Monday, October 12, 2015

Fear of Falling

Every family has its own ups and downs. In Fear of Falling, two women, named after the same ancestor, experience falls in the physical, spiritual and emotional realms, and then they work to get back up from them all.

Judging the Book by its Cover -  a first glance review:

I'm noticing that I really like Aviad Ben-Simon's style for designing covers. This cover shows a bunch of frames, with a few glimpses of what the characters saw in the book.
I like how the book is typeset in general, but specifically with the scenic picture of mountains at the start of each chapter.
The book is very easy to get into and those details just enhance it further.

Some Details I Liked:

This is a well thought out multi-generational, international (Israel, Europe and North America) novel. 
Throughout the story there are slight messages regarding various interpersonal opportunities for growth.
It has a sweet ending, which ties almost everything together with a few good, subtle lessons.

Who This Book is For:

This is a little more of a (teen) girly book. It deals with well described emotions including: trauma, regret, anxiety and well, fear.

Who This Book Isn’t For:  

I have to admit that as a mother of a baby, the point that a fall off the couch, under the watch of a babysitter, caused brain damaged was quite scary. The author writes clearly that its not common, but could happen. Either way, just a warning that maybe it's not a good book for a recovering new mother :-)

What I Didn’t Like/Would Have Made it Better: 

I think there was room for some of the characters to own up to their actions in a better way, but then again, the fact that they didn't made the story all the more realistic.

In Conclusion:  

This is a nice, but slightly intense novel without any serious espionage or shidduchim. It's well written and 100% kosher.

Disclaimer:
I received this book for the purpose of reviewing it, but that it no way changed the way I read it and reviewed it.

Thursday, October 1, 2015

Outdated

Ever think about whether shidduchim is right for you? Why not just meet a nice person on your own, right? Outdated is a brilliant novel that goes through a single man's dating life. Nathan Wolff also shifts between the perspective of the main character's "not really girlfriend, but significant female" and his own.

Judging the Book by its Cover -  a first glance review:

The cover looks well, outdated. It is a hand drawn scene of a male on a horse holding flowers for the old fashioned dressed female.

Some Details I Liked:

I loved the storyline. The setting switches between "the city", "the country", and a few places in between. Also, the shift in crowds are described well via nuances.

Who This Book is For:

This book is primarily meant to explain the emotional benefit of shidduch dating instead of investing in a friend and not having clarity. In the form of a novel, the author explains the shidduch process and the reasons for each step.

Who This Book Isn’t For:  

This book is not for someone who won't appreciate someone who "flipped out" or became more "black hat" than his family. It is not so romantic, but the book does try to illustrate potentially sticky scenes which would be conflicting to ones emotions, such as a touch or looks of infatuation.

What I Didn’t Like/Would Have Made it Better: 

The only thing I didn't like was that the book ended on a sad note. The author could have continued the story and concluded with a Simcha.

In Conclusion:  

Even though I went through that process and am well out of that "parsha" it was still an enjoyable and engaging book.