Scan barcode
A review by ave_reviews
The Orchard by David Hopen
5.0
Describing the plot of David Hopen's debut novel, it's easy to summarize as "a Jewish Secret History" -- Aryeh "Ari" Eden moves with his family from a devout community in Brooklyn to a secular community in Florida, where he is taken in by a popular and intellectual group of peers. To say his faith is tested is a vast understatement of the world-shaking experience (not untouched by drugs and alcohol) Ari has during his year at the elite Kol Neshama Academy.
But The Orchard is a coming of age epic unlike anything I've ever read, despite its Tartt-esque roots. It is a dark, curious exploration of what it means to belong, to be worthy, to be exceptional. The brilliant incorporation of philosophy, classics, and Talmudic teachings gave me so much to think about, including about my own journey with Jewish culture and religion.
Hopen is clearly an incredible mind, and while his plot occasionally gets lost in the narrator's extensive philosophical musings, this is a life-changing book in every sense.
But The Orchard is a coming of age epic unlike anything I've ever read, despite its Tartt-esque roots. It is a dark, curious exploration of what it means to belong, to be worthy, to be exceptional. The brilliant incorporation of philosophy, classics, and Talmudic teachings gave me so much to think about, including about my own journey with Jewish culture and religion.
Hopen is clearly an incredible mind, and while his plot occasionally gets lost in the narrator's extensive philosophical musings, this is a life-changing book in every sense.