Mar 05, 2024tluyckx rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
I read this book through to the end, but I didn't like it. The only thing that kept me going was the alternate history of a Jewish state. Otherwise, none of the characters were relatable, the book dragged on too long and the ending was…
Feb 17, 2023Hillsboro_JeanineM rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
An interesting alternative Jewish history written as Noir with satire. It took a little bit to settle into reading the text that has so much Yiddish sprinkled throughout it but that quickly resolves. it became a little long for me but…
Jul 15, 2020kmk6500 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Detective solves the murder of a possible Messiah while grieving more than one struggle in his own life. The story seemed to be a continuation of the Jewish exile and diaspora in 1948 Alaska. Chabon's numerous, clever, original, witty…
I would write my own summary but I think Rab1953 did a wonderful job at that already. I will only add, having read a lot of Jewish history and familiar with the Yiddish language, I think Chabon does a masterful job at capturing that dark…
Jan 29, 2019rab1953 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
What if the messiah comes, but he doesn’t want to stick around? This question underlies a completely engrossing, brilliantly told detective noir story set in an alternative reality Jewish homeland in Alaska. As a detective story, it’s well…
Jan 20, 2019Bookclub95 rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
Interesting concept but I had to fight my way to the end. It felt like the book was written by two people; the first two thirds by one person wanted to confuse the heck out of the reader, and the last third by someone who just wanted to…
Apr 01, 2018ncs1961 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
This novel served as my introduction to the concept of alternative histories - fascinating idea, that. Chabon writes up a very believable world of post WWII America-ish Alaska with a yiddish accent; and he knows about gangsters, too! It…
Jan 16, 2018GLNovak rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
This is a murder mystery set in a Sitka that might have existed had the hopes of a Jewish homeland in the frozen north of Alaska come to pass after 1949 instead of the turbulent Israel we have today. Meyer Landsman, a down and out…
"Imagine if tiny Sitka, Alaska, had been annexed as a temporary territory for homeless Jews after World War II. This odd proposition makes for a wonderfully surreal setting populated by rabbis, chess masters, and ultra-orthodox gangsters.…
Jun 08, 2012mpfickes rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Relentlessly inventive novelist Michael Chabon invents a new genre, the dystopian hardboiled alternative history mystery. His hero, Meyer Landsman, is an alcoholic cop in Sitka, the makeshift resettlement territory established for the…
Jan 24, 2011kmoyer rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
V interesting detective/mystery, fast paced. Funny. Lots of Jewish words thrown into the dialogue - takes awhile to figure out what some of them are but good fun.
Mar 28, 2010sprocket rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
I found the first 100 pages to be a bit slow, but got right into the rest of the book. It's a neat whodunnit that might be especially enjoyable for chess fans.
Jan 10, 2010jpalter rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Chabon admittedly likes difficult novels. He likes to read them. So it's no surprise that he writes them that way too. If you like his writing style, try his non-fiction Manhood for Amateurs. Brilliant!
Jan 02, 2010aime_lire rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I wouldn't call it at all SF. If you start reading it and expect a SF or a mystery, you will be disappointed. Just expect a well-written novel and you will also find a very funny book.
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The Yiddish Policeman's Union