Okay, so I would definitely say that the Yiddish Policemen Union is worth reading, but it's probably more of a get it out of the library type of book than a hurry out and buy it in hardcover. Chabon is an incredible writer; The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay is worthy of all the critical acclaim heaped upon it and the Yiddish Policemen Union definitely has moments where it matches the joy of that work. The dialogue is delicious and the characters are vivid; somehow Chabon manages to recreate the mood of a Raymond Chandler novel set it in contemporary Alaska. The seedy underbelly of 1950's LA is replaced with what feels like an outpost on the remote edge of civilization...I can only imagine that this was not an easy trick, though his writing is so free-flowing and vigorous that maybe it was...the bastard.

This one, however, also has it's weaknesses. Although the prose remains consistently enjoyable, the plot becomes a bit dithering and conspiritorial, sort of like a mid-70s Yes song. It felt like the reader had to do a bit too much work to connect the dots and tie everything together in a satisfying way. Maybe that's what he was going for...I guess things shouldn't always necessarily be satisfying or symetrical, but for me, the build-up was more satisfying than the climax....much the way things go in my personal life.

Anyway, it's worth reading, and if Goodreads let me, I would probably give it 3.5 stars. I love a good hard-boiled detective story, so this was something that I thoroughly enjoyed at the time...it's just missing that certain something that makes a book memorable and reasonant. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay is definitely both of those things.

Hey Jamie! I have been m.i.a. from this site for quite some time, but I'm back now and am ready to rate some books that I am at least pretending to have read. Comparing your books to mine, by the way, makes me feel like a goodreads teeny-bopper. I am like the Hillary Duff of goodreads to your King Crimson. Anyway, I hope you are well and happy and all that good stuff.