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On Division
On Division: A Novel | Goldie Goldbloom
4 posts | 4 read | 5 to read
Through one woman's life at a moment of surprising change, the award-winning author Goldie Goldbloom tells a deeply affecting, morally insightful story and offers a rare look inside Brooklyn's Chasidic community In Williamsburg, Brooklyn, just a block or two up from the East River on Division Avenue, Surie Eckstein is soon to be a great-grandmother. Her ten children range in age from thirteen to thirty-nine. Her in-laws, postwar immigrants from Romania, live on the first floor of their house. Her daughter Tzila Ruchel lives on the second. She and Yidel, a scribe in such demand that he makes only a few Torah scrolls a year, live on the third. Wed when Surie was sixteen, they have a happy marriage and a full life, and, at the ages of fifty-seven and sixty-two, they are looking forward to some quiet time together. Into this life of counted blessings comes a surprise. Surie is pregnant. Pregnant at fifty-seven. It is a shock. And at her age, at this stage, it is an aberration, a shift in the proper order of things, and a public display of private life. She feels exposed, ashamed. She is unable to share the news, even with her husband. And so for the first time in her life, she has a secreta secret that slowly separates her from the community. Goldie Goldbloom's On Division is an excavation of one woman's life, a story of awakening at middle age, and a thoughtful examination of the dynamics of self and collective identity. It is a steady-eyed look inside insular communities that also celebrates their comforts. It is a rare portrait of a long, happy marriage. And it is an unforgettable new novel from a writer whose imagination is matched only by the depth of her humanity.
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review
Cinfhen
On Division: A Novel | Goldie Goldbloom
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Panpan

Ugh!! I read SO MANY glowing reviews for this book but was completely letdown. The writing was childish and the characters are one dimensional stereotypes (it was offensive to the Hasidic community). Suri Eckstein mother of 10, discovers at age 57 that she is once again pregnant. She worries not about the health of her unborn child but what her family & community will think of her knowing that at her age she‘s still having sex 🙄👇🏽

Cinfhen This book was completely insulting and the plot just continues to get worse. There was nothing in this book I could relate to or found believable. Im not Hasidic and I don‘t live in Williamsburg but I know people who are and this book was not a fair or accurate description of their experiences. I can‘t speak for an entire community but I‘m sure this book was as unflattering portrayal of their insular lifestyle. 14mo
Hooked_on_books Oh that‘s awful! And the glowing reviews just add insult to injury! 14mo
Cinfhen So true @Hooked_on_books I kept thinking what am i missing??? It‘s like I read a completely different book 🤷🏼‍♀️ 14mo
See All 12 Comments
TrishB 😞 hate when that happens! 14mo
Cathythoughts Oh dear. Avoiding this one 👍🏻 14mo
BarbaraBB That sounds terrible and offensive. 14mo
Megabooks Thanks for the honest review! I‘ll avoid! 14mo
Cinfhen It was really a HUGE disappointment @TrishB @Cathythoughts @BarbaraBB @Megabooks I didn‘t even want to donate it to the charity gift shop so instead I donated it to the local library- at least that way it‘s a #BorrowNotBuy 🤪 14mo
RebelReader I‘ll definitely pass based on your review. 14mo
Cinfhen Normally I‘d say try it @RebelReader but I really was disappointed with this book…and I feel like the author probably has ties to the Hasidic community which makes me question her motives in writing this book??!! 14mo
Lizpixie 🙌🎉 13mo
67 likes1 stack add12 comments
blurb
theladygreer
On Division: A Novel | Goldie Goldbloom
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Today's #read99women recommendation comes from Sally Koslow, author of ANOTHER SIDE OF PARADISE, who calls this book "edgy yet tender-hearted." More below! http://www.greermacallister.com/blog/2020/1/26/read99women-sally-koslow

review
ReadingisMyPassion
On Division: A Novel | Goldie Goldbloom
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Mehso-so

This book provided an in-depth look at life within the insular Chassidic community. However, the third person perspective left me feeling no connection to the characters. I think I would have preferred a first person perspective for this story.

review
Well-ReadNeck
On Division: A Novel | Goldie Goldbloom
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Pickpick

The book takes place in the Chasidic community in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I always enjoy books that introduce me to new cultures and communities. #netgalley

83 likes3 stack adds