Trail of Miracles by Smadar Herzfeld: A Review

Gittel, the daughter of a torah scholar, is only twelve when she is sought out as a wife for a much older rabbi.  She doesn't like her husband's cold and unfeeling ways of dealing with her but finds comfort in her father-in-law, a man who is renowned among the Hasidim in her community.  She also finds great joy in her two sons.  When both her father-in-law and husband die in quick succession, Gittel is encouraged by her community to seek a new husband.  Her husband visits her in dreams to demand that she not remarry and Gittel is more than happy to oblige, remembering the loneliness she felt in her marriage.  She instead decides to embark on a journey to Jerusalem as she once did as a child with her brother.

This book was very short and an interesting story but it was a bit slow for me.  I felt that the story had a lot more potential than was presented.  There were simply not enough words for good characters to be built but they were likeable.  I liked Gittel and her story.  One thing that I liked about this book was that the author did not take a judgmental viewpoint about the cultures that she was writing about.  All religions and cultures in the book were treated with respect.  I have read a lot of books about the Hasidim and that is not always the case.  While there are many practices of their culture that modern Westerns may not understand, such as Gittel's young marriage, one must understand that this was not so uncommon in the community at that time.  While the book was much slower than I wished it would have been and was not as developed as I would have liked, I still enjoyed the book.  I think it would be a good book for those looking for a cultural read or historical fiction, especially for those interested in Eastern European Jewish culture.

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Reviews of books like this one:
What To Do About the Solomons by Bethany Ball
We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter
The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck

This book is currently available and can be purchased from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.  Read more reviews on this book on Goodreads.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher in order to review it but that did not have an effect on my review of the book.  This is my honest opinion of this book.  I am a participant in the Amazon Affiliates program.  By clicking on the Amazon link and purchasing this product, I receive a small fee.  I am not associated with Goodreads or Barnes and Noble in any way and the links provided are available strictly for your convenience and not to imply a relationship of any kind.

Swing Time by Zadie Smith: A Review

A young woman takes a look back on her childhood and compares her experience with that of her friends to understand why the two have grown up to be such different women.  Both young women are the product of one British parent and one Jamaican parent but Tracey grows up with her father in and out of her life and exhibiting criminal behavior which causes her to act out frequently.  The other girl grows up with a caring father and a mother who loves her deeply but is determined to change the world, heavily criticizing the treatment of people of color in England.  Both young girls are heavily involved in their dance classes but Tracey seems to have much more promise than her friend.  The young woman goes to college and finds a career as an assistant to a star, Aimee, while Tracey dances in productions but has wild delusions of the Illuminati in her personal life.  The young woman envies Tracey's easy command of dance but is her own mother's vehement belief that a traditional education really a hindrance or is it a help?

Smith is a magician with words.  I felt myself highlighting her words of wisdom many times in order to read them later.  I felt that Swing Time is a very important book.  The book addresses many issues that are important to today's society, such as how single parenthood effects children and how people from a multicultural background interpret and react to the world.  There are also important lessons in appropriation and cultural misunderstanding as Aimee insists on tackling the problem of poverty in Africa while ignoring the fact that she may be hurting more than helping the situation.  In the end I saw bits of Aimee in the young woman, though, as they both felt that they knew better than the people actually effected by the circumstances they are in.  The book did move a bit slowly for my taste but I still enjoyed it.  The characters are what really stood out for me.  I felt for Tracey and empathized with the young woman.  I felt frustrated at the young woman's mother for her selfishness while she attempted to save the world at the expense of her daughter but understood the mother's need to do so because of where she was born.  This book is a great work of literary fiction and would be a great book for those readers who enjoy books with a multicultural heritage.  

Watch a video of Zadie Smith discuss Swing Time at the 92nd St Y:

Reviews of books like this one:
Marlena by Julie Buntin
City of Saints & Thieves by Natalie C. Anderson
The Mothers by Brit Bennett 


This book is currently available and can be purchased from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.  Read more reviews on this book on Goodreads.

This is my honest opinion of this book.  I am a participant in the Amazon Affiliates program.  By clicking on the Amazon link and purchasing this product, I receive a small fee.  I am not associated with Goodreads or Barnes and Noble in any way and the links provided are available strictly for your convenience and not to imply a relationship of any kind. 


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