I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

I read the first 2 1/2 stories. Unfortunately, I did not enjoy them and chose not to read the rest of the book..

A book of linked stories based in. A Jewish community. In Canada.As the book introduced us to the characters their lives I became more and more involved.A intimate look at this community their family lives ups and down.A really involving moving read. #netgalley#anansipress

Thanks to NetGalley and House of Anansi Press for the free e-copy of this book! This quiet book presents stories from different perspectives in a small Jewish-Canadian town, slowly painting the picture of a central dysfunctional family: the Levines.

The quick slice-of-life stories were my favorite; I loved The Album, the story of a mother grappling with an unnamed illness while her transgender son comes out and her daughter marries into a very religious family, and Keeping Ghosts Warm, about a son and a mother both reflecting back on their childhood nuclear families. Ludwig does a wonderful job of depicting the silent growing pains of childhood and the inner turmoil of adults, both necessary in a book with little dialogue.

Other stories had really clever premises (a club of women who all have the same name, the titular story in which a man’s mother breaks up with his wife for him), but did not fully land for me. I found that a lot of the stories revolving more centrally around the Levines did not pack the punch of those focused on their neighbors. When reading short stories, I’d like them to stand on their own even if they are also contributing to a larger overarching narrative, and each of the Levines’ stories seemed a bit more like chapters in a novel. While their story arc did come to a satisfying conclusion by the end of the book, it just wasn’t what I was hoping for in a story collection.

While most of the characters featured in the collection seemed to showcase unique parts of the Jewish experience, the abundance of praise for Israel felt overwhelming and drew attention to the dearth of any anti-Zionist perspectives. The mention of “secular and religious Jews” in the blurb suggests the presence of a variety of perspectives, and this seems like a blind spot.

Overall, this collection had many vivid moments, but it did not stand out as much as I had hoped it would.

This collection of linked short stories paint pictures of members of a Jewish community in Canada getting along (or not) with one another over 15 years. Ludwig is compassionate but clear-eyed in her storytelling, allowing the reader to grow to love her characters, warts and all.

This would be a great book for discussion of change, community, culture-- the strengths and cracks we find when our world changes over time.

#NetGalley, #YouAreNotWhatWeExpected