eBook People of the Book download

People of the Book: A NovelWonderful story! Not very deep or developed characters, and not an unknown format - the plot moves back and forth from the present to various historical times when a book, which is actually the protagonist of the story, plays an important role in peoples' lives. This book, the Sarajevo Haggadah, actually exists, but the author gives it a very creative history and invents a myriad of characters and stories that are involved in transferring the book from here to there, each leaving a small sign or mark within its bindings and pages. What is interesting is that the (fictional) history of the book is told only to the reader, while the character who identifies all the clues of the book's journey through the centuries has no way of knowing how the specific findings she uncovers (a few grains of salt, an old blood stain, and more) came to be in the book. While the story surrounds a Jewish text, and clearly it is tied to Jewish history, it's a universal story. An intriguing yet easy read. Highly recommend it.

The best test of a good read--to me--is the number of questions with which the book leaves me, and how my mind and body respond to the ending chapter. For this book, the overriding question sitting on my soul is: How can I go on without these characters in my immediate life?
As for my cerebral and physical response to the book, well, this exquisitely written story literally knocked me out and as I finished the last sentence, I could not stand. The characters surrounded me and I simply had to sit and wait until they lifted away and permitted me to re-enter reality. That's how powerful every character and story, for it is one story made of many, affected me upon the finish.

The story is quite complex made even more so by the switches between narrators and time periods. However, the underlying history of a Jewish book which escaped burning during the Inquisition, the exile of the Jews from Spain, and other historical events, including Hitler, the Holocaust, and others which should have spelled the end for the book. The key was the passion of various unrelated persons who risked their lives to save it. The novel is based on a true incident however, the individual vignettes were creative fiction invented to answer the unanswerable question of how it could have happened. It held my attention and always seemed to be rooted in real people. I've been interested in history and especially the history of the Jews during their diaspora. I think anyone with a similar interest will find the book provides details of that period which are less available than books that concentrate on World War II. I highly recommend it. Its worth the sometimes struggle of trying to keep up with the back and forth of time and place.

There are always those books that have been on your wishlist for years but you couldn't rationalize paying the full price for it; "People of the Book" was one of those books for me. I remember seeing this book in the bookstores back when I was in high school, and being totally drawn to the book art. I have to admit that I totally misinterpreted the cover. I most definitely thought it was making allusions to the the Egyptian God Horus. It is actually a wing of a moth, for those of you who are like me and the obvious alludes you.

As with many New York Times Bestsellers, I am skeptical of their true merit. Not necessarily because these books aren't worthy of such titles, but rather because I always end up a little disappointed. I think I get disillusioned with what a "New York Times Bestseller" actually means in regards to the quality of the book. The "bestseller" title gives me high expectations for the book, but I should instead take it with a grain of salt given that it doesn't necessarily correlate with how much I will enjoy the book.

"People of the Book", as is apparent from the title, is the story of the multitude of people who were involved in the creation and/or safe-guarding of the famed Sarajevo Haggadah [a Jewish text].

As was mentioned in a previous review, I absolutely love historical fiction pieces that intertwine multiple perspectives and storylines into the main plot. I believe that this sort of writing style for historical fiction is the most effective, as long as the transitions from past to present are done effectively. "People of the Book" did an excellent job with this and I genuinely enjoyed when the book had me time travel to unknown times and places. I would go so far as to say that I was even disappointed when the book took you back to the "present" main plot line. I, unfortunately, felt that the main plot line took away from the main focus of the book: the Haggadah. Particularly due to the love story between two of the main characters; it took away from the rest of the novel, and was unnecessary in the context of this story. The side stories, on the other hand, were perfection. My personal favorite was the last side-tale in which the artist behind the beautiful illuminations of the Haggadah was revealed.

The construction of the plot line was artfully done, and I felt that the author did an excellent job in transitioning between the main plot line and the side stories. I particularly appreciated the chronological order she chose to take with these side narratives. In addition, Geraldine Brooks did not necessarily directly connect all the parts of the story together; she left a little mystery to it and gave just enough information for the reader to be able to discern it themselves.

I am glad that I was finally able to read this book, but in the realm of historical fiction novels, this was not one of my favorites. I just felt that the main plot line took away from the side narratives, and there were parts of the main storyline that seemed extraneous. However, the central themes of the book are important ones, and Geraldine Brooks highlights them at every occasion she gets. The main theme being that historical artifacts are central to our history and their importance should be recognized. Unlike us, they are able to survive time and tell their stories to future generations, if only we would listen.

This book was recommended to me several years ago and I didn't get around to reading it until recently. So glad that I did! It was a good read -- hard to put down, in fact, but it had some real depth to it as well. In the course of the story, we learn about religious persecution and how it damages both the persecuted and the persecutors. These portions of the book were panful to read. The book also includes some description of religious tolerance, however, and the positive effects of that on the lives of all. I found it especially appropriate for the current time and the specter of religious intolerance looming. There are lots of different characters in this book as well as different historical periods. Ms. Brooks made me care about all of them. Her writing drew me into each period and provided a greater understanding of each.