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A review by emilyinherhead
Shmutz by Felicia Berliner
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This novel was totally new to me and I loved it. Raizel, the 18-year-old main character comes from a family of Hasidic Jews and while her parents are attempting to match her up with a nice Jewish boy to marry, she is struggling in secret with an extreme pornography addiction. What an immediately captivating premise. I loved all the Yiddish peppered throughout the narrative, and I loved learning more about Raizel’s culture.
On top of the porn issue, Raizel faces a lot of significant struggles: sexism within her own family and religion, feelings of otherness at school, pressure to make money to support her brothers in their Torah studies, weirdness at her job, uncertainty around new friends who like but don’t quite understand her. She is an easy character to sympathize with and pull for. I was worried about the ending and thought I didn’t like where things were headed, but a single small plot twist ultimately saved it for me.
I read this one with my book club and it made for an excellent discussion!
On top of the porn issue, Raizel faces a lot of significant struggles: sexism within her own family and religion, feelings of otherness at school, pressure to make money to support her brothers in their Torah studies, weirdness at her job, uncertainty around new friends who like but don’t quite understand her. She is an easy character to sympathize with and pull for. I was worried about the ending and thought I didn’t like where things were headed, but a single small plot twist ultimately saved it for me.
I read this one with my book club and it made for an excellent discussion!