Federation Book Club Reads One Good Thing by Georgia Hunter
And a special preview of our February Book Goyhood by Reuven Fenton.
Author Reuven Fenton is joining us for a Q & A Zoom session on February 12th to discuss his debut novel, Goyhood. Mr. Fenton gave us a personalized note:
I’m a longtime reporter for the New York Post covering myriad stories, usually of a breaking news nature but not always. In the spare moments I can squeeze out of my days, I write novels; I’m actually a few months away from completing my second one. Goyhood is my first, and it was based on an idea that came to me on a whim one day—wouldn’t it be interesting if a deeply Orthodox Jew discovered one day that he wasn’t Jewish, according to Jewish law. I wrote the story without outlining, as is my way, and over the course of many drafts the story came together. I hadn’t planned on it being a road trip book—I hadn’t planned anything—but it fell into that subgenre in a totally organic way. What better way for a protagonist to deal with an existential crisis such as Mayer’s than to get on the road?
I was pleased with how the book turned out, and doubly pleased that it became a sort of cult hit with book clubs—mostly Jewish, but not all. I’ve been lucky to have joined some 100 book clubs since the novel came out to discuss it. If you’re keen for more material for this writeup, I’d be happy to answer any questions you have. If you’d like, you can add that I see the two brothers, Mayer and David, as a representation of the duality of the sacred and profane that many people, me included, struggle with. The idea that they start out estranged and become united is supposed to represent the bonding of two extremes into a single, ideal human being.
You may order his book from this link.
If you are new to the Jewish Federation Book Club, please register for the February 12 Zoom meeting at this link.
As a follow-up to last time, two of us got together to watch the 2024 film Nightbitch, and we both agreed it clearly distinguished the main character’s fantasy from reality, portrayed her sympathetically, and showed her art as artistic rather than grossly nauseating. This was the rare case in which we believed the film was better than the book.
One Good Thing by Georgia Hunter
This novel follows Lili (Lilliana) Passigli who before the Nazi occupation, has been a complacent Italian Jewish daughter all her life, enjoying her safe existence. However, as the war accelerates, Lili is living with her best-friend-turned-family, Ester Reiss. When Esti joins the Italian Resistance, while critically injured she insists that Lili should escape with Esti’s toddler,
Theo. Lili reluctantly abandons her friend, and she Theo must survive by pretending to be mother and son. Constantly dependent on dangerous yet deliberate acts of courage and kindness during their flight through war-torn Italy, Lili discovers how a single moral choice can ripple outward, saving lives.
Our group enjoyed the perspective of WWII Italy, the somewhat “lightness” of the subject matter building on strength of character rather than detailed depictions of the Holocaust. Others thought the depictions unrealistic, possibly too light. My favorite part was—without spoiling any details—an ironic twist involving Mussolini.
Beth Buechler, Community Contributor
Upcoming Book Discussions (Subject to Change):
January 8: The Housekeeper and the Professor, Yoko Ogawa
February 12: Goyhood, Reuven Fenton [the author is joining us on the Zoom]
March 12: Satisfaction Café, Kathy Wang
April 9: Memorial Days, Geraldine Brooks
May 14: Confederates in the Attic, Tony Horwitz
June 11: El Dorado Drive, Megan Abbott
Unless otherwise directed, the Federation Book Club meets via Zoom at 4 PM on the 2nd Thursday of the month. See above for contact information if you’d like to join.
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