THE FAITHFUL

In this coming-of-age novel set in late 1980s and early ’90s Crown Heights, Brooklyn, five young people learn about the limitations and possibilities within their worlds while gaining a new understanding of themselves.

Approaching the end of their high school years, two teenage girls, Rachel and Lark, must marry and become dutiful women to their husbands, as their Hasidic community expects. However, both young women have different questions and ideas about what the future holds. Yakov and Daniel, best friends throughout school, realize their friendship has developed into something more—a love affair forbidden in their community. The two men try to move ahead, marry other women and attempt to follow the Torah’s teachings, but they can’t deny their feelings. Jamal, a young African-American from the other side of town, gets involved with Lark, but he has his own demons to face at home. Each of the well-developed characters and the relationships that play out between them are thrown for a loop when their neighborhood erupts in a dayslong riot. Readers will be swept into the Orthodox Jewish neighborhood through the characters’ explanations of strict rules, complaints about their modest but hot clothing, and preparations for Shabbes. Yiddish is also peppered throughout the text to further illuminate the differences between the secular and religious worlds. As the characters move along their interconnected storylines, they deal with the harsh realities of substance abuse, poverty, piety, desire and sexuality in truly empathetic ways. Though a light read considering its heavy subject matter, Willen’s book will shine a light, for both young and old audiences, on a world unknown to many people.

A fresh, engaging portrait of personal struggles.