Book Review and GIVEAWAY: The Magic Maker, by Mickey Dubrow {ends 2/4}

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

2013

For years, only Sadie continued to lift the matzo box and peer at the world below. But the family joined her when she told them about construction crews arriving at their building. They watched them coming and going and listened to banging and sawing below them. Then, moving trucks brought boxes of all sizes.

After the workers left, Jacob was the one who figured out that 97 Orchard Street had become a form of entertainment. He noticed that groups of people gathered at the stoop at regular times throughout the day. A guide then spoke to the group and gestured at the building before leading the group inside.

“I’m inclined to agree,” Sadie said. “But what kind of entertainment?”

Esther knows what she saw—and Meir (a kishef macher, or magic maker) is the only person who seems willing to believe her. 

Official synopsis:

In 1917, on New York City's Lower East Side, Baruch Rosenfeld invites a beggar to join his family for the Passover Seder. However, his good deed backfires. Baruch, his wife Rebekah, and their children Nathan, Jacob, and Sadie are trapped in time. They don't age, they can't leave their three-room apartment, and the outside world believes they disappeared without a trace.

A hundred years later, the apartment building is now the Tenement Museum. Esther Luna, an educator for the museum, sees Sadie at the window. Esther goes to the apartment but finds it has been empty for decades. She hires Rabbi Meir Poppers, a kishef macher (magician), to solve the mystery of the girl at the window.

Meir's efforts to free the Rosenfelds are blocked by rivals, ancient spells, and his own self-doubt. When Meir finally reaches the trapped family, will his Jewish magic be enough to rescue the Rosenfelds from their eternal prison?

This story was so quirky and fun, in a way, with an underlying dark and sad story about the Rosenfeld family being trapped for a century. The characters were all compelling and mostly likable, and the Jewish history and tradition shared was enlightening.

The book was also well told and the side-plots were amusing. While Meir did his calling, and the job he was being paid to do and risking his life for, he also had to keep in mind that he was of marrying age and should be trying to meet a wife. Esther had moved on from her job at the museum. She was ready to move on in her life with her husband, but felt the only right thing to do was figure out the mystery of the girl she saw in the window, and free her. Her husband was drawn way more into the drama than he wanted to be, while he just wanted to be a supportive husband and thought he was indulging Esther’s illusion.

Overall, the story was intricate and earned 5 out of 5 stars. The characters were engaging and the dual timelines in the book made for an interesting reading experience. Those who like cozy books about Jewish and New York characters, both contemporary and early 1900s, would enjoy The Magic Maker.

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who also enjoys reading and learning more about people. Check out other reviews and her life on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a copy of The Magic Maker!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Tuesday, February 4th, at 11:59pm EST, and winner will be notified via email the next day, and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!

The Magic Maker, by Mickey Dubrow

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Book Review: A Grandmother Begins the Story, by Michelle Porter

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Gen brought herself to her feet again and found herself swaying between belief and doubt, but she said, Let me close the doors so we don’t wake them up with our playing.

Velma put her fiddle on her clavicle, lifted her bow, and waited. Velma’s hair was falling over her shoulders. At her armpits the dress had turned a darker red because she’d been playing and she always played with her whole self, every muscle in her body making the music. Gen sat at the bench.

I’ve been waiting to play with you since you left for the spirit world, you bloody no-good bastard, Gen said.

The distinct stories of five generations of Mèti women make some interesting intersections as they embrace or deny the trauma of their lives past and present.

Official synopsis:

Carter is a young mother on a quest to find the true meaning of her heritage, which she only learned of in her teens. Allie is trying to make up for the lost years with her first born and to protect Carter from the hurt she herself suffered from her own mother. Lucie wants the granddaughter she's never met to help her get to her ancestors in the afterlife. And Geneviève is determined to conquer her demons—before the fire inside burns her up—with the help of the sister she lost but has never been without. Meanwhile, Mamé, in the afterlife, knows that all their stories began with her; she must find a way to cut herself from the last threads that keep her tethered to the living, just as they must find their own paths forward. And a young bison wants to understand why he keeps being moved and whether he should make a break for it and run for his life.

The voices in these intertwining stories are definitely varied—from women (living and dead), sacred bison, and even a couple pet dogs (who may not actually be the souls of dogs). They all narrate the stories, gifts, and tragic flaws of five generations of Mèti women. The Mètis are an indigenous people in Canada who were descendants of First Nations women and European men in the 18th century. Their relationships with each other and those around them are compelling and thought-provoking. While the women may seem easier for readers to understand, the animals lend cultural significance that influences them all.

First in chronological time was Mamè, who tells her story from the afterlife and was the mother to Geneviève and Velma. Gen’s daughter is Lucie. Lucie’s daughter is Allie. Allie is the birth mother to Carter, who is recently rediscovering her roots. Carter is also a mother, but her young son does not yet tell his own story.

This book was so endearing and hard to put down. While it did not read as a straight-line novel, all of the characters narrating had their own style that inspired a reader to find out more of their story. The best part of the book was the characters with their unique histories and choices to be made for their futures. The story earned 4 out of 5 stars. 

{click here to purchase via my Amazon Affiliates link}

Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who enjoys escaping and learning of other lives through reading. See more of what she’s reading and her life on her blog, SweetlyBSquared.com.

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