Goyhood

"Nothing is authentic except the quest for the authentic and it's just such a quest that speeds-way-over-the-legal-limit through the pages of Reuven Fenton's remarkably funny and compassionate novel about Goys, Jews, and that most crisis-prone of contemporary identities: the male at middle-age." — Joshua Cohen, author of the Pulitzer Prize winner The Netanyahus 

"Bravo, Reuven Fenton, for finding humor, heart, and meaning in a lost soul’s religious ups and downs. Are Mayer and his twin Jewish? Will happiness win over self-doubt? Goyhood is funny, stirring, smart and beautifully written. Such lovable characters! Such a profoundly delicious book!” — Elinor Lipman, author of Ms. Demeanor and The Inn at Lake Devine 

"A surprising and compelling novel written with the authenticity of an insider, the evocative precision of a journalist, and the heart of an audacious romantic." — Jonathan Tropper, author of NYT Bestseller This is Where I Leave You

"Touching, funny, and at times Shteyngartian absurd, Goyhood is road trip of a novel that grapples with what it means to be a Jew, and what it means to be human.” — Bethany Ball, author of The Pessimists

"Reuven Fenton starts with an improbable premise, throws kerosene on it, and lets us watch the whole thing take off on a loopy, exuberant flight. There’s no way this novel should work but it does: it’s funny, sweet, touching and somehow—improbably—unexpectedly—moving all at the same time. From the first page I read with my fingers across my eyes waiting for this joyful, creative novel to crash; miraculously—Baruch Hashem!—it never does." — Mischa Berlinski, author of Fieldwork and Peacekeeping

"Goyhood is an impossibly charming, beautifully written, and exquisitely felt ode to family and what it really means to belong. A triumph.” — Boris Fishman, author of A Replacement Life

"An uproarious, soulful study of the way we reshape—and deepen—our vision of self, family, and faith." — David Hopen, author of The Orchard

"Rarely do you encounter a work of literary fiction, brilliant in its execution and engaging in its indelible characters, that is also a romp, a grand entertainment. Reuven Fenton's Goyhood is all of that—its language rich and precise, its people irresistible, and its marvelous story a literal joyride. This is a novel that thrills with its hilarity and humbles with its bigness of heart. You'll miss the world it contains as soon as you leave it—and will no doubt return again soon." — Steve Stern, author of The Village Idiot

"A high-octane debut overflowing with heart, Goyhood swerves the line between devilry and virtue, humor and heartbreak. Buckle up for this one.” — Elyssa Friesland, Author of Last Summer at the Golden Hotel

"From Ocean Parkway to Bourbon Street, Goyhood is a classic American road novel with an ultra-Orthodox twist. Hold onto your kishkes. This book is a rollicking exploration of grief, love, brotherhood, and the American South that isn't afraid to ask the tough questions as it cannonballs into the deep end of Jewish identity.” — Michael David Lukas, Author of The Last Oracle of Stamboul and The Last Watchman of Old Cairo

"Combining razor-sharp wit, memorable characters, and seemingly effortless prose, Goyhood is a true delight." — Lynda Cohen Loigman, author of The Matchmaker's Gift and The Two-Family House

"Upon learning that he is not as Jewish as he thought he was, Meyer Belkin, an ultra-orthodox rabbi, is forced to confront his inner gentile. The high-octane jaunt through America's South that follows Rabbi Belkin's shocking discovery is a volatile mix of Shtisel and a Burt Reynolds-style car-smasher.”— Paul Goldberg, Author of The Yid and The Dissident

"What do you do when you find out you've been living a lie? Road trip, of course! In Reuven Fenton's funny, wise, and big-hearted debut, a pair of Jewish brothers - one devout, one decidedly not - cut loose through the American South in search of fireworks, beignets, and God's will. Part Marx Brothers, part Malamud, Kerouac by way of Philip Roth, this brisk and witty picaresque mixes laughs, tears, and enlightenment in equal measure. It's a delightful ride, so grab a yarmulke and buckle up.” — Mark Sarvas, American Book Award Winner, author of Memento Park and Harry, Revised

"With its refreshingly quirky indie move sensibility, Reuven Fenton’s Goyhood is an entertaining and deftly-paced novel of the meaning of family and faith.” — Adam Langer, Author of Cyclorama, and The Salinger Contract