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Suzanne
Rating:
Review
I can't believe this book is by the same man who wrote The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay. I just could not get into this story at all, in spite of Chabon's good writing. The premise of a temporary Jewish state in Sitka, Alaska (rendering them "the frozen chosen"), established when the new state of Israel was run over by its enemies in 1948, is curious. Normally I enjoy murder mysteries, but somehow I just was not drawn into this one. Meyer Landsman is convincing enough as the hard-boiled, hard drinking police detective who encounters a murdered man in his own apartment building. His investigation draws him into the orthodox Jewish mafia and their strange world plans surrounding the looming return of Sitka to United States territory. Tensions between the Jews, the native Alaskan Tlingit people, and the rest of America are coming to a head, and to top it all off, Landsman's ex-wife is transferred to be his new boss. I just wasn't drawn into the fringe Jewish culture that permeated the entire book - I wanted the whole thing to be over.
Best Line:
"His mother is calling him on the ultrasonic frequency reserved by the government for Jewish mothers in the event of lunch."
Kim
Rating:
Review
It's a good thing that the witty and very likeable Meyer Landsman is the main character of this story. Taking place in current day Sitka, Alaska, just as the city is set to revert to Alaskan control after 60 years as a federal district, the large population of Jews that relocated to Sitka at that time could soon be moving again, this time back to Jerusalem. Landsman has other fish to fry though, as he's a homicide detective with a murder to solve, a wildcard partner named Berko (who doesn't appear often enough in my opinion), and an insomnia/drinking/smoking/lack of proper nutrition problem mostly attributed to his guilt. His ex-wife, Bina, is his new boss, and Landsman is still crazy about her. He's a good cop, and loves his job, but solving the murder of Mendel Shpilman, who was, at one time, thought to be a Messiah, is taking it's toll on him by dredging up his past, including the mysterious death of his sister, Naomi, and the interesting way most of the Jews in Sitka are connected to him. As in his previous books, Mr. Chabon has again created characters that are charming and fallible and endearing. I must say that this story initially took some getting used to, and I stumbled on unfamiliar words a little too often, but if you are already a fan like I am, this is a must read.
Best Line:
"I'm like a cash gift. I'm always appropriate."
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