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Snow in August
Brooklyn, 1947. The war veterans have come home. Jackie Robinson is about to become a Dodger. And in one close-knit working-class neighborhood, an eleven-year-old Irish Catholic boy named Michael Devlin has just made friends with a lonely rabbi from Prague.
Snow in August is the story of that unlikely friendship -- and of how the neighborhood reacts to it. For Michael, the rabbi opens a window to ancient learning and lore that rival anything in Captain Marvel. For the rabbi, Michael illuminates the everyday mysteries of America, including the strange language of baseball. But like their hero Jackie Robinson, neither can entirely escape from the swirling prejudices of the time. Terrorized by a local gang of anti-Semitic Irish toughs, Michael and the rabbi are caught in an escalating spiral of hate for which there's only one way out -- a miracle....
Snow in August is the story of that unlikely friendship -- and of how the neighborhood reacts to it. For Michael, the rabbi opens a window to ancient learning and lore that rival anything in Captain Marvel. For the rabbi, Michael illuminates the everyday mysteries of America, including the strange language of baseball. But like their hero Jackie Robinson, neither can entirely escape from the swirling prejudices of the time. Terrorized by a local gang of anti-Semitic Irish toughs, Michael and the rabbi are caught in an escalating spiral of hate for which there's only one way out -- a miracle....
327 pages, Hardcover
First published May 1, 1997
489 people are currently reading
4794 people want to read
About the author
Pete Hamill
110 books560 followersPete Hamill was a novelist, essayist and journalist whose career has endured for more than forty years. He was born in Brooklyn, N. Y. in 1935, the oldest of seven children of immigrants from Belfast, Northern Ireland. He attended Catholic schools as a child. He left school at 16 to work in the Brooklyn Navy Yard as a sheetmetal worker, and then went on to the United States Navy. While serving in the Navy, he completed his high school education. Then, using the educational benefits of the G.I. Bill of Rights, he attended Mexico City College in 1956-1957, studying painting and writing, and later went to Pratt Institute. For several years, he worked as a graphic designer. Then in 1960, he went to work as a reporter for the New York Post. A long career in journalism followed. He has been a columnist for the New York Post, the New York Daily News, and New York Newsday, the Village Voice, New York magazine and Esquire. He has served as editor-in-chief of both the Post and the Daily News. As a journalist, he covered wars in Vietnam, Nicaragua, Lebanon and Northern Ireland, and has lived for extended periods in Mexico City, Dublin, Barcelona, San Juan and Rome. From his base in New York he also covered murders, fires, World Series, championship fights and the great domestic disturbances of the 1960s, and wrote extensively on art, jazz, immigration and politics. He witnessed the events of September 11, 2001 and its aftermath and wrote about them for the Daily News.
At the same time, Hamill wrote much fiction, including movie and TV scripts. He published nine novels and two collections of short stories. His 1997 novel, Snow in August, was on the New York Times bestseller list for four months. His memoir, A Drinking Life, was on the same New York Times list for 13 weeks. He has published two collections of his journalism (Irrational Ravings and Piecework), an extended essay on journalism called News Is a Verb, a book about the relationship of tools to art, a biographical essay called Why Sinatra Matters, dealing with the music of the late singer and the social forces that made his work unique. In 1999, Harry N. Abrams published his acclaimed book on the Mexican painter Diego Rivera. His novel, Forever, was published by Little, Brown in January 2003 and became a New York Times bestseller. His most recently published novel was North River (2007).
In 2004, he published Downtown: My Manhattan, a non-fiction account of his love affair with New York, and received much critical acclaim. Hamill was the father of two daughters, and has a grandson. He was married to the Japanese journalist, Fukiko Aoki, and they divided their time between New York City and Cuernavaca, Mexico. He was a Distinguished Writer in Residence at New York University.
Author photo by David Shankbone (September 2007) - permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation.
At the same time, Hamill wrote much fiction, including movie and TV scripts. He published nine novels and two collections of short stories. His 1997 novel, Snow in August, was on the New York Times bestseller list for four months. His memoir, A Drinking Life, was on the same New York Times list for 13 weeks. He has published two collections of his journalism (Irrational Ravings and Piecework), an extended essay on journalism called News Is a Verb, a book about the relationship of tools to art, a biographical essay called Why Sinatra Matters, dealing with the music of the late singer and the social forces that made his work unique. In 1999, Harry N. Abrams published his acclaimed book on the Mexican painter Diego Rivera. His novel, Forever, was published by Little, Brown in January 2003 and became a New York Times bestseller. His most recently published novel was North River (2007).
In 2004, he published Downtown: My Manhattan, a non-fiction account of his love affair with New York, and received much critical acclaim. Hamill was the father of two daughters, and has a grandson. He was married to the Japanese journalist, Fukiko Aoki, and they divided their time between New York City and Cuernavaca, Mexico. He was a Distinguished Writer in Residence at New York University.
Author photo by David Shankbone (September 2007) - permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 897 reviews
December 10, 2021
Snow in August by Pete Hamill has been in my library since 1997, and that is impressive since several years ago my beautiful library was purged as we downsized our lives and thus, our library. So now still fighting our way through a global pandemic, I have been paying more attention to my bookshelves. And this lovely and heartwarming book made the cut. What makes one hang on to one book in favor of another, who knows. Those of us who love books have such different attachments that often we don't know what makes us hang fiercely to one book while so many others are purged!
This beautiful novel is a lovely historical fiction tale taking place in Brooklyn in 1947 where during a swirling blizzard on a Saturday morning, eleven-year old Irish-Catholic boy Michael Devlin is making his way to Sacred Heart where he is an altar boy with his surplice tucked under his arm. Encountering many obstacles as he bravely makes his way through the snowstorm, Michael is aware of a Rabbi motioning to him to come, he needs help to turn on the light switch as it is Shabbos and he needs a goya. There is a connection and the beautiful friendship that develops between Michael Devlin and Rabbi Judah Hirsch over the next several months. As they continue to meet, the Rabbi anxious to learn English and Michael learning Yiddish as he listens to the stories of this history of the beautiful city of Prague and its devastation as the Nazis moved in. Michael, the son of Irish immigrants, his mother working to make a life for them as his dad, Tommy Devlin, died in Belgium during The Battle of the Bulge. While pondering what life may have been like if he had a dad, he is enthralled with Captain Marvel Comics.
And there is their love of baseball and the excitement surrounding Jackie Robinson that forced the Brooklyn Dodgers to train that summer in Cuba rather than Florida because of the restrictions for the team to stay in one hotel because of Robinson's race. Michael Devlin patiently teaches the Rabbi the nuances of American baseball. And then there is the Rabbi's beautiful library that encases beautiful books that Michael is enchanted with. But in opposition to all of this is the undercurrent of the anti-semitic violence that is occurring and causing a lot of harm to Michael Devlin and Rabbi Hirsch. And it is how they face this challenge that is the stunning conclusion to this lovely book.
". . . But he did have this other treasure, right in front of him: these mysterious books with their strange alphabets For a moment, Michael felt people rising from the books, bearded men and dark-haired women, a soldier who hated war, a Frenchman who knew everything, all of them speaking languuages he never heard. They rose from the bookcase like a mist."
"'Vos Got git iz gut'. . . . What God gives good."
". . . . and his heart stood still. For there it was. Below them and around them. Greener than any place he had ever seen. There was a tan diamond of his imagination. There were the white foul lines as if cut with a razor through a painting. There were the dugouts. And the stands. And most beautiful of all, there below him, the green grass of Ebbets Field."
This beautiful novel is a lovely historical fiction tale taking place in Brooklyn in 1947 where during a swirling blizzard on a Saturday morning, eleven-year old Irish-Catholic boy Michael Devlin is making his way to Sacred Heart where he is an altar boy with his surplice tucked under his arm. Encountering many obstacles as he bravely makes his way through the snowstorm, Michael is aware of a Rabbi motioning to him to come, he needs help to turn on the light switch as it is Shabbos and he needs a goya. There is a connection and the beautiful friendship that develops between Michael Devlin and Rabbi Judah Hirsch over the next several months. As they continue to meet, the Rabbi anxious to learn English and Michael learning Yiddish as he listens to the stories of this history of the beautiful city of Prague and its devastation as the Nazis moved in. Michael, the son of Irish immigrants, his mother working to make a life for them as his dad, Tommy Devlin, died in Belgium during The Battle of the Bulge. While pondering what life may have been like if he had a dad, he is enthralled with Captain Marvel Comics.
And there is their love of baseball and the excitement surrounding Jackie Robinson that forced the Brooklyn Dodgers to train that summer in Cuba rather than Florida because of the restrictions for the team to stay in one hotel because of Robinson's race. Michael Devlin patiently teaches the Rabbi the nuances of American baseball. And then there is the Rabbi's beautiful library that encases beautiful books that Michael is enchanted with. But in opposition to all of this is the undercurrent of the anti-semitic violence that is occurring and causing a lot of harm to Michael Devlin and Rabbi Hirsch. And it is how they face this challenge that is the stunning conclusion to this lovely book.
". . . But he did have this other treasure, right in front of him: these mysterious books with their strange alphabets For a moment, Michael felt people rising from the books, bearded men and dark-haired women, a soldier who hated war, a Frenchman who knew everything, all of them speaking languuages he never heard. They rose from the bookcase like a mist."
"'Vos Got git iz gut'. . . . What God gives good."
". . . . and his heart stood still. For there it was. Below them and around them. Greener than any place he had ever seen. There was a tan diamond of his imagination. There were the white foul lines as if cut with a razor through a painting. There were the dugouts. And the stands. And most beautiful of all, there below him, the green grass of Ebbets Field."
November 28, 2023
“America ist nicht andersh (America is no different)”
- Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, the sixth rabbi of Chabad Lubavitch
A lot of craziness is going on in the world right now. It is two weeks until Chanukah and I was attempting to find a book that captures the theme of the lightness of Chanukah and publicizing the miracle. It is tricky to find a book on this topic aside from my personal book shelf, but in my myriads of goodreads recommendations, I was lead to a book by long time New York Daily News editor Pete Hamill, which focuses on the topic of race relations in Brooklyn in 1947. I have long been enamored by mid century Brooklyn, believing that I was born a generation too late. Brooklyn at that time represented a wholesomeness that could not be replaced by a changing society that grew to be dependent on television and airplanes rather than imaginative play and car travel. The epitome of this time period is Jackie Robinson’s integration of Major League Baseball, making the game a National rather than segregated one. While Robinson’s presence allowed for people of all skin colors to play a boy’s game, racism in many forms still existed in many corners of Brooklyn, and, sadly, this was most true of Jews escaping from war torn Europe searching for a better life in America.
Eleven year old Michael Devlin is a typical Irish Catholic boy living in Brooklyn. His life is centered around the church in that he is an altar boy and attends Catholic school and plays stick ball and devises schemes with his friends on weekend days. Michael has been the man of his house for the last five years because his father was killed in the Battle of the Bulge. Michael’s mother Katie never seeks sympathy and goes about her business like a proud Irish woman. All that she wants is to provide a good life for her son as she teaches him strong values while working to ensure that the two of them are never lacking. During a blizzard on a Saturday morning in December of 1946, Michael braves the storm to serve his role as altar boy. On the way there he hears a plea for help from one Rabbi Judah Hirsch, a Czech refugee who came to serve as the pulpit rabbi of Congregation Adas Yeshurun, a synagogue that has been long abandoned by a new generation that has moved to the suburbs in search of their own better life. Rabbi Hirsch is in need of a shabbos goy to turn on the lights in the synagogue on shabbos and Michael is happy to help. This one act of kindness begins the unlikely of friendships between Michael and Rabbi Hirsch, protagonists from disparate backgrounds.
Rabbi Hirsch has no friends in America but he wants to become an American and learn English. He asks Michael if he is interested in teaching him English in exchange for Yiddish lessons. Michael, a boy in need of a father figure in his life, agrees to teach Rabbi Hirsch all about America, as long as he gets his homework done and continues to be a conscientious student. At home Michael listens to music from his radio and reads Captain Marvel comics; he is a regular American boy. He daydreams about Sticky the dog, his father’s imaginary sidekick from Cuchulainn, a fictitious Irish hamlet. In developing this friendship, Hamill shows that the Irish and Jews are not much different because both have oral traditions that have been passed down for generations, accounting for both peoples’ rich culture over the centuries. When Rabbi Hirsch begins to teach Michael about what it is to be a Jew, the two cultures begin to mesh. Rather than thinking about Sticky the dog, Michael begins to place himself in Rabbi Hirsch’s tales of long ago Prague, especially those of the golem, a giant made of clay by the Maharal, Rabbi Judah Loew, of whom Rabbi Hirsch is named. Michael begins to wonder if they could call upon the golem to help Jackie Robinson fight racism, but Rabbi Hirsch says that the golem is only for the worst possible situation. Unfortunately, Michael’s life is about to take a turn for the worst, the golem becoming a reality rather than a pipe dream.
Many people think of New York as Jew York. The city at one time was home to two million Jews. In the post war years, there were some ethnic groups who resented the Jewish presence in their midst. We are known as the people of the book and opt for white collar rather than blue collar professions. In the Parish where Michael lives there is a high school gang named the Falcons who are only out to cause trouble. These are youths who dropped out of school or receive poor grades and would rather cause violence in their midst rather than lead an honorable life. More importantly to the plot, they are ignorant anti-semites who wish that their Jewish neighbors had stayed in Europe to be killed, Rabbi Hirsch included. The leader of this gang calls Michael a Jew lover and warns both him and his mother through violence that there will be trouble. Many men in the parish fought in World War II against the nazis and do not wish to see anti-semitism rear its ugly head in their neighborhood. The war is supposed to be over. It is supposed to be safe for Jews and their allies to walk the streets of Brooklyn neighborhoods. Rabbi Hirsch is shaken and Michael has his childhood all but taken away. The two bond over Yiddish lessons, Benny Goodman music, and baseball; they agree that Jackie Robinson will help the Dodgers get into “the catbird seat.”
It is rare that I pick up a book by a new to me author that I find impossible to put down. Snow in August had been advertised as being from the magical realism genre featuring Jewish life and Jackie Robinson all rolled into one unforgettable story. In Rabbi Hirsch, readers meet a protagonist who is questioning his belief in G-D while still mourning the loss of his wife. In Katie Devlin, readers encounter a strong woman who honors her husband’s memory by raising an upstanding son, teaching him to do what is right and just. Michael Devlin, the main protagonist is Scout Finch meets Harry Potter. He wants to do what is just while fighting the forces of evil that are rising in his midst. All Michael desires is to read his comics, play baseball, and see Jackie Robinson and his Dodgers win the pennant, and hopefully one day go to college and put the Falcon gang in their place. In light of what is going on in the world at the moment, it is refreshing for me to see a boy who doesn’t question his loyalty to the Jews because he is trying to do the right thing. This makes Michael a pure protagonist who is suited for life in mid century Brooklyn. He says he is for Jackie but he also brings together people of different ethnic groups because they are good people regardless of background, a lesson that is still relevant today.
The golem was a myth but a real person who was controlled by his maker. He fought for social justice but also created snow in August, a flock of a thousand birds, and a wind that would make villians stop in their tracks. When he summoned the Golem, Michael could see the Statue of Liberty from the Adas Yeshurun roof. Lady Liberty remains a symbol of freedom for generations of immigrants who came to the United States in search of a better life, the Devlins and Hirschs included. Some groups countered persecution while others came seeking riches and what they felt would be a better life for their children. Pete Hamill got to see the interaction of Jews, Irish, Italians, African Americans, and other ethnic groups on a daily basis as editor of the New York Daily News. In a timeless story, he brings together unforgettable characters from all of these ethnic groups to create a melting pot of what is good in America if people from all walks of life work together to forge a positive society. Today America is somewhat different but also the same for Jews as we fight the forces of evil swirling in society yet again. Pete Hamill writes about what is just and wholesome. For a few hours immersed in this book about what is good in the world I could forget about the darkness threatening to overtake the world and focus on the light.
⭐️ 5 star read ⭐️
Fiction read of the year
- Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, the sixth rabbi of Chabad Lubavitch
A lot of craziness is going on in the world right now. It is two weeks until Chanukah and I was attempting to find a book that captures the theme of the lightness of Chanukah and publicizing the miracle. It is tricky to find a book on this topic aside from my personal book shelf, but in my myriads of goodreads recommendations, I was lead to a book by long time New York Daily News editor Pete Hamill, which focuses on the topic of race relations in Brooklyn in 1947. I have long been enamored by mid century Brooklyn, believing that I was born a generation too late. Brooklyn at that time represented a wholesomeness that could not be replaced by a changing society that grew to be dependent on television and airplanes rather than imaginative play and car travel. The epitome of this time period is Jackie Robinson’s integration of Major League Baseball, making the game a National rather than segregated one. While Robinson’s presence allowed for people of all skin colors to play a boy’s game, racism in many forms still existed in many corners of Brooklyn, and, sadly, this was most true of Jews escaping from war torn Europe searching for a better life in America.
Eleven year old Michael Devlin is a typical Irish Catholic boy living in Brooklyn. His life is centered around the church in that he is an altar boy and attends Catholic school and plays stick ball and devises schemes with his friends on weekend days. Michael has been the man of his house for the last five years because his father was killed in the Battle of the Bulge. Michael’s mother Katie never seeks sympathy and goes about her business like a proud Irish woman. All that she wants is to provide a good life for her son as she teaches him strong values while working to ensure that the two of them are never lacking. During a blizzard on a Saturday morning in December of 1946, Michael braves the storm to serve his role as altar boy. On the way there he hears a plea for help from one Rabbi Judah Hirsch, a Czech refugee who came to serve as the pulpit rabbi of Congregation Adas Yeshurun, a synagogue that has been long abandoned by a new generation that has moved to the suburbs in search of their own better life. Rabbi Hirsch is in need of a shabbos goy to turn on the lights in the synagogue on shabbos and Michael is happy to help. This one act of kindness begins the unlikely of friendships between Michael and Rabbi Hirsch, protagonists from disparate backgrounds.
Rabbi Hirsch has no friends in America but he wants to become an American and learn English. He asks Michael if he is interested in teaching him English in exchange for Yiddish lessons. Michael, a boy in need of a father figure in his life, agrees to teach Rabbi Hirsch all about America, as long as he gets his homework done and continues to be a conscientious student. At home Michael listens to music from his radio and reads Captain Marvel comics; he is a regular American boy. He daydreams about Sticky the dog, his father’s imaginary sidekick from Cuchulainn, a fictitious Irish hamlet. In developing this friendship, Hamill shows that the Irish and Jews are not much different because both have oral traditions that have been passed down for generations, accounting for both peoples’ rich culture over the centuries. When Rabbi Hirsch begins to teach Michael about what it is to be a Jew, the two cultures begin to mesh. Rather than thinking about Sticky the dog, Michael begins to place himself in Rabbi Hirsch’s tales of long ago Prague, especially those of the golem, a giant made of clay by the Maharal, Rabbi Judah Loew, of whom Rabbi Hirsch is named. Michael begins to wonder if they could call upon the golem to help Jackie Robinson fight racism, but Rabbi Hirsch says that the golem is only for the worst possible situation. Unfortunately, Michael’s life is about to take a turn for the worst, the golem becoming a reality rather than a pipe dream.
Many people think of New York as Jew York. The city at one time was home to two million Jews. In the post war years, there were some ethnic groups who resented the Jewish presence in their midst. We are known as the people of the book and opt for white collar rather than blue collar professions. In the Parish where Michael lives there is a high school gang named the Falcons who are only out to cause trouble. These are youths who dropped out of school or receive poor grades and would rather cause violence in their midst rather than lead an honorable life. More importantly to the plot, they are ignorant anti-semites who wish that their Jewish neighbors had stayed in Europe to be killed, Rabbi Hirsch included. The leader of this gang calls Michael a Jew lover and warns both him and his mother through violence that there will be trouble. Many men in the parish fought in World War II against the nazis and do not wish to see anti-semitism rear its ugly head in their neighborhood. The war is supposed to be over. It is supposed to be safe for Jews and their allies to walk the streets of Brooklyn neighborhoods. Rabbi Hirsch is shaken and Michael has his childhood all but taken away. The two bond over Yiddish lessons, Benny Goodman music, and baseball; they agree that Jackie Robinson will help the Dodgers get into “the catbird seat.”
It is rare that I pick up a book by a new to me author that I find impossible to put down. Snow in August had been advertised as being from the magical realism genre featuring Jewish life and Jackie Robinson all rolled into one unforgettable story. In Rabbi Hirsch, readers meet a protagonist who is questioning his belief in G-D while still mourning the loss of his wife. In Katie Devlin, readers encounter a strong woman who honors her husband’s memory by raising an upstanding son, teaching him to do what is right and just. Michael Devlin, the main protagonist is Scout Finch meets Harry Potter. He wants to do what is just while fighting the forces of evil that are rising in his midst. All Michael desires is to read his comics, play baseball, and see Jackie Robinson and his Dodgers win the pennant, and hopefully one day go to college and put the Falcon gang in their place. In light of what is going on in the world at the moment, it is refreshing for me to see a boy who doesn’t question his loyalty to the Jews because he is trying to do the right thing. This makes Michael a pure protagonist who is suited for life in mid century Brooklyn. He says he is for Jackie but he also brings together people of different ethnic groups because they are good people regardless of background, a lesson that is still relevant today.
The golem was a myth but a real person who was controlled by his maker. He fought for social justice but also created snow in August, a flock of a thousand birds, and a wind that would make villians stop in their tracks. When he summoned the Golem, Michael could see the Statue of Liberty from the Adas Yeshurun roof. Lady Liberty remains a symbol of freedom for generations of immigrants who came to the United States in search of a better life, the Devlins and Hirschs included. Some groups countered persecution while others came seeking riches and what they felt would be a better life for their children. Pete Hamill got to see the interaction of Jews, Irish, Italians, African Americans, and other ethnic groups on a daily basis as editor of the New York Daily News. In a timeless story, he brings together unforgettable characters from all of these ethnic groups to create a melting pot of what is good in America if people from all walks of life work together to forge a positive society. Today America is somewhat different but also the same for Jews as we fight the forces of evil swirling in society yet again. Pete Hamill writes about what is just and wholesome. For a few hours immersed in this book about what is good in the world I could forget about the darkness threatening to overtake the world and focus on the light.
⭐️ 5 star read ⭐️
Fiction read of the year
November 18, 2018
I have mixed feelings about this book. It started out pretty good, and for most part, I really enjoyed it, but there were parts that bothered me.
Snow in August is about an eleven year old boy, Michael and his friends who live in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1947 just after WWII had ended. They go into a candy store one day and see a crime that is being committed; the Jewish shopkeeper is being beat up. The gang leader sees the boys in the store and threatens them to keep quiet.
Michael and his friends have false beliefs about the Jewish people, for examples, they believe they eat babies and hide their gold and jewels in the synagogues. These beliefs play a big part in this book, causing a rift between Michael and his friends.
On Michael’s way to Mass one day, he passed the synagogue, and the rabbi was standing in the door calling out to him. Michael went over, and the rabbi asked if he could come inside and turn on the light for him. Due to Michael’s fear of Jews, he was reluctant to go inside, but he did as asked, and he was glad that he had, for after this, Michael returns often to the synagogue and teaches Rabbi Hirsch English, and in turn the rabbi teaches him Yiddish and tells him stories about Prague before the war, as well as during the war when the Jews had to flee the country. Michael quickly learns that the rabbi is a good person, and that what he had heard about the Jews was untrue. His friends, well…You will have to read the story.
I was carried away by the beautiful descriptions of Prague, a place that I would love to see. Twenty Years ago a friend sent me a postcard from Prague that was given to her. I have kept it all these years and use it for a bookmark that gets lost in one of my books for long periods of time, just as it has now. It is of a photo taken in the corridor of a very ancient building in Prague. Someday, I will find the postcard again and tell you more about the photo, which actually isn’t very much.
I found the postcard in a box. It is of the Arcade of the Old Town:
So this book is full of history, Jewish and U.S. In regards to U.S. history, you learn about the first black baseball player, Jackie Robinson, and about racism in America. You also learn about the books that Michael reads and movies that he goes to see. The movies bring back memories for me, the books don’t, for you see, even in the 1950s movies made in the 40s were still playing at the theaters in our home town. I spent my weekends there, spending my allowance on them, popcorn, Flicks, Milk Duds and coke-a-cola. I even collected coke bottles and sold them to our small grocery store, Ken’s Market, and I would use that money for movies, and if not movies, then candy bars and soda pop. My mother spent her money taking me to the dentist due to all the cavities that I was getting from eating so much sugary stuff.
And then I learned some Jewish mysticism that was in the book, and about Golem, the clay figure that becomes a powerful man when certain rituals bring the clay to life. This was actually an interesting piece of Jewish folklore, and while I loved learning about it, how the only mention of it is in the book of Psalms, it is also one the reasons why I didn’t enjoy the some of the book.
But I also felt that this story got carried away as it became too violent, and this all because Michael and his friends wouldn’t snitch on the gang members who beat up the Jewish shopkeeper. Still, it was a lesson on what happens when you see a crime being committed and don’t report it out of fear.
Note: If you go to google and type in “golem in the bible,” Wikipedia will give you some great information. The word golem occurs once in the in the bible, in Psalms 139:16, which uses the word גלמי (galmi; my golem) that means "my light form", "raw" material, connoting the unfinished human being before God's eyes.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golem
Golem could also be the Gollum in Tolkien’s books. I thought it might be and began researching. Gollum becomes a fallen Hobbit in need of pity and mercy, just as Adam had fallen, and Adam, to the Jews, was a golem.
The PDF article, “The Riddle of Gollum: Was Tolkien Inspired by Old Norse Gold, the Jewish Golem, and the Christian Gospel?” explores this issue and tells about golem.
https://library.taylor.edu/dotAsset/6...
Note: Today as I began reading another story by Isaac Singer, I thought of this rabbi and the boy who came to his door to help him turn on a light. What story was that? I thought. Was it one of Singers? Then I came on here to look and found it. It was this book. For a book that I was uncertain about, this story of Michael and the rabbi stayed with me. I find that I love common stories about Jewish life, and by common I mean, the common man.
Snow in August is about an eleven year old boy, Michael and his friends who live in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1947 just after WWII had ended. They go into a candy store one day and see a crime that is being committed; the Jewish shopkeeper is being beat up. The gang leader sees the boys in the store and threatens them to keep quiet.
Michael and his friends have false beliefs about the Jewish people, for examples, they believe they eat babies and hide their gold and jewels in the synagogues. These beliefs play a big part in this book, causing a rift between Michael and his friends.
On Michael’s way to Mass one day, he passed the synagogue, and the rabbi was standing in the door calling out to him. Michael went over, and the rabbi asked if he could come inside and turn on the light for him. Due to Michael’s fear of Jews, he was reluctant to go inside, but he did as asked, and he was glad that he had, for after this, Michael returns often to the synagogue and teaches Rabbi Hirsch English, and in turn the rabbi teaches him Yiddish and tells him stories about Prague before the war, as well as during the war when the Jews had to flee the country. Michael quickly learns that the rabbi is a good person, and that what he had heard about the Jews was untrue. His friends, well…You will have to read the story.
I was carried away by the beautiful descriptions of Prague, a place that I would love to see. Twenty Years ago a friend sent me a postcard from Prague that was given to her. I have kept it all these years and use it for a bookmark that gets lost in one of my books for long periods of time, just as it has now. It is of a photo taken in the corridor of a very ancient building in Prague. Someday, I will find the postcard again and tell you more about the photo, which actually isn’t very much.
I found the postcard in a box. It is of the Arcade of the Old Town:
So this book is full of history, Jewish and U.S. In regards to U.S. history, you learn about the first black baseball player, Jackie Robinson, and about racism in America. You also learn about the books that Michael reads and movies that he goes to see. The movies bring back memories for me, the books don’t, for you see, even in the 1950s movies made in the 40s were still playing at the theaters in our home town. I spent my weekends there, spending my allowance on them, popcorn, Flicks, Milk Duds and coke-a-cola. I even collected coke bottles and sold them to our small grocery store, Ken’s Market, and I would use that money for movies, and if not movies, then candy bars and soda pop. My mother spent her money taking me to the dentist due to all the cavities that I was getting from eating so much sugary stuff.
And then I learned some Jewish mysticism that was in the book, and about Golem, the clay figure that becomes a powerful man when certain rituals bring the clay to life. This was actually an interesting piece of Jewish folklore, and while I loved learning about it, how the only mention of it is in the book of Psalms, it is also one the reasons why I didn’t enjoy the some of the book.
But I also felt that this story got carried away as it became too violent, and this all because Michael and his friends wouldn’t snitch on the gang members who beat up the Jewish shopkeeper. Still, it was a lesson on what happens when you see a crime being committed and don’t report it out of fear.
Note: If you go to google and type in “golem in the bible,” Wikipedia will give you some great information. The word golem occurs once in the in the bible, in Psalms 139:16, which uses the word גלמי (galmi; my golem) that means "my light form", "raw" material, connoting the unfinished human being before God's eyes.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golem
Golem could also be the Gollum in Tolkien’s books. I thought it might be and began researching. Gollum becomes a fallen Hobbit in need of pity and mercy, just as Adam had fallen, and Adam, to the Jews, was a golem.
The PDF article, “The Riddle of Gollum: Was Tolkien Inspired by Old Norse Gold, the Jewish Golem, and the Christian Gospel?” explores this issue and tells about golem.
https://library.taylor.edu/dotAsset/6...
Note: Today as I began reading another story by Isaac Singer, I thought of this rabbi and the boy who came to his door to help him turn on a light. What story was that? I thought. Was it one of Singers? Then I came on here to look and found it. It was this book. For a book that I was uncertain about, this story of Michael and the rabbi stayed with me. I find that I love common stories about Jewish life, and by common I mean, the common man.
February 11, 2021
An absolutely enchanting, magical, sociological, psychological, and cultural novel about a 1947 Brooklyn neighborhood in which its citizens are mostly Irish Catholic, Italian, and Jewish. The agony of World War II and its suffering and lost are still a very big part of their everyday life. They live in tenements where most apartments still rely on coal to heat their apartments, turn on the hot water, and cook on their stoves.
The main character, Michael Devlin, an eleven year alter boy who attends Catholic school, lives with his mother who escaped from the civil war going on in her native Ireland to live in America. Her husband, a member of US forces fighting in Europe is killed in the Battle of the Bulge during the end of the war.
On a cold, winter morning when a huge snow storm has shut down most of Brooklyn, Michael still gets up early to attend a scheduled eight o'clock mass where he is scheduled to be one of two altar boys. He struggles through the snow and the nasty wind blowing in off the harbor when he suddenly hears a plead for help. After a certain amount of hesitation, he decides to see if he can help, and he arrives at the steps of a synagogue where Rabbi Judah Hirsh, a refuge from Prague, ask Michael if he can a turn on the light switch because during the Shabbos he is not permitted.
From this first encounter, a growing and educational friendship develops with the Rabbi helping teach Michael Yiddish and Jewish culture, and Michael teaches him better English and about baseball and the excitement of the first black ballplayer, Jackie Robinson, joining the Dodgers.
It is against this fruitful and loving friendship, that the prejudices of the day against blacks, and Jews, want to be teenage gangsters, and corrupt police takes place. This takes place, like I said in 1947, and sadly throughout all I could think about is how little has changed since then.
This is an exceptionally moving story, with a magical ending, beautifully written with unbelievable characters. I highly recommend.
The main character, Michael Devlin, an eleven year alter boy who attends Catholic school, lives with his mother who escaped from the civil war going on in her native Ireland to live in America. Her husband, a member of US forces fighting in Europe is killed in the Battle of the Bulge during the end of the war.
On a cold, winter morning when a huge snow storm has shut down most of Brooklyn, Michael still gets up early to attend a scheduled eight o'clock mass where he is scheduled to be one of two altar boys. He struggles through the snow and the nasty wind blowing in off the harbor when he suddenly hears a plead for help. After a certain amount of hesitation, he decides to see if he can help, and he arrives at the steps of a synagogue where Rabbi Judah Hirsh, a refuge from Prague, ask Michael if he can a turn on the light switch because during the Shabbos he is not permitted.
From this first encounter, a growing and educational friendship develops with the Rabbi helping teach Michael Yiddish and Jewish culture, and Michael teaches him better English and about baseball and the excitement of the first black ballplayer, Jackie Robinson, joining the Dodgers.
It is against this fruitful and loving friendship, that the prejudices of the day against blacks, and Jews, want to be teenage gangsters, and corrupt police takes place. This takes place, like I said in 1947, and sadly throughout all I could think about is how little has changed since then.
This is an exceptionally moving story, with a magical ending, beautifully written with unbelievable characters. I highly recommend.
April 23, 2008
This is a fabulously told tale of friendship and faith. A wonderful story; the most moving prose I have read in a very long time. Parts brought tears to my eyes, while others made me laugh out loud; I found myself angered, ashamed, delighted and awed. If I had a son, I would want him to display those characteristics I found so appealing in Micheal Devlin; Rabbi Hirsch's story touched my very soul; and I felt as though I was transported to that hot summer day to watch Jackie Robinson play his first "big league' game. Wonderful writing and fabulous imagery - I highly recommend anyone to take this journey back in time to postwar Brooklyn, and experience it for yourself
June 10, 2011
SNOW IN AUGUST
Pete Hamill
This destined to be a classic book is a gorgeous trip to the world of miracles. An 11 year old Irish Catholic boy and an elderly Jewish rabbi meet in Brooklyn in the 1940’s. The magic of their relationship is poignant and breathtakingly touching despite their lives being threatened by the violence of street gangs, anti Semitism and their very different, but very difficult lives.
Mr. Hamill’s gift for creating a sense of place and time with characters that pop off the page is the gift of an author steeped in intelligence, inner depth and a lion’s heart. His ability to make miracles a common place event is even further proof of the genius encountered in his writing.
The beauty of this coming of age book is coupled with profound magical realism that then becomes the magnificent story of love, faith and courage.
Excellent Read!
Pete Hamill
This destined to be a classic book is a gorgeous trip to the world of miracles. An 11 year old Irish Catholic boy and an elderly Jewish rabbi meet in Brooklyn in the 1940’s. The magic of their relationship is poignant and breathtakingly touching despite their lives being threatened by the violence of street gangs, anti Semitism and their very different, but very difficult lives.
Mr. Hamill’s gift for creating a sense of place and time with characters that pop off the page is the gift of an author steeped in intelligence, inner depth and a lion’s heart. His ability to make miracles a common place event is even further proof of the genius encountered in his writing.
The beauty of this coming of age book is coupled with profound magical realism that then becomes the magnificent story of love, faith and courage.
Excellent Read!
July 3, 2007
This is one of very few books that I have read more than once (why read something again when you know what will happen and there are so many other choices out there?). I think I've read this 5 times.
I dislike hardcover books but I am purchasing this in HC so I will have it forever. Just seeing this book on a shelf makes me happy.
I dislike hardcover books but I am purchasing this in HC so I will have it forever. Just seeing this book on a shelf makes me happy.
November 10, 2007
I actually really enjoyed this book. The 3 star rating is because the ending disappointed me terribly. But up until then, I loved it. It's the story of a young Catholic boy who befriends a Jewish rabbi during the early 1940s in New York City. It's really captivating and the characters are endearing. I think it's worth a read, even though the ending wasn't great. And I should add that I read this for book group and came to appreciate the ending more after that. If anyone has read it and has thoughts, please write me!!
June 16, 2017
The central character in this is Michael Devlin, an Irish Catholic altar boy. On his way to mass one Saturday morning in an almost blinding snowstorm, he performs an act of kindness and ends up becoming the shabbos goy (Sabbath boy) for Rabbi Hirsch. A strong bond of friendship forms when Michael takes on the task of teaching Rabbi Hirsch English, getting lessons in Yiddish in exchange. Michael is quite the reader. He reads Captain Marvel comics, but also is familiar with most of Jack London, and there is even at least one reference to The Count of Monte Cristo. He pictures himself in these stories, so when Rabbi Hirsch begins to tell stories of Prague, Michael sees himself there.
The prose is good, though modern and the vocabulary not as interesting as I prefer. There is lots of plot in this and less characterization. The characterization was OK for Michael and Rabbi Hirsch, though not strong. The other characterizations - including that of Michael's mother - were rather flat. It is 1947, and the first season when Jackie Robinson played for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Throughout there is the effort to stand up against racism and antisemitism.
I wish the novel had stayed with this theme, but instead it wandered into a modern retelling of a Jewish fable. I am not a fan of fairy tales and fables, nor of retellings, so this turn was a significant disappointment to me. I have enjoyed reading Pete Hamill before, and I suspect I will again, but this was just a good 3-stars for me.
The prose is good, though modern and the vocabulary not as interesting as I prefer. There is lots of plot in this and less characterization. The characterization was OK for Michael and Rabbi Hirsch, though not strong. The other characterizations - including that of Michael's mother - were rather flat. It is 1947, and the first season when Jackie Robinson played for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Throughout there is the effort to stand up against racism and antisemitism.
I wish the novel had stayed with this theme, but instead it wandered into a modern retelling of a Jewish fable. I am not a fan of fairy tales and fables, nor of retellings, so this turn was a significant disappointment to me. I have enjoyed reading Pete Hamill before, and I suspect I will again, but this was just a good 3-stars for me.
May 8, 2009
Tight, detailed believable characters and tone made this a 4-star until the last 20 pages, when the author craps out and goes for the insta-solution to all the believable difficult real-life-like conflict and difficulty by making a sudden genre switch to magical realism. Well written, but ultimately disappointing.
November 24, 2018
This intelligent well written book will go down as one of my favorites of all time. Read this book.
January 3, 2009
This book review was written 4 months or so after I read the book. Thus the lameness.
I do remember that I really liked it. So much that I've been looking for other Pete Hamill books since then. In addition, I know I really liked it at the time, as I listed this book in the Book Talk Forum (on BookCrossing) as one of the "best books I'd read this year" (in July).
Something else I remember is that the man sitting next to me on the plane was asking me about the book, and why I'd chosen to read that book in particular. I found myself explaining BookCrossing to him so that I could explain release challenges so I could explain why I'd come across the book and chosen to read it in the first place. I'm sure he thought I was odd, but he did tell me that Mr. Hamill had written many other books and even told me a bit about his biography or auto-biography -- I can't remember which, but that it was very interesting.
Anyway, I remember that I loved the relationship between the young boy, the "shabbes goy" who turned on the light switch for the rabbi on a snowy day when his real shabbes goy didn't show up. The continuing relationship between these two was just beautiful. A catholic boy learning Hebrew (or was it Yiddish?), and the old rabbi learning English and enjoying baseball by the radio was just charming. I remember that the rabbi called the boy "Boychik", which always warmed my heart.
Two remaining things: I didn't really get the whole magical part at the end. It didn't quite make sense, but it did make the story more fairy-tale-ish. And last, the anti-semitism and the way it was fought in this book made me cry. I loved the way the men pitched in, stoic and solemn, as if that was what they should do. Which, after all, is true.
I do remember that I really liked it. So much that I've been looking for other Pete Hamill books since then. In addition, I know I really liked it at the time, as I listed this book in the Book Talk Forum (on BookCrossing) as one of the "best books I'd read this year" (in July).
Something else I remember is that the man sitting next to me on the plane was asking me about the book, and why I'd chosen to read that book in particular. I found myself explaining BookCrossing to him so that I could explain release challenges so I could explain why I'd come across the book and chosen to read it in the first place. I'm sure he thought I was odd, but he did tell me that Mr. Hamill had written many other books and even told me a bit about his biography or auto-biography -- I can't remember which, but that it was very interesting.
Anyway, I remember that I loved the relationship between the young boy, the "shabbes goy" who turned on the light switch for the rabbi on a snowy day when his real shabbes goy didn't show up. The continuing relationship between these two was just beautiful. A catholic boy learning Hebrew (or was it Yiddish?), and the old rabbi learning English and enjoying baseball by the radio was just charming. I remember that the rabbi called the boy "Boychik", which always warmed my heart.
Two remaining things: I didn't really get the whole magical part at the end. It didn't quite make sense, but it did make the story more fairy-tale-ish. And last, the anti-semitism and the way it was fought in this book made me cry. I loved the way the men pitched in, stoic and solemn, as if that was what they should do. Which, after all, is true.
June 7, 2014
This is the second of Hamill's books I've read. Also read "Forever" recently. He writes a terrific story, but I find the descent into fantasy at the end pretty annoying. Just as in "Forever" the history component is so interesting. Much better ending might have been to find a way for Michael to become the man he wants to be by trusting.
March 6, 2014
Ordered this specifically to fit personal seasonal quest.
THIS BOOK IS FOR
my brother John
AND IN MEMORY OF
Joel Oppenheimer
who heard the cries of
"Yonkel! Yonkel! Yonkel"
in the summer bleachers of 1947.
Opening quotes:
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1
A Jew can't live without miracles.
Yiddish Proverb
Opening: Once upon a cold and luminous Saturday morning, in an urban hamlet of tenements, factories, and trolley cars on the western slopes of the borough of Brooklyn, a boy named Michael Devlin woke in the dark.
Take what one can get off the net from the history and mythology of Prague and rearrange the words and voila! two thirds of a book is written.
*dry mouth smacking*
THIS BOOK IS FOR
my brother John
AND IN MEMORY OF
Joel Oppenheimer
who heard the cries of
"Yonkel! Yonkel! Yonkel"
in the summer bleachers of 1947.
Opening quotes:
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1
A Jew can't live without miracles.
Yiddish Proverb
Opening: Once upon a cold and luminous Saturday morning, in an urban hamlet of tenements, factories, and trolley cars on the western slopes of the borough of Brooklyn, a boy named Michael Devlin woke in the dark.
Take what one can get off the net from the history and mythology of Prague and rearrange the words and voila! two thirds of a book is written.
*dry mouth smacking*
April 10, 2009
This book will bring you back to the late 1940's in Brooklyn. The author weaves analogies between Jackie Robinson and baseball, Jews and non-Jews and bullies and the harassed. The story depicts unjust discrimination so prevalent around this time. The ending was a little too way out there to be believed but did make you feel good about its outcome. Hamill's writing style is typical of a New Yorker who knows the streets.
April 20, 2012
This is one of my all time favorites. This book was so important to me. Beautiful, lovely .... A certain line in this book made me stop, drop the book in my lap and start bawling. Reflecting on that seemingly innocuous line redefined some personal history for me, helping to restore me. I will not quote the line as it was a quite personal reaction. Please read this book and share this book. An awesome story.
March 24, 2011
In Snow in August, Pete Hamill reconstructs a time and place that is very dear to me...in a second hand way. The ethnic working class city neighborhood in post-War America. I knew parts of this tale already; my favorite stories growing up were the ones my dad told me about the Old Neighborhood in those optimistic years after the war but before the realization dawned that the city was dying. Before I knew the man, there was the Boy. I have caught only glimpses of the Boy throughout my life -- the love of baseball and comics and running like the wind through the parks and sand lots and down the city streets; all the buddies with the impossible ethnic surnames shortened to nick names...the priest who first inspired and then disillusioned...the refuge and freedom found in the city library and the desire, eventually, to escape the Old Neighborhood for Someplace Better. Then the mourning for what was and what can never again be.
Hamill's boy protagonist, Michael Devlin, would be my father's age if he were real and alive today. They would have been great friends as city boys. I know for a fact that my dad loved Terry & the Pirates, collected comics and had the same boundless enthusiasm for baseball. I am also well aware of the significance of 'pegged pants'. Michael softened his rough edges through his chance meeting with Rabbi Hirsch and the ensuing friendship they forged over stories and language lessons. My father found his outlet through art and reading. Their 'Silent Generation' is not known for navel gazing prose and self actualization. But theirs is a generation that is as elegiac about their collective past as any other. There is still time to hear their story. But not all the time in the world.
So, I liked this book. The characters seemed plausible to me because I have heard about them many times in many forms and personalities. The inevitable changes in Hamill's Brooklyn working class Irish neighborhood were as traumatic and sad as the changes experienced here in Cleveland and, indeed, in cities across the nation at that time. There were a few golden years after the war when the men came home and there were jobs and the neighborhood celebrated being together again. And then the diaspora to the suburbs began. At first it was a trickle and then it was a stream of people loading up and moving out. And there was a vacuum left by the families and the new prosperity. This vacuum was filled by people of a more desperate nature in some cases. People with less.
As Michael yearns for a father (his was killed in the war), loses his childhood, discovers loyalty and meaning, forges a dangerous friendship, and faces a horrific set of challenges over the course of one terrible yet beautiful summer I, as a reader, am moved. Snow In August reminds me of all that was good and all that was brutal about mid twentieth century American life in the lower classes. Hamill uses the larger backdrop of a world forever changed by the Holocaust and the Atom Bomb to offset a smaller microcosm of a neighborhood and the people who lived in it who were also forever changed by their times.
Pete Hamill's style is workmanlike. He is not 'literary'. He is not clever or ironic or post-modern. Thus, he will not appeal to some readers in my generation who enjoy a more snide or less sentimental take. He tells a good story the way my dad tells a good story. There is color and punch and some elements of magic are present. The heroes are heroes and the villains are rat bastards. Although Hamill hints at gray areas and some aspects of his tale are up for interpretation, the story needs a satisfying ending and it gets one. The ambiguity my generation craves...the anti-hero...the constant reminder that "life is a bitch and then you die" is not Hamill's style. Snow in August, like much that has been gifted to us by my parent's generation, gives the reader hope. Hope that all is not lost and that, every once in awhile, the better side of human nature rises up. (Besides, I tip my glass to Mr. Hamill for also reminding us, in another book, Why Sinatra Matters. Michael Devlin, Rabbi Hirsch and my dad join me in that toast.)
Hamill's boy protagonist, Michael Devlin, would be my father's age if he were real and alive today. They would have been great friends as city boys. I know for a fact that my dad loved Terry & the Pirates, collected comics and had the same boundless enthusiasm for baseball. I am also well aware of the significance of 'pegged pants'. Michael softened his rough edges through his chance meeting with Rabbi Hirsch and the ensuing friendship they forged over stories and language lessons. My father found his outlet through art and reading. Their 'Silent Generation' is not known for navel gazing prose and self actualization. But theirs is a generation that is as elegiac about their collective past as any other. There is still time to hear their story. But not all the time in the world.
So, I liked this book. The characters seemed plausible to me because I have heard about them many times in many forms and personalities. The inevitable changes in Hamill's Brooklyn working class Irish neighborhood were as traumatic and sad as the changes experienced here in Cleveland and, indeed, in cities across the nation at that time. There were a few golden years after the war when the men came home and there were jobs and the neighborhood celebrated being together again. And then the diaspora to the suburbs began. At first it was a trickle and then it was a stream of people loading up and moving out. And there was a vacuum left by the families and the new prosperity. This vacuum was filled by people of a more desperate nature in some cases. People with less.
As Michael yearns for a father (his was killed in the war), loses his childhood, discovers loyalty and meaning, forges a dangerous friendship, and faces a horrific set of challenges over the course of one terrible yet beautiful summer I, as a reader, am moved. Snow In August reminds me of all that was good and all that was brutal about mid twentieth century American life in the lower classes. Hamill uses the larger backdrop of a world forever changed by the Holocaust and the Atom Bomb to offset a smaller microcosm of a neighborhood and the people who lived in it who were also forever changed by their times.
Pete Hamill's style is workmanlike. He is not 'literary'. He is not clever or ironic or post-modern. Thus, he will not appeal to some readers in my generation who enjoy a more snide or less sentimental take. He tells a good story the way my dad tells a good story. There is color and punch and some elements of magic are present. The heroes are heroes and the villains are rat bastards. Although Hamill hints at gray areas and some aspects of his tale are up for interpretation, the story needs a satisfying ending and it gets one. The ambiguity my generation craves...the anti-hero...the constant reminder that "life is a bitch and then you die" is not Hamill's style. Snow in August, like much that has been gifted to us by my parent's generation, gives the reader hope. Hope that all is not lost and that, every once in awhile, the better side of human nature rises up. (Besides, I tip my glass to Mr. Hamill for also reminding us, in another book, Why Sinatra Matters. Michael Devlin, Rabbi Hirsch and my dad join me in that toast.)
April 30, 2016
I love Pete Hamill’s writing. He brings you into the heads of his characters; he paints a picture of the streets of New York unlike any author; he vividly portrays life at the time in which his books are set, and he does it simply. His writing is magical….in more ways than one.
Snow in August is both a coming of age story and a morality tale where differences in religion, education, nationality, and upbringing drive the narrative. Employing magical realism, Hamill highlights the unlikely relationship between an 11 yr. old Irish-Catholic altar boy born in Brooklyn and a 39 yr. old Orthodox rabbi from Prague, a Holocaust survivor whose family perished. Deepening their friendship and essential to the story is the bond of baseball in 1947, the acquisition of Jackie Robinson by the Brooklyn Dodgers, and its impact on the nation. Hamill’s extraordinary description of the crowds en route to Ebbets Field to watch the great #42 make his debut should be framed. Michael and the rabbi learn from each other….not just history, Yiddish, and English, but more importantly, life lessons….faith, truth, and courage.
This beautiful book enthralled me from beginning to end. If you read it, make sure you don’t omit Hamill’s important afterward, following the acknowledgments and discussion questions, titled On Writing Snow in August.
Snow in August is both a coming of age story and a morality tale where differences in religion, education, nationality, and upbringing drive the narrative. Employing magical realism, Hamill highlights the unlikely relationship between an 11 yr. old Irish-Catholic altar boy born in Brooklyn and a 39 yr. old Orthodox rabbi from Prague, a Holocaust survivor whose family perished. Deepening their friendship and essential to the story is the bond of baseball in 1947, the acquisition of Jackie Robinson by the Brooklyn Dodgers, and its impact on the nation. Hamill’s extraordinary description of the crowds en route to Ebbets Field to watch the great #42 make his debut should be framed. Michael and the rabbi learn from each other….not just history, Yiddish, and English, but more importantly, life lessons….faith, truth, and courage.
This beautiful book enthralled me from beginning to end. If you read it, make sure you don’t omit Hamill’s important afterward, following the acknowledgments and discussion questions, titled On Writing Snow in August.
May 1, 2017
I loved this book until the ending, which I found really jarring in contrast to the rest of trhe book. To talk about why would spoil it for anyone who hasn't read it. But I can say that the author's essay at the end of the book helped me a bit. It talks about a boy's imagination. The main character is an eleven-year-boy who loves comic books. As the Golem is perhaps the prototype of all superhero characters, I think I get what the author was trying to do at the end and perhaps the ending is a meant to be seen as imaginary. If that is true, however, it should be something I could pick up from the novel, not from an afterword. I was disappointed--hence the four stars instead of five.
March 14, 2017
I tend to read mostly women authors. Not on purpose or because I'm on a mission or anything. They just happen to be the ones that appeal to me. When I read the summary of this book mentioning Irish catholic, post ww2, Judaism and magic (all things that have touched my life) I was intrigued. I have three sons and the story , being told by a young boy, Micheal Devlin, gave me a better understanding of my boys and how they think, act and feel. I ran the gamut of feelings from happy, laugh out loud to anger(even hate) and deep sadness. Definitely a refreshing change from my typical book fare.
April 16, 2016
Sentimental but I loved it.
May 23, 2018
Set in late 1940s Brooklyn, Michael Devlin, a Catholic altar boy, pursues an unlikely friendship with Rabbi Hirsch, performing duties such as turning on lights on the Sabbath and teaching the Jewish leader English and baseball. In return Michael learns Yiddish. The neighborhood is full of bullies who terrorize Jews. Michael realizes these were the same Jews his dad died trying to free from Hitler's regime. It's an interesting story depicting consequences of prejudice. This poignant read will stay with me awhile. The cursing seemed to fit the characters, even if I do not enjoy it.
May 8, 2024
A truly beautiful coming-of-age story.
July 7, 2012
Beautiful story of the tender friendship of 11-yr-old Michael Devlin, Irish-American altar boy, who loves baseball, comic books and adventure stories and 39-yr-old Judah Hirsch, Czech rabbi, recently arrived from Prague at the end of World War II and their private war with the Falcons, a gang of thugs terrorizing the Brooklyn neighborhood in which they live.
These unlikely friends teach each other many things.
Michael learns to speak Yiddish, scoring a discount on a suit on Orchard Street, when he puts it to use (Loved that part!). He learns that people have more similarities than differences. He learns to love learning. He learns the history of European Jews and the beauty of Prague. Most of all, he learns that keeping quiet about a crime is just as bad as committing the crime.
Judah learns to love the game of baseball. He learns to speak English (Brooklyn style!). He learns the lyrics to the popular songs of the day. Best of all, he learns that there is still goodness in a world that had just crumbled around him.
Together they privately navigate the waters of racism and bigotry while Brooklyn Dodgers draftee Jackie Robinson navigates them in the most public way.
Add in the beautiful characters of Michael's war widow mother Kate and the curmudgeonly but deeply moral parish priest, Father Heaney, and Pete Hamill's special dose of magical realism, and you have a book so beautiful that you will be crying and cheering at the same time.
These unlikely friends teach each other many things.
Michael learns to speak Yiddish, scoring a discount on a suit on Orchard Street, when he puts it to use (Loved that part!). He learns that people have more similarities than differences. He learns to love learning. He learns the history of European Jews and the beauty of Prague. Most of all, he learns that keeping quiet about a crime is just as bad as committing the crime.
Judah learns to love the game of baseball. He learns to speak English (Brooklyn style!). He learns the lyrics to the popular songs of the day. Best of all, he learns that there is still goodness in a world that had just crumbled around him.
Together they privately navigate the waters of racism and bigotry while Brooklyn Dodgers draftee Jackie Robinson navigates them in the most public way.
Add in the beautiful characters of Michael's war widow mother Kate and the curmudgeonly but deeply moral parish priest, Father Heaney, and Pete Hamill's special dose of magical realism, and you have a book so beautiful that you will be crying and cheering at the same time.
December 3, 2008
I didn't like this as well as "Forever," but it was still a good read. Like "Forever," you have to suspend a little disbelief in order to really enjoy the story. Jewish mysticism plays a large role, but I think it's secondary to the themes of friendship, loyalty, and racism that run throughout the book. The life of a child in an inner-city in the 50's is so different from the childhood I experienced. I couldn't imagine witnessing a horrible crime and saying nothing, but I can understand that according to the old world values of the neighborhood, Michael has no choice but to stay quiet.
I agree with some of the other reviews that said it was a bit too neat of an ending to have the Golem fix things, and yet I don't know how Michael and Rabbi Hirsch could have solved anything on their own. They were too constrained by the times in which they lived.
I agree with some of the other reviews that said it was a bit too neat of an ending to have the Golem fix things, and yet I don't know how Michael and Rabbi Hirsch could have solved anything on their own. They were too constrained by the times in which they lived.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 23, 2020
oh, how i loved this book. it shows you the good, the bad and the ugly, which is life.
life is unfair, there are horrible people, but we should never forget the kindness of people. it is out there and this story portrays it so well.
i don't usually like 'unrealistic books' with mythicism etc, but it didn't take anything away from this book.
an endearing story ...
January 2, 2016
One of my favorite books ever!!!!!
March 17, 2020
An altar boy and a rabbi strike up a friendship in post war Brooklyn, bonding on the Dodgers, the long suffering local team. The neighborhood in the post war years is seeing an emigration to the suburbs and the camaraderie of old is being replaced by less desirable elements, foremost a gang of amoral street toughs. When they brutally attack the rabbi, the boy seeks a way to avenge the rabbi. The rabbi is broken and the boy is small. What resources can they bring to bear against such physically overwhelming odds. This is a fun, excellent story. If you don't believe it can snow in August in New York, you should read this book.
July 1, 2023
This is one of my very favorite books!! I have read it at least once a year for quite a while. It is a very sweet story of the friendship between an 11 yr. old altar boy and a rabbi. I love it because of their talks and relationship and also the simpler time in which it takes place. Magical!!!
June 3, 2021
Excellent story. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Deals with unlikely frienship, racism, bullying and hope.
all done within a completely understandable setting.
all done within a completely understandable setting.
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