Take a photo of a barcode or cover
suekinaz 's review for:
The Museum of Extraordinary Things
by Alice Hoffman
As a thought provoking, interesting historical novel, I'm giving this a four. If I were to rate it as an Alice Hoffman book, (one of my favorite authors), I'm afraid it would have to be a bit lower. Though it became obvious to me in reading Hoffman's previous book, (The Dovekeepers) that she was making a commitment to Jewish history, doing extensive research, and providing a female viewpoint, part of me hoped that she would continue to do magical realism novels as well. In The Museum of Extraordinary Things, there's a hint of the magic/mystic, but it doesn't seem quite the same.
Hoffman's love of New York, her respect for her Jewish heritage, and the need to tell the old stories about abuses, child labor, poverty, and the will to overcome are apparent and beautifully handled in this book. It's well written, in a fashion that almost amounts to four voices, though from primarily just two viewpoints. It was easy to keep track of where I was in the story, despite this unusual way of telling the tale. The details of labor abuses are well-presented; so much so, that I found myself repeatedly realizing that the events she outlines, as well as the prevalent working conditions of the day, took place just a hair over 100 years ago. That fact kept coming to the forefront of my mind - these atrocities happened well within my grandfather's lifetime; not so far removed at all.
Hoffman's love of New York, her respect for her Jewish heritage, and the need to tell the old stories about abuses, child labor, poverty, and the will to overcome are apparent and beautifully handled in this book. It's well written, in a fashion that almost amounts to four voices, though from primarily just two viewpoints. It was easy to keep track of where I was in the story, despite this unusual way of telling the tale. The details of labor abuses are well-presented; so much so, that I found myself repeatedly realizing that the events she outlines, as well as the prevalent working conditions of the day, took place just a hair over 100 years ago. That fact kept coming to the forefront of my mind - these atrocities happened well within my grandfather's lifetime; not so far removed at all.