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donalynmiller 's review for:
The Yiddish Policemen's Union
by Michael Chabon
The YPU takes place in an alternative future in which Jews were temporarily resettled in Alaska during World War II. The US government actually proposed this at one point! When efforts by Zionist to retake Jerusalem fail in 1948, millions of Jews are left without permanent status. The US government allows these misplaced Jews to remain in Alaska for a term of 60 years, and they set up the Sitka settlement.
When the novel opens, the 60-year term is up and the Jews are once again, looking for a homeland.
The main character, Meyer Landsman, is a alcoholic police detective living in a rundown hotel. The manager of the hotel wakes him in the middle of the night to investigate the apparent murder of a heroin junkie, and chess fanatic, who is living three floors down.
This murder, along with the tenuous future of the Jews of Sitka, form the basis for this plot driven, detective novel.
I loved the book, Chabon is a master of metaphor, and his characters are interesting-- both flawed and admirable.
The Yiddish words sprinkled throughout the text gave me some difficulty at first, but I worked them out eventually.
When the novel opens, the 60-year term is up and the Jews are once again, looking for a homeland.
The main character, Meyer Landsman, is a alcoholic police detective living in a rundown hotel. The manager of the hotel wakes him in the middle of the night to investigate the apparent murder of a heroin junkie, and chess fanatic, who is living three floors down.
This murder, along with the tenuous future of the Jews of Sitka, form the basis for this plot driven, detective novel.
I loved the book, Chabon is a master of metaphor, and his characters are interesting-- both flawed and admirable.
The Yiddish words sprinkled throughout the text gave me some difficulty at first, but I worked them out eventually.