The Outside World by Tova Mirvis (2005)

The characters are fleshed out, but too much time is spent within their minds and not enough time without. A problem with people is that they tend to think repetitively, and these characters are no different. They tend to be boring, and their lives rarely turn in compelling ways. The writing isn't bad per se; this would make for a pretty good 50-100 page (and maybe even less) novella/short story. I don't think the story, as its told, merits its length. ( )

my book group read this, i didn't get through it.

Confrontatie tussen de werelden van een modern-orthodox gezin in New Jersey en een ultra-orthodox. Link is Bryan-Baruch- de zoon van het eerste gezin, die na een verblijf aan een jesjieve in Israël een Toravast en door rituelen en Joodse wetten gedomineerd leven gaat leiden, zeer tegen de zin van zijn ouders die met lede ogen het afknagen van het harmonies samengaan van Jodendom en verlichting aanzien. Baruch gaat een huwelijk aan met Tzippy, het meisje uit het andere gezin, dat op een volwassen wijze in tegengestelde richting evolueert, op zoek naar zichzelf, weg van de beschermende cocoon die haar moeder rond het meisjesrijk gezin spon.
Mooie karakters, warme persoonlijkheden, integer op zoek naar de jusite weg.
Erg verduidelijkend ook over de levenswijze in streng-joodse milieus, de huwelijksgeplogenheden, omgang man- vrouw. Een aanrader voor wie in op een prettige manier inkijk in deze wereld wil krijgen. ( )

This is a book that is marketed to be about dating and relationships within Jewish Orthodoxy, but really it is a book about faith - what drives people's faith and belief in God, and why is there such a vast difference between people? It is a topic worthy of much discussion and deep introspection, so it was interesting to see it tackled within the context of Jewish Orthodoxy, a world most of us know little about.

I live in Brooklyn, probably just a few blocks from where this book takes place, so it was very easy for me to imagine their world based on the author's descriptions and what I've seen myself. I also happen to be friends with an Orthodox Jewish woman, so I was familiar with many words and concepts that may have otherwise been more difficult to understand while trying to enjoy a novel. It was interesting to read these character's voice from the inside.

One thing my Orthodox friend did warn me about was that this book may be a little unfairly biased against Orthodox Judaism. After reading the book, I can understand why she feels that way. There is an awful lot about the difficulty of keeping up appearances, the endless rules, the lure of the outside world, but less about why this way of life is so fulfilling. It would have been nice to read more about that.

I also found the various points of view and shifting of the omniscient 3rd person point of view jarring. Sometimes it was hard to tell whose thoughts I was reading, and just when I got used to one point of view, it would change. The same thing happened with time passing. It was very confusing to realize I'd shifted forward months without a clear transition.

Overall, I felt it was an excellent concept and still give me good food for thought along with an entertaining story, but I wish it had been better executed. ( )