Reviews

The Lost Shtetl by Max Gross

oliviaritter's review against another edition

3.0

i did love the characters and overall storyline (and bits of yiddish and jewishness) but i think the way it was told was confusing and hard to follow and disinterested me at times. glad i read it tho. thanks to cath who pulled this out of a shelf at barnes and noble and said “you should read this”

minty's review against another edition

3.0

I really, really loved the first, I don't know, third of this book. It had shades of the movie Being There (though that movie made me very very nervous for the guy, and this book did not), mixed with a book I was obsessed with as a kid, The Hunky Dory Dairy (about a weird portal back in time to a farm). This book is NOT magical realism, which made it all the more fun as it explored what happens when a village IS discovered many many years after the fact. However, the last parts just felt plodding, though it did make effort to tie things up and connect it all back to itself.

readswithrosie's review against another edition

3.0

The Lost Shtetl follows our unlikely protagonist Yankel, an outcast in his hidden Jewish Shtetl of Kreskow hidden away in the Polish forests, unknown by civilization for decades. When Pesha, a married woman, divorces her husband and disappears, she is followed by her ex. Fearing that he murdered her, the Rabbis send Yankel out to find either of them and bring them back. However, in sending Yankel out, they unknowingly open their hidden city to the rest of the world.

The Lost Shtetl is a humorous and unique story- I guarantee you haven’t read a book like it. The way the author weaves historical events into the history of this fictional civilization is impressive and informative. That being said, this is a long book that could have been condensed for a more succinct and exciting tale. Perfect when paired with a chilly afternoon by the lake, with a warm blanket, and your favorite oversized sweater that you have in three colors. 3⭐️

sunfishe's review against another edition

4.0

such a great work of speculative fiction. what started off feeling like a goofy fantasy quickly devolved into confronting the brutal reality of the world. this book goes deep on historical revisionism, antisemitism, misogyny, and the institutions holding all of these systems in power.

the ambiguity of the ending was disappointing at first, but as I sit with it i am glad to imagine Kreskol, returned to it's original form somewhere in the woods, and pesha somewhere far off finally freed, and yankel somewhere between these two worlds.

i am interested in the identity of the narrator, this unknown character who was present for so much of the novel.

clairefrances_8's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This is not a book meant to be read quickly. I’d say it’s a  piece of fiction that talks through the Holocaust and contemporary antisemitism as if both the reader and the lost shtetl had never heard about any of it. Noted in the acknowledgments section are a number of experts that the author consulted during research and writing which was nice to see considering the author specified they hold no particular religion. 

It should be noted that this reviewer is not Jewish and therefore unable to review the “authenticity” of diaspora that is woven into this narrative. 

katienelluc's review against another edition

mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

amyahava's review against another edition

emotional informative sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

lilj200230's review against another edition

slow-paced

2.5

I was constantly thinking I was missing the point. It started off with an interesting premise but was confusing at times and meandering at others. Overall it left an unsettled and unsatisfying feeling after reading it. 

vivelaviv's review against another edition

5.0

LOVED this story!!!! The path of the story is very intriguing and the characters are very well developed. Funny, sad, somber, intriguing, intense, this book has it all.

bananorama's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75