Set in Russia’s Pale of Settlement in the 1800s, this wild tale is centered on sisters Mende and Fanny. Several months earlier, Mende’s husband Zvi-Meir left his family and is reportedly in Minsk. Distressed at seeing her sister in such a distraught and lonely state, Fanny steals away in the middle of the night to find Zvi-Meir and hold him to account. Leaving behind her husband and children, she enlists help from Zizek, a mute ex-soldier with a mysterious past who makes his living as a ferryman. Early in their journey Fanny and Zizek encounter a nefarious trio, and let’s just say Fanny employs skills learned from her father. Now the police are on their trail, but the investigation makes the proverbial mountain of a molehill with both tragic and comic consequences.

I found the narrative difficult to follow at first because of its large cast, unfamiliar references, and a general sense of confusion intentionally created by the author. Once I powered through this early stage, I found myself caught up in a crazy caper. I was particularly impressed with the translation which brought this tale to life. Although I felt a bit exhausted by the end, this was a unique reading experience with some unforgettable characters. ( )

Holy rollicking folk tale cum adventure story cum crime story. What a fun read. Set in the Pale of Settlement in western Russia in the 1800s, this sprawling novel about a few weeks in the lives of some loosely connected Jewish residents of the town of Motal drew me in from the first page.

The slaughterman actually had two daughters and the story relates how Fanny tried to help her sister Mende, whose life has been turned down when her husband decided to leave her and their two children and go to Minsk where he has the idea that he can preach better than anyone anywhere about the Jewish faith. He is so full of himself that he doesn't realize he's a complete buffoon. But why spend time talking about him when this novel overflows with unique, outlandish and thoroughly entertaining characters who interact and produce shenanigans like you seldom see in literature.

Fanny, for instance. Her father trained her well and when she decides that the use of the knife she has stashed in her underwear is needed, well, someone is going to end up dead. She allies herself with the nearly mute Zizek Breshof, whose claim to fame is that he takes his boat from one shore of the Yaselda across to the other without saying a word. But Zizek has a pretty big secret, as do many, er, most of the characters. At any rate, they set off for Minsk, to find and drag home Mende's wayward husband. Along the way, it's just one wild adventure after another involving the Russian Secret Police, the Russian Army and before you know it Fanny and her accomplices (oh yes, she picks up a couple of additional cohorts) are wanted for a series of crimes.

Sometimes the author had so much to say that he got in his own way trying to describe a situation and between the Jewish terms, the conditions in the Army and the vast area in Russia that the book covered, there was a bit of research needed. But this was an absolutely wonderful and enjoyable novel. If you like the Coen Brothers movies, this may be a book for you. ( )

Unusual book filled with great characters, fascinating plot, interesting setting. Fanny Feismann's sister's husband just left her in their small Russian village in the late 19th Century. Fanny is determined to go to Minsk to get him to sign a paper of divorce so that her sister can get on with her life. As the daugther of the Jewish slaugherman, Fanny has taken up his trade and has been known as the "wild child" even as a mother of four.

Fanny somehow convinces the ferryman to accompany her on her journey to Minsk. Along the way, they are set upon by bandits and Fanny uses her slaughtering knife and kills several. She and Zizek, the ferryman are now outlaws soon to be hunted down by an obsessive head of the Russian Secret Police, Novak. Novak sees some sort of treason everywhere he looks and he and his hapless assistant take after Fanny and Zizek.

As the story unfolds, Zizek isn't really Zizek but a boy who was taken from his Jewish home to serve in the army. The pair takes refuge in a tavern run by Zizek's life time "friend/acquaintance" who has rejected his Jewish heritage. Soon three are on the run and then joined by a strange Jewish cantor who can't sing who gets caught up in the mess.

A mess it is! The story has so many twists and turn, so many funny situations, and so many stories behind the story. There are many Jewish terms, etc. that I had to look up, but it was a totally enjoyable read. Funny in the form of a Coen Brothers movie.

And, it had two endings! ( )

fiction, historical, translation, israeli, tbr