Customer Reviews

The River Midnight

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This admirable attempt to capture the vanished world of a Jewish stetl, circa 1894, succeeds in many respects: not only is it admirably researched (down to the details of what people ate, what they wore, the political climate they lived in, as well as the physical landscape of the Polish countryside), but it also presents a moving portrait of the way in which the members of a small community affect each other's daily lives. Thus, it is effective not only as a portrait of a vanished Jewish way of life, but in its depiction of a sense of community that has largely vanished for most modern Western readers. One great example of this is the story (apparently a very old one in the Jewish tradition) which one of the villagers tells about the man who sees a woman pulling a dirty, legless boy on a makeshift cart. Seeing the sad state of both mother and the child, the man cries out, "God, you who are supposed to look out for your children, how can you allow this to happen? Why do you not do something for your children?" The wind picks up, and God's response is this: "I did do something. I made you." It's a wonderful story, and a good example of the spirit of the book, in which each person affects -- and is conscious of affecting -- the lives of others. If there is a weakness in the book, it may lie in the occasional bluntness and lack of fluidity in the prose, as if the author were more adept at short stories than a long narrative. Partly, this is intentional, since the narrative loops back and repeats itself. But overall, this is a wonderfully illuminating book, and a joy to read.

An excellent first novel of a time and place that I've heard about too little. Although I am not Jewish, this book portrays a time and place from which my grandparents escaped. It was like hearing my grandfather speak of the countryside, political situation, and schooling. Now, I understand why he could read and write four languages (and church Latin!). A criticsim I've read is that some of the characters are not fully developed. However, isn't this the way with "real" life? A part of us always remains hidden from those around us...was Hannah-Leah's failure to have children due to something with her or with her husband? We'll never know and back then even a midwife couldn't know for sure. As for the angel characters, aside from a literary device, who's to say they didn't exist then and don't exist now? I found the environmental descriptions both imagined and real an integral and rewarding part of the story - I wouldn't want to enter that mikvah. The extensive bibliography also shows good research and some guidlines for more in-depth reading. For this sharing, a big thank-you to the author.

This book has been likened to books by Isaac Bashevis Singer, Chaim Grade and other Jewish writers who have written about the shtetl, or the Jewish villages of Eastern Europe. And indeed, it really captures the daily lives of the village residents, their moods and their sense of humor very well.

The big flaw in this book to me, was the repetitive style. The author tries to make use of the literary device of telling the same story through different points of view, but in this book there are simply too many points of view, and the story told is really not a very big or impressive one. It is a lovely, small town story with many poignant moments, but it really gets dull being hashed over and over again by everyone from the town butcher to a pair of would- be angels, that interact in the lives of the human characters. One of the main characters, Hannah-leah is somewhat underdeveloped in comparison with the others. The author never really seems to make peace with her physical problem and just leaves the issue hanging.

While the book is indeed similar to some written by Singer and Grade, it lacks Singer's over-all ironic world view, his cutting sense of humor and his lack of sentimentality, and it lacks Grade's tragic worldview, which grounded his books and made them more real and tangible.

I enjoyed the book but it could use some trimming, and a little less magic.

I borrowed this book from my mother and read it in a week's time. For anyone whose ancestors came from Poland, it gives a personal glimpse into what shetyl life might have been like. These four women also have contemporary counterparts in today's world- an intellectual, a dreamer, a family person, and a professional (midwife). This book so touched my heart that I felt a strong desire to share with all my friends. To this end, I have started a book club with 16 people, and this book is our first selection. As my friends are reading it, they are pouring in songs of praise. The BEST read in a long, long time. Enjoy! It is a wonderful historically accurate novel.

I learned a lot from this book, and I enjoyed the process. I think the one weak point was the portion that took place in the United States--it was too jarring a shift in place and culture. That, however, was a very small part of the book. (Important, sure, but brief) I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who appreciates the artful use of words combined with a love of history.

This first novel by Lillian Nattel, captures the magic and myth associated with the shtetls of Eastern Europe. It brought to mind the stories of Sholom Aleichem and I. L. Peretz and Avram Reisen and those of my mother. I was completely engrossed in the lives of these women and the strength that they had in the difficult lives that they lived. This is a book about feminism as well as a wonderful picture of life in the shtetl. I am recommending this book for my book discussion group and would recommend it to anyone who has family that came from Eastern Euroope.

The author's writing seems so effortless and so simply beautiful, it is hard to believe that this is her first novel. I was absolutely taken with Blazka and its delightful myriad of men and women. When engrossed in the lives of Misha the midwife, Hayim the watercarrier, and Hanna-Leah the butcher's wife, one can't help but feel that the author must have grown up among them. What thorough research - a blend of detailed history with enchanting mythology.

I've always said I was a big fan of Canadian authors (mostly because of my love of Margaret Atwood). Now I have another big reason to love it -- thanks to Lilian Nattel and this gorgeous and touching book!

This book was a tremendous joy from the beginning. The writing is excellent, the language so evocotive that you really feel like you are living in late 19th C Poland. There is so much fantastic sensuality to the language, and the characters all rise above being ordinary by having something extra-passionate about them. This has become one of my most favourite novels of all time. It is something I will wnat to read over and over again.

This book is written in a style triumphant in its evocation of the magic lent the shtetl by the river and woods, dark and bejewelled. With it is the proverbial Yiddish, richly human, which seamlessly slips into the language of worship. Never obvious in its symbolism, the story has many narrative surprises of loyalty and love.

I could close my eyes and hear my grandmother talking. Knowing little about her life before she came to America in the early 1900's other than that she came from somewhere in Poland, somehow I knew I was reading about her. The weaving together of this wonderful story from the many perspectives of such real characters was artfully and masterfully done. I can't wait to read it again!!