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Summary: An Interesting Glimpse into a Community
Review: This interesting first novel by the 28-year old Mirvis takes place in an insular Orthodox Jewish community in Memphis. Nervous and suspicious after the arrival of a beautiful newcomer, Batsheva, in their midst, the women of the community react in various ways. Batsheva is from New York, a convert to Orthodoxy when she married Benjamin, a member of Memphis' Jewish community . After he was killed in a car accident, she decided to move to Memphis with their daughter, Ayala, so the young girl could be brought up in the same community as her father was. At first the community is intruiged by Batsheeva and her different ways. She is hired to teach art at the girls' high school and befriends many of her students. But when the girls become just a bit too independent and Batsheva is seen with the Rabbi's son Yosef, the suspicious women begin to blame many of the community's problems on her. With their fear of the outside world and of non-conformity, the Ladies turn against Batsheva, the stranger in their midst. What follows is a latter-day witch hunt. This book was narrated in the first person plural, which was very interesting and effective, as if the narrator spoke for the entire community of women. Mirvis did a fine job of explaining the rituals and customs of an Orthodox community and making the reader see both sides of this story. Especially interesting was that, although the men held the positions of authority, it was the "steel magnolias" of the Ladies Auxiliary who really ran the community. The men were rarely mentioned in the book and even Yosef, the rabbi's son, was hardly a well-developed character even though he played a major role in the book. I am sure that Mirvis did this deliberately, to show the great influence of the women. The author has created an excellent depiction of the conflicts between this community and one of its members who wishes to remain an individual.
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Summary: A conservative religious community confronts change in the
Review: This first novel by Tova Mirvis accurately portrays a modern yet very conservative Orthodox Jewish community in the southern community of Memphis. Tradition is king here and through kinship and frienship community ways and standards are passed on and preserved. Scandal erupts in the form of a "new agey" widow, a convert no less, who arrives with her young daughter. What ensues is chaos and rebellion, although hardly caused by the newcomer. Mirvis does an excellent job in portraying the insular and suspicious nature of many Orthodox Jews. While they are friendly to their own, most Orthodox Jews are hardly free spirits or open to new ideas and ways. In many cases it is people who acrry these new ideas , and they need to be "investigated" before being accepted in the community. Yet tradition has a very beautiful side with strong families, beautiful rituals and a strong moral code. These are all very nicely portrayed in this book. It seems that this book is framed against a very real scandal in that southern town involving a leading rabbi and leading community members. It must have shaken the community to its core in the way Mirvis depicts the spiritual chaos in this fine first novel. The Purim chapter is evocative of the first novel of I.B. singer," Satan in Goray "with the freeing of restaint and passion among teen age community members. Hopefully Mirvis will continue to write and I hope she continues to explore the various shades and strands of the American Orthodox Jewish community.
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Summary: An outstanding study of the evil women do
Review: Fantastic! An excellent study of the evil women do. Batsheva, a young widow, moves into a very small Orthodox Jewish community in Memphis. As an unmarried woman and a stranger, she is instantly the subject of gossip and speculation. As a convert, her enthusiastic love of Judiasm is suspect---in a community where ritual and rigid obedience to the law has replaced a love for religion and/or God. The women in the community are highly individualized and therefore, easily recognizable. They are women we all know and they can be found everywhere in Amrica. There is a Mrs. Levy (the gossip who always begins everything with "I don't want say anything bad BUT...") in every community---just as there is a Helen (the woman who blindly follows others because she is afraid to discover who she really is), a Tzipporah (a woman convinced of her righteousness) and a Rena (a woman struggling to hide her own secrets). The characters are fantastic. Buy this and share it with all the women you know.
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Summary: The Ladies Auxilliary, a Timeless Tale
Review: This tale plunges the reader into the midst of a contemporary Orthodox Jewish community as it reacts to the presence of a young widowed convert and her daughter. Batsheva brings a refreshing enthusiastic approach to her chosen religion that acts as a catalyst in the community. Some find her differences dangerous, others are inspired by her actions. Written to reflect the women's view, the story is narrated in a communal voice. Yet each of the many characters is revealed by her own personal truth as she measures herself and her feelings against Batsheva's actions and opinions; the women in the Auxiallary, the high school girls, and finally the rabbi's son. Although it may appear orthodoxy is being challenged by change and modernity, the message gently reminds us that human beings even in orthodoxy must consult their hearts and minds to live a meaningful life. Ultimately both sides are given a sympathetic hearing. Along with a good story, the author paints an affectionate view of holidays and Jewish life.
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Summary: The Unkindest Cut of All
Review: The monthly book club selection sounded like a real find. I looked forward to reading this crosscultural award winning selection about my Hebrew brethren. I plunged in with great enthusiasm. Like a swim through whipped cream. Instead I was faced with a cast of thoroughly despicable characters with a starry eyed heroine at the helm. The conflict started right away between the Orthodoxy of Judaism and the vehemence of an outsider trying to get in. The battle lines drawn it was no surprise to know who prevails. This is an miserable read
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Summary: I wanted to like this book...
Review: but I just couldn't do it. As many other reviewers have said, it was slow-moving in the extreme. I skipped a good 200 pages and don't feel I missed anything except more gossip and the slow (achingly slow) poisoning of the town against the outsider. The characters were fuzzy - it was hard to get inside their heads. Tova Mirvis has an annoying tactic of telling us what someone is feeling, instead of showing us. Thus we have sentences like, "Knowing that she would finally be leaving washed away a glare from her eyes and she saw that she had never belonged in Memphis. This had never been a real home to her, even if she had spent her whole life here." Awkward, stiff, and didactic. But the worst problem for me is the lifeless writing style. Ms. Mirvis probably uses the word "said" one thousand times in the course of this book. No one exclaims, screams, spits, snarls, stutters, laughs, or giggles. No one even says anything witheringly, or confidently, or quietly. It's as if there are only two verbs and no adverbs in her dictionary. Her characters speak in great chunks of dialogue that suggest monologues rather than conversation - especially in the first half of the book when everyone's backstory is still being set up. This is annoying. The best part of the book is the description of the Orthodox way of life. Ms. Mirvis can write beautifully when she's describing something tangible, like the night sky or a table laden with food. But she hasn't gotten inside her characters. She doesn't seem to know or care who they are, so she can't convey that information to us. All we see are outlines: beatific Batsheva, Mrs. Levy the battle-axe, Helen the sycophant, Mimi the voice of tolerance and reason. None of these people live. They simply walk from scene to scene, recite their lines, and exit on command. They're not real. And that's sad.
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Summary: Didn't want it to end...
Review: As a secular Jew who is enjoying learning more about Jewish observance, I found this book really intriguing and thought-provoking. The book does a good job of exploring the interplay between rote Jewish observance and finding meaning and spiritual fulfillment behind the rituals. I grew attached to the characters, and wanted to find out how their lives turned out. I hope Mirvis continues to explore different facets of Judaism through fiction!
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Summary: All women should read this!
Review: I believe all women should read this becuase it is a glimpse into how a group can alienate one person who is 'different,' yet can ultimately end up inspired by that person and become a better community. Everyone is extremely real in this novel- I felt like I knew these characters despite having very little contact with an Orthodox community like the one described.
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Summary: Interesting book about human nature, small-town atmosphere,
Review: I felt sorry for the ladies as they spent all their time cleaning and cooking - or preparing to clean and cook - or thinking about cleaning and cooking; they had no time to themselves for spiritual peace or to 'stop and smell the roses along the way'. No wonder the teenage girls rebelled - they understand that life is too precious to spend it all on housework. The subtlety with which Batsheva (and the author) suggests there should be much more to religion and life than dogma and drudgery is on target.
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Summary: Excellent book, and educational too!
Review: This was an interesting book. It takes place within the insular Orthodox Jewish community of Memphis TN. The book is written from the point of view of the Ladies Auxiliary of the local "shul" (synogogue), and their perspectives on a new resident to their community. This new resident tests their understanding of community by introducing new ideas and questioning "the way it's always been done". The first-person plural narrative is unusual, but it took me a few chapters before I really realized that I didn't know which character in the book was speaking at any particular time. The story takes place on a backdrop of ceremonies, which are explained in both their historical and contemporary-Memphis contexts: one year of Jewish holidays, the weekly shabbos meal, the routine and special meetings of the shul. The ending was good. It was overall a quick and satisfying book (I read this book in 3 nights).
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