End of the Jews Book

Adam Mansbach's recent horror action thrillers betrayed a literary skills and credentials, but this book really brought home just how well the man can write. And talk about versatility, this one is miles away from Dead Run and Devil's Bag Man in almost every possible way, except for quality. The End of Jews is an exploration of several generations of a New York (Jewish, obviously) family and their wide circle of friends, lovers and acquaintances. Its timeline interweaving narrative is sprawling, ambitious and competent, putting one in mind of such generational epics as Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, although not quite as amazing. It covers a huge variety of subjects and being Jewish is only one of them. It deals heavily with cultural and ethnic identity, racial politics, authenticity, talent, love and family...which is of course quite a generic description, but I'm never quite sure how much specificity a review requires. At the heart of the story are two Tristans, grandfather and grandson, both authors of various success, and how their chosen vocation has shaped and affected their lives and lives of those near them. Because this novel is such an onion, some layers are more interesting than others, To me the highlight was the early chapters of Nina's life. Some parts I thought dragged on a tad. Here's the thing, though...this isn't a perfectly even narrative, some of it dealt with things I don't care very much about (graffiti, jazz, Adam Mansbach is hip. Very hip. And he lets you know it.), most of the characters I honestly didn't like very much and didn't care for their choices...and yet the fact that despite all that Mansbach created such a compelling story impressed me tremendously. It isn't an easy or a light read, but it's intelligent, challenging and good, really good. I can only imagine how magnetic it would have been with some less frustrating characters. Enjoyable, albeit in a very particular way.