wants his murder to be solved. This impacts Alter by giving him side effects that he's not expecting, like understanding languages that aren't his, exhibiting habits that are Yakov's, and Alter hallucinating memories that are obviously not his. This aspect of the book was super interesting and what kept me engaged for the latter half of the novel if I'm being honest.
We start off the book with Alter and he seems like a regular Jewish boy living in Chicago. He's trying to get his mother and sisters enough money to get them to Chicago too, but he's having a tough time of it. His father died on the boat on the way over to America and ever since then, Alter has had to try and survive and earn money on his own. He's been on his own for about two years now when the book starts. Alter is the type of character that you have to wait to grow into the person he's meant to be. He's a good kid, but when we start the book he's a little timid and doesn't want to admit the feelings that he's had for a few boys in his life. I liked reading from his perspective and by the end of the book, you can tell that the journey he went on to find out who's been killing young Jewish men made him into the person he wants to be.
The mystery-thriller addition to the story was also super interesting to follow and kept you on the edge of your seat. You wanted to know who's been killing all of those young boys and why. More than likely it was due to racism, but you're invested in finding out who the killer is and what made him into this monster. This book delves into the anti-semitism that Jewish people have experienced for centuries and especially focuses on how Americans treated them as well. A lot of times, Americans like to ignore the history when Americans act cruel and many don't know how deeply prejudiced people were for so long against so many people.
We also get to see the different Jewish traditions that take place throughout the novel and how when Jewish people immigrated to America, many were forced to change their names to a more American name to avoid persecution. Getting to see Chicago in the 1890s through the eyes of a young Jewish man was a privilege and I really enjoyed it.
The love story that was included was certainly interesting, but it was a lot of hot and cold, which made sense when you found out they had a history. That history isn't really shown though, so that was disappointing that we didn't get to see their whole story. Alter had a lot of flashbacks to when he was younger when he was on the boat over, and the year he spent with Frankie. But once we got about halfway through the book it's pretty clear how Alter sees himself, Frankie, and Yakov.
Aden Polydoros is a pretty good author and I would definitely read from him again. There was some lyrical-ness to his writing that made some moments sound pretty, but also flowed well enough that reading it was simple. One of my only real criticisms is that the book could've been a little shorter. I feel like being over 400 pages was a bit of a stretch and there were some things that could've been cut down. Other than that the book was great!!
If you're interested in a murder-mystery story with some magical realism dropped in then I totally recommend this book!! The author said something in his note at the end about how a lot of times when there's a book with a Jewish main character, it's always set during or around the Holocaust. Having a book feature a Jewish main character with so much culture-infused in the plot is so important and this book certainly did the trick! Happy Reading!!
Kind of a little spoiler-y here, so skip this paragraph if you don't want to read any spoilers, but the fact that this book had a smidge of fantasy in it was a little surprising to me. I guess you'd label it as magical realism, but it's still a spirit possession. After Yakov died, his spirit inhabits Alter's body because he wants his murder to be solved. This impacts Alter by giving him side effects that he's not expecting, like understanding languages that aren't his, exhibiting habits that are Yakov's, and Alter hallucinating memories that are obviously not his. This aspect of the book was super interesting and what kept me engaged for the latter half of the novel if I'm being honest.
We start off the book with Alter and he seems like a regular Jewish boy living in Chicago. He's trying to get his mother and sisters enough money to get them to Chicago too, but he's having a tough time of it. His father died on the boat on the way over to America and ever since then, Alter has had to try and survive and earn money on his own. He's been on his own for about two years now when the book starts. Alter is the type of character that you have to wait to grow into the person he's meant to be. He's a good kid, but when we start the book he's a little timid and doesn't want to admit the feelings that he's had for a few boys in his life. I liked reading from his perspective and by the end of the book, you can tell that the journey he went on to find out who's been killing young Jewish men made him into the person he wants to be.
The mystery-thriller addition to the story was also super interesting to follow and kept you on the edge of your seat. You wanted to know who's been killing all of those young boys and why. More than likely it was due to racism, but you're invested in finding out who the killer is and what made him into this monster. This book delves into the anti-semitism that Jewish people have experienced for centuries and especially focuses on how Americans treated them as well. A lot of times, Americans like to ignore the history when Americans act cruel and many don't know how deeply prejudiced people were for so long against so many people.
We also get to see the different Jewish traditions that take place throughout the novel and how when Jewish people immigrated to America, many were forced to change their names to a more American name to avoid persecution. Getting to see Chicago in the 1890s through the eyes of a young Jewish man was a privilege and I really enjoyed it.
The love story that was included was certainly interesting, but it was a lot of hot and cold, which made sense when you found out they had a history. That history isn't really shown though, so that was disappointing that we didn't get to see their whole story. Alter had a lot of flashbacks to when he was younger when he was on the boat over, and the year he spent with Frankie. But once we got about halfway through the book it's pretty clear how Alter sees himself, Frankie, and Yakov.
Aden Polydoros is a pretty good author and I would definitely read from him again. There was some lyrical-ness to his writing that made some moments sound pretty, but also flowed well enough that reading it was simple. One of my only real criticisms is that the book could've been a little shorter. I feel like being over 400 pages was a bit of a stretch and there were some things that could've been cut down. Other than that the book was great!!
If you're interested in a murder-mystery story with some magical realism dropped in then I totally recommend this book!! The author said something in his note at the end about how a lot of times when there's a book with a Jewish main character, it's always set during or around the Holocaust. Having a book feature a Jewish main character with so much culture-infused in the plot is so important and this book certainly did the trick! Happy Reading!!