From the Bookshelf of Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy…

The Golem and the Jinni (The Golem and the Jinni, #1)

Helene Wecker

Start date: December 21, 2013

Finish date: January 20, 2014

Discussion leader: Andreas

Why we're reading this: Group Contemporary Read for December 2013
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Oct 07, 2015 Jeannette rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, eclectic-readers

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This book was really an enjoyable experience. I have come across mentions of golems in passing before in other books, but they have never struck me as very interesting figures. Jinni, on the other hand, have always seemed very interesting to me (but then again, I'm a child of Disney's second Golden Age). In this book, part of the enjoyment came from the surprising fact that I was often annoyed with the Jinni, and fascinated and sympathetic to the Golem. Both were really interesting characters to This book was really an enjoyable experience. I have come across mentions of golems in passing before in other books, but they have never struck me as very interesting figures. Jinni, on the other hand, have always seemed very interesting to me (but then again, I'm a child of Disney's second Golden Age). In this book, part of the enjoyment came from the surprising fact that I was often annoyed with the Jinni, and fascinated and sympathetic to the Golem. Both were really interesting characters to follow though, and I really liked the way their friendship developed. Their fight was actually very frustrating to me because I quite enjoyed how their personalities complemented each other (though I hated that it began turning to a romance as it felt unnecessary and less meaningful in a way).

I also enjoyed how Wecker wove the different threads of the story together. I often knew what was going to happen long before the story got there. For example, I knew that somehow Schaalman was also the wizard who'd imprisoned the Jinni, or that Sophia would become pregnant; however, watching the book spin the story was still a pleasant experience. The pace could be a bit slow, especially during the Schaalman and Michael Levy bits, but not in a way that ruined the rest of the book. It was like watching the author craft something: slow but not interminable, because you saw how the whole was going to fit together.

I would like to give this book a higher rating because I did like it more than I expected, and I would probably recommend it to others. My problem with it though was that I really felt like I wanted more. It was interesting, but not captivating. Enjoyable, but not engrossing. I wanted more of Rabbi Meyer, more of Golem/Chava's discovering herself, more of Jinni/Ahmad's self-reflection, and more of Sophia's resolution. With all of that, I'm not sure that I would reread this novel, or read its upcoming sequel. That said, I'll give it somewhere between 3 and 3.5 stars, rounded down this time (mostly due to me not really being decided of where I want to settle that number). ...more

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Feb 13, 2015 Christine rated it really liked it

I read this as part of the Adult Book Group at my local public library. The librarian presented it as a "romance" read for February, but I found much more depth in the story than what I think I would find in a work classified as "romance". ...more

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Dec 03, 2013 Karen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I would give this book 6 stars if I could!

I loved it so much that I barely know how to write a review so I will just share my main thoughts:
It's beautifully written
It gives a window into many worlds: NY at the turn of the 20th century, Jewish and Syrian immigrant societies, Bedouin life, and of course the realm of the fantastic
The characters are compelling, not just the title creatures but all the secondary ones. As each of their stories are unfolded a certain tension built as I wondered how al ...more

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