by Jay Neugeboren ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 18, 1981
When Nathan Malkin's emotionally unstable younger brother Nachman commits suicide, he is left with no immediate family. So Nathan returns from a solitary retiree's life in Israel to comfort (and perhaps woo?) his sister-in-law in Brooklyn. But the primary plot here concerns a book, not a woman: years ago, before the deaths of his parents, his wife, and his professor son (the latter was killed while trying to stop a subway mugging), Nathan wrote a single novel, The Stolen Jew; its Jacob-and-Esau theme psychologically recapitulated Nathan's own relationship with Nachman; and it achieved great success, even in Russian translation. So now, in Brooklyn, when Nachman's psychiatrist-son Michael persuades his Uncle Nathan to travel to Russia with him, Nathan decides to alter chapters of The Stolen Jew and pass off the manuscripts as earlier drafts. . . which he'll sell in Russia in order to raise cash for Jewish refuseniks there. Thus, Neugeboren thoughtfully explores a web of intriguing themes here: authenticity, truth-telling. family taboos, death-of-a-line, love struggles. And some of the storytelling is fine--especially what's most painful: Nachman's corruscating jokes; Nathan's bad-mannered, litigious search for innocence. Unfortunately, however, the narrative as a whole is vertiginously difficult to follow, with lumps of theme swimming woozily by and dramatic hand-holds slipping away just before the reader tries to grab on. And Neugeboren (Big Man, Corky's Brother, An Orphan's Taley compounds this structural chaos--sections of Nathan's book are also included--with a whirling, brooding style that obscures much of the good material here. Interesting ideas, unsteady execution.
Pub Date: May 18, 1981
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Holt, Rinehart & Winston
Review Posted Online: N/A
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1981
Categories: FICTION
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.