A review by notinjersey
The Orchard by David Hopen

4.0

I am definitely not the type of reader who says I can only relate to books who feature characters who are like me, but when I found out about this #ownvoices Jewish book that takes place in a Modern Orthodox community, I had to request it right away, as I consider myself Modern Orthodox as well. The Orchard is a literary and philosophical book with deep discussions of Jewish thought. Ari is a high school senior from a very religious school in Brooklyn when his family moves to Florida and he is thrust into a world of the profane. While I understood most of the Hebrew and religious references, I didn’t easily follow a lot of the things the boys learned about and discussed in their classes. Ari faces a religious crisis, caught between tradition and modernity, of whether to adapt to fit in or remain true to his upbringing. Even if readers do not understand where he is coming from, they will learn from his crisis of faith. ⁣This book gave me a lot to think about and I think it would make for an excellent discussion piece. I have some friends in mind to hand it to in order to discuss it with them! ⁣