update, and one review

[lagilman]

Day 56 of Retrievers #6: Blood From Stone

So, I finally read THE YIDDISH POLICEMAN'S UNION by Michael Chabon over the weekend.

I'll spare you the swearing I did as I read it, because this is occasionally a family-friendly LJ. But it was of the good swearing, as in "this *bleep* is a *bleep* genius, *bleep* him, listen to this *bleep* passage. *bleep* *bleep* bastard, he's *bleep* broken me."

Imagine, if you will, a modern-day detective story. A noir detective story, full of 1940's tone and reference. Set the story in an AU where Jews have been resettled in Sitka, Alaska for a period of time after the near-immediate collapse of the state of Israel, and that time is now coming to an end, creating an atmosphere of immanent chaos and lamentations. Populate the cast with shiksers and momsers, grafters and criminals and holy men and mostly-honest cops, all of whom are perpetuating stereotypes that should be offensive as hell, but instead come across as painfully affectionate and not-quite-despairing. Write it in 3rd person present tense. Create dialogue that, while written in English, has the cadence and inflection of purest mangled yiddish, so much so and so unobtrusively that it took me ten pages to realize why I had slipped into the rhythm like warm bathwater.

And make the reader so enamored of every grifter, every shmuck, every loser, lowlife and good guy screwed over that they can't stop turning pages, even when you know that none of it's going to turn out well.

I don't know how non-Jews, or those who did not grow up surrounded by touches of this culture around them, react to the book. I know he's taken heat for his portrayal of certain characters. For me, though -- the bastard broke me. On my best day on my best year in a hundred years I could never have written this book. And -- after a little while for lamantations and cursing -- I've decided that that's okay. I'm not sure we have room on the shelves for more than one Chabon. But I'm glad we've got the one.

Still to come: a review of the "Mythic Creatures' exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History in NYC

Comments

[ex-fashioni.livejournal.com]

That one's been on my "To Buy" list for after I finished the latest MS.

Guess I know where I'll be going today.

He kills me. Utterly kills me.

[debg.livejournal.com]

Well, we know how I feel about Ayalet's chewtoy.

GOD, he's brilliant. I'm Kavalier & Klay's bitch, top to bottom; this one's on my "get it when I have money and time" list. He's one of the few fiction writers I read while working.

[ex-fashioni.livejournal.com]

You can't say I'm not a woman of my word. As soon as I pick up the rugrats from the bus stop, I'm settling into the leather chair and woe be to the child who disturbs me. Or husband. Okay, him I'll cut some slack, given that it's his birthday.

[debg.livejournal.com]

Heh. I can't believe I mistyped Ayelet's name.

Are you baking ginger cake for L's birthday?

[ex-fashioni.livejournal.com]

Next week-- after I get back from Atlanta. We have cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory for tonight.

[girasole.livejournal.com]

I adored Summerland. I could not, not NOT get into Kavalier and Clay. This one, however, is indeed intriguing. I will probably try it.

[sfmarty.livejournal.com]

I got it out of the library some weeks ago. There are bits of it that spring to memory unasked, like the "string" around large sections so they can keep within the proper areas during sacred times.

As someone who was raised among very non religeous people, I found great affection for almost all of the characters. Don't think I missed any of the allusions, but I wasn't aware of any lack, if I make myself clear. Yes, very "40s noir".

Kept thinking "it could happen".

[lagilman]

*grin* Actually, it was to 'extend' the proper areas in a bit of a grey moral area cheat.... (and yes, it's done.)

I loved that book

[bjcooper.livejournal.com]

Chabon is a (bleeping) master! We have a bunch of us reading bestsellers up here in the Northwest after going to a writing workshop on big books together on the Oregon Coast, and we picked this one (and a few others were not as brilliant, but what is?) and I was totally blown away.