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A review by lk222
The Lost Shtetl by Max Gross
4.0
Debut author Max Gross tells a truly unique (and Kirkus starred) story of a Jewish village so isolated in the forests of modern day Poland that it was overlooked by the Nazis during World War II. The town, Kreskol, is utterly disconnected from the world, unaware of the devastation to their tribe, and blissfully free of taxes and electricity. However, a possible murder situation forces the Kreskolites to enter the forest and seek assistance from the gentile authorities. But who to send on such a harrowing journey? They elect the orphaned bastard of the local courtesan. If he goes missing in the woods it will be no terrible loss. This effort to connect with the modern world flips Kreskol—and the world at large—upside down.
I’ve read few (possibly zero?) non-Holocaust related books with a primarily Jewish cast, so this was a particularly fun discovery. The Holocaust is involved, and the Kreskolites’ realization of the atrocity creates an exceptionally interesting viewpoint, but it is not the major plot line. I read this as more of a non-sinister version of “The Village” meets “Fiddler on the Roof” with an overarching theme of “what-happens-when-the-sheep-stray-from-the-shtetl.” It’s a fun, curious, Yiddishism-filled journey of “what if…” that both celebrates and critiques the culture of an insular Jewish community forgotten by society.
I’ve read few (possibly zero?) non-Holocaust related books with a primarily Jewish cast, so this was a particularly fun discovery. The Holocaust is involved, and the Kreskolites’ realization of the atrocity creates an exceptionally interesting viewpoint, but it is not the major plot line. I read this as more of a non-sinister version of “The Village” meets “Fiddler on the Roof” with an overarching theme of “what-happens-when-the-sheep-stray-from-the-shtetl.” It’s a fun, curious, Yiddishism-filled journey of “what if…” that both celebrates and critiques the culture of an insular Jewish community forgotten by society.