A review by jojopotato
The Lost Shtetl by Max Gross

adventurous informative reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

The Lost Shtetl is a deep dive into an undiscovered Jewish town called Kreskol, in a forest in Poland untouched by the Nazis and the modern world. All inhabitants of the town have no outside knowledge of what has happened in the past 100 years or so due to very precise circumstances. Until one day, a young man from the town changes everything, for better or worse. This is the story about how the town was discovered, how the people within the town felt/dealt with the discovery, and how the outside world perceived them. Max Gross also goes into detail about Judaism as a religion and culture and he provides excellent footnotes about historical references and Yiddish/Polish translations. Definitely recommend for folks interested in historical fiction!