Lovingkindness

Rating:
Summary: Great book group book
Review: Although the opinions about this book were varied, most were positive. The book gave us a lot to talk about both re: the writing and the plot/story. We all talked about what we might do if faced with a similar situation. The dream sequences were opaque and did not add to the book.

Rating:
Summary: A tender, provocative exploration of feminism and Judaism
Review: Both a heartwarming and heart-wrenching novel of a mother-daughter relationship in turmoil. Sometimes Annie's '60's feminism is exasperating in light of the difficult teen years her daughter experienced. Then again, one can sympathize with a mother who only wants what is best for her only child. This novel is a beautifully written and tender exploration in the relationship of these two. It also incorporates so much of the Jewish American agenda of the past thirty years. An excellent read!

Rating:
Summary: Quite a literary achievement!
Review: I began this book with a great sense of anticipation, but ultimately found myself let down.

The novel traces the relationship between a liberal feminist mother, Annie, and her daughter Andrea. Like many mother/daughter narratives, the early part of the novel traces the failures of both--Annie's attempts to impress her own beliefs upon her daughter, and her daughter's rebellion from them.

Andrea's character makes a 180-degree turn in the middle of the novel, just as the reader gets used to her being a hostile, ungrateful, screw-up. Why does she become an ultra-Orthodox Jew? It's a fascinating question, but the book didn't ultimately pay off for me.

For me, the book's major downfall is the initial set-up of the characters. Andrea was, as noted above, too unlikeable to grab my sympathy or my interest to find out exactly what has become of her.

I note that my feelings are decidedly in the minority--most reviewers have liked this book much better than I did. For my opinion, though, there are much better narratives about Jewish mother/daughter relationships and modern Jewish literature in general.

Rating:
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: I began this book with a great sense of anticipation, but ultimately found myself let down.

The novel traces the relationship between a liberal feminist mother, Annie, and her daughter Andrea. Like many mother/daughter narratives, the early part of the novel traces the failures of both--Annie's attempts to impress her own beliefs upon her daughter, and her daughter's rebellion from them.

Andrea's character makes a 180-degree turn in the middle of the novel, just as the reader gets used to her being a hostile, ungrateful, screw-up. Why does she become an ultra-Orthodox Jew? It's a fascinating question, but the book didn't ultimately pay off for me.

For me, the book's major downfall is the initial set-up of the characters. Andrea was, as noted above, too unlikeable to grab my sympathy or my interest to find out exactly what has become of her.

I note that my feelings are decidedly in the minority--most reviewers have liked this book much better than I did. For my opinion, though, there are much better narratives about Jewish mother/daughter relationships and modern Jewish literature in general.

Rating:
Summary: mildly interesting
Review: Not a masterpiece, but I was able to keep reading it without feeling totally bored to death.

I thought the depiction of Orthodoxy was somewhat one-sided but not completely negative; I know a few baal teshuvot (though admittedly no one from the kind of environment described in the book) and I can't imagine anyone refusing to be called by their English name or similar foolishness. (But then again, Andrea and her fiance were so messed up before they became Orthodox that they might be atypical). But the "us against the secular world" attitude that Andrea expresses does ring true to some extent.

The book also struck me as part of a common trend of our time- the failure of ultraliberalism seems to have bred a resurgent ultraconservatism, whether in religion or politics.

Rating:
Summary: Great writing but lacks authenticity
Review: Roiphe is indeed a gifted writer and she crafts an engaging, interesting story, and the dynamic between the narrator and her daughter is powerful. The major downside of this book is that it is severely unrealistic and stereotyped in its portrayal of Ultra-Orthodox Judaism...her descriptions of their way of life is ridiculously ficticious, depicting these characters as trivial, one-sided, shallow, blinded and outright stupid in their faith, cult followers, and cruel (just one example among many-- when a woman's children are taken away from her and the Rabbi's refusal to let the narrator see her own daughter-- where does the author derive this from??)True, the narrator is a fictious character, but after awhile, it becomes difficult for the reader to adapt a viewpoint other than the one that is blatantly biased and stereotyped...I couldn't help but wonder if the author's intent was to in fact stress her own personal opinions, to convince the reader that her outlandish descriptions of Orthodox Judaism were indeed true. I am not an Orthodox Jew, but by the end, I was very offended-- too bad that whatever truly meaningful content lay within and the great descriptive writing was overshadowed by the author's contemptive views.

Rating:
Summary: Quite a literary achievement!
Review: This book is beautifully written.
The author captures the essence of the mother-daughter relationship.
I would recommend this book to all mothers with daughters.

Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking
Review: This book shines. It is a book about the love between a mother and daughter, about the obstacles on the path to perfect understanding between them, about the ways in which children disappoint and delight their parents. Both the mother and the daughter are completely believable. It is impossible to predict what will happen to them after the book's end.

The writing is wonderful, almost lyric. The characters are fully drawn. The plot is entirely organic, with no disruptive elements. The story is firmly rooted in the second half of the 20th century, in the evolution of American Jewry and the haredi response to it. The booked moved me deeply. There is nothing to disappoint in this book, except that it ends.

Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking
Review: This book shines. It is a book about the love between a mother and daughter, about the obstacles on the path to perfect understanding between them, about the ways in which children disappoint and delight their parents. Both the mother and the daughter are completely believable. It is impossible to predict what will happen to them after the book's end.

The writing is wonderful, almost lyric. The characters are fully drawn. The plot is entirely organic, with no disruptive elements. The story is firmly rooted in the second half of the 20th century, in the evolution of American Jewry and the haredi response to it. The booked moved me deeply. There is nothing to disappoint in this book, except that it ends.