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Next Stop
For readers of Leave the World Behind and Exit West, an astonishingly resonant novel that explores the precariousness of Jewish American life through one family after a black hole consumes the State of Israel and similar strange events occur in major cities around the world, ushering in a time of chaos as well as miracles.
When a black hole suddenly consumes Israel and as similar anomalies spread across the globe, a conspiracy takes will the holes swallow the Jews, or will they swallow the earth?
Against a backdrop of antisemitic paranoia, restrictions on Jewish life, and spasms of violence, Ethan and Ella, Jewish citizens of a nameless American city, meet and fall in love. Ella, a photojournalist, documents the changes in daily life, particularly among the city’s Jewish residents. Some Jews, feeling inexplicably drawn to the unusual events, go underground to an abandoned subway system that seems to connect the entire world. Others leave for the south, forming militias and stockpiling weapons. But most, like Ethan, Ella, and her young son Michael, stay and try to make their way amid the hostility and small joys of the ever-changing landscape.
But then thousands of commercial planes are sucked from the sky. Air travel stops. Borders close. Refugees pour into the capital. Eventually all Jews in the city are forced to relocate to the Pale, an area sandwiched between a park and a river. There, under the watchful eye of border guards, drones, and robotic dogs, they form a fragile new society.
Suspenseful, thought-provoking, and brilliantly conceived, Next Stop is an enthralling novel that explores the fault lines between our collective, national, and individual memories and how our deepest bonds can be unexpectedly reshaped in moments of crisis.
When a black hole suddenly consumes Israel and as similar anomalies spread across the globe, a conspiracy takes will the holes swallow the Jews, or will they swallow the earth?
Against a backdrop of antisemitic paranoia, restrictions on Jewish life, and spasms of violence, Ethan and Ella, Jewish citizens of a nameless American city, meet and fall in love. Ella, a photojournalist, documents the changes in daily life, particularly among the city’s Jewish residents. Some Jews, feeling inexplicably drawn to the unusual events, go underground to an abandoned subway system that seems to connect the entire world. Others leave for the south, forming militias and stockpiling weapons. But most, like Ethan, Ella, and her young son Michael, stay and try to make their way amid the hostility and small joys of the ever-changing landscape.
But then thousands of commercial planes are sucked from the sky. Air travel stops. Borders close. Refugees pour into the capital. Eventually all Jews in the city are forced to relocate to the Pale, an area sandwiched between a park and a river. There, under the watchful eye of border guards, drones, and robotic dogs, they form a fragile new society.
Suspenseful, thought-provoking, and brilliantly conceived, Next Stop is an enthralling novel that explores the fault lines between our collective, national, and individual memories and how our deepest bonds can be unexpectedly reshaped in moments of crisis.
303 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 10, 2024
40 people are currently reading
6175 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 96 reviews
December 22, 2024
Really interesting premise, but it lost steam at the end. Or rather, I lost steam. I kept falling asleep at the exact same spot. After about a dozen times of trying to read to the end, I gave up (it was the final page I couldn’t get through).
What made the book interesting to me is the persecution of Jews in a modern setting, albeit a dystopian setting. With the Israeli-Gaza fighting still ongoing and with most of my friends and me being pro-Gaza, it was an interesting contrast to what’s happening in the world today.
What made the book interesting to me is the persecution of Jews in a modern setting, albeit a dystopian setting. With the Israeli-Gaza fighting still ongoing and with most of my friends and me being pro-Gaza, it was an interesting contrast to what’s happening in the world today.
January 1, 2025
Next stop is a masterpiece that I am still processing and likely to continue to reflect upon for a long time. It is one of the most unique stories I’ve ever read and yet I found it to be completely relatable. It is deeply Jewish.
I am a big fan of post-apocalyptic and dystopian novels, thus I was fascinated reading one with a Jewish lens and that addresses the many heads of antisemitism.
Currently antisemitism is at an all-time high. Perhaps unsurprisingly, I found that Next Stop, although a work of fiction, closely resembles many aspects of our real world. Israel is sucked up by a black hole. Jews around the world have lost their friends, their family, their homeland. And yet, it is the Jews that are the world’s Problem. It is the Jews who are to blame. And it is the Jews who must be dealt with.
Set against a backdrop of antisemitism that permeates every aspect of society, we get a story of a Jewish family, trying to live a meaningful life, trying to live Jewishly, trying to live. Danger lurks around most corners. Stretches of dark times are peppered with rare moments of joy (it is so incredibly Jewish to find light in the dark). And despite the instability of the world, the uncertainty of the future, the Jewish characters continue on and hold onto their traditions.
Smartly written, quirky and dare I say miraculous, this is a book you’ll want to read with a friend or a book club. It has raised so many questions in my mind and I have a burning need to discuss them. I don’t doubt that there are aspects of this novel I haven’t grasped, that went over my head. So please read this and then come find me so we can analyze and debate everything and anything we think this book means.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you to Avid Reader Press and NetGalley for the ARC. Next Stop will be out 9/10.
I am a big fan of post-apocalyptic and dystopian novels, thus I was fascinated reading one with a Jewish lens and that addresses the many heads of antisemitism.
Currently antisemitism is at an all-time high. Perhaps unsurprisingly, I found that Next Stop, although a work of fiction, closely resembles many aspects of our real world. Israel is sucked up by a black hole. Jews around the world have lost their friends, their family, their homeland. And yet, it is the Jews that are the world’s Problem. It is the Jews who are to blame. And it is the Jews who must be dealt with.
Set against a backdrop of antisemitism that permeates every aspect of society, we get a story of a Jewish family, trying to live a meaningful life, trying to live Jewishly, trying to live. Danger lurks around most corners. Stretches of dark times are peppered with rare moments of joy (it is so incredibly Jewish to find light in the dark). And despite the instability of the world, the uncertainty of the future, the Jewish characters continue on and hold onto their traditions.
Smartly written, quirky and dare I say miraculous, this is a book you’ll want to read with a friend or a book club. It has raised so many questions in my mind and I have a burning need to discuss them. I don’t doubt that there are aspects of this novel I haven’t grasped, that went over my head. So please read this and then come find me so we can analyze and debate everything and anything we think this book means.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you to Avid Reader Press and NetGalley for the ARC. Next Stop will be out 9/10.
September 9, 2025
I hesitated between 3 and 4 stars--but ultimately, I upped the ranking to 4 because of creativity, originality, and timeliness.
This is, in brief, a terrifying and powerful book, especially for Jewish readers, because it doesn't feel like sci-fi or dystopia--or, for that matter, like a historical novel of the Holocaust. Even though it is all of those, in a way.
Because it feels, step by step, like what could too easily happen.
The setup: In the relatively near future, an "anomaly" -- a kind of dark hole -- swallows up the entire State of Israel. Antisemitism immediately sweeps the world. At first it's more like the knee-jerk "polite" antisemitism of the upper classes in the US a century ago: The Jews are a little odd, clearly there's some message in that their historic homeland has produced this scary dark hole, so it's best if "we" just avoid them. (Never mind that, presumably, the anomaly also swallowed up all the Muslims, Christians, Druze and other non-Jews in Israel at that time.)
But after a Second Event--a series of smaller anomalies, most of them near Jewish areas--the mask of "polite" antisemitism is wiped away. Jews are herded into ghettos that are patrolled by drones and robotic armed dogs; their credit cards, bank accounts, even their subway cards are nullified; food is rationed from warehouses; mobs beat up anyone Jewish-looking who ventures outside the allowed areas. And matters only get worse.
So, it's an amazing concept for a book.
The problem is that as an actual novel--meh. (To use a classical Yiddish term.)
The story centers on Ella (a Jewish photojournalist), her young son Michael, her steady boyfriend Ethan, and a few friends and relatives. None of these characters, however, really develops a personality. They are merely the puppets through which the author unspools his gut-punch concept.
--Michael is far too unbelievably patient and sweet in all the horrors around him. (No screams, fears, demands?)
--Ethan is also unbelievably patient and sweet-tempered.
--Ella is strong and brave.
Both of the adults are a little conflicted-- intellectually. But they remain largely two-dimensional. They are living through hell, and they have no strong emotions.
The plot, of course, is a page-turner. Yet it only skims the surface. At less than 300 pages, the book is too short to do justice to its setting and concept. The scenario demands more details and scenes, a slower unrolling.
And the ending--Without revealing any spoilers, I can say, for starters, that's it's almost impossible to have a "right" ending to such a powerful concept. There are a lot of directions the book could have gone. I'm not thoroughly satisfied by the one the author chose, though it's not bad. Again, I think if there'd been a richer plot leading up to the ending, it would have felt more satisfying.
Despite my qualms, this is a book that I hope many people read. I also wish it had been written before 1932, for people to have read back then.
This is, in brief, a terrifying and powerful book, especially for Jewish readers, because it doesn't feel like sci-fi or dystopia--or, for that matter, like a historical novel of the Holocaust. Even though it is all of those, in a way.
Because it feels, step by step, like what could too easily happen.
The setup: In the relatively near future, an "anomaly" -- a kind of dark hole -- swallows up the entire State of Israel. Antisemitism immediately sweeps the world. At first it's more like the knee-jerk "polite" antisemitism of the upper classes in the US a century ago: The Jews are a little odd, clearly there's some message in that their historic homeland has produced this scary dark hole, so it's best if "we" just avoid them. (Never mind that, presumably, the anomaly also swallowed up all the Muslims, Christians, Druze and other non-Jews in Israel at that time.)
But after a Second Event--a series of smaller anomalies, most of them near Jewish areas--the mask of "polite" antisemitism is wiped away. Jews are herded into ghettos that are patrolled by drones and robotic armed dogs; their credit cards, bank accounts, even their subway cards are nullified; food is rationed from warehouses; mobs beat up anyone Jewish-looking who ventures outside the allowed areas. And matters only get worse.
So, it's an amazing concept for a book.
The problem is that as an actual novel--meh. (To use a classical Yiddish term.)
The story centers on Ella (a Jewish photojournalist), her young son Michael, her steady boyfriend Ethan, and a few friends and relatives. None of these characters, however, really develops a personality. They are merely the puppets through which the author unspools his gut-punch concept.
--Michael is far too unbelievably patient and sweet in all the horrors around him. (No screams, fears, demands?)
--Ethan is also unbelievably patient and sweet-tempered.
--Ella is strong and brave.
Both of the adults are a little conflicted-- intellectually. But they remain largely two-dimensional. They are living through hell, and they have no strong emotions.
The plot, of course, is a page-turner. Yet it only skims the surface. At less than 300 pages, the book is too short to do justice to its setting and concept. The scenario demands more details and scenes, a slower unrolling.
And the ending--Without revealing any spoilers, I can say, for starters, that's it's almost impossible to have a "right" ending to such a powerful concept. There are a lot of directions the book could have gone. I'm not thoroughly satisfied by the one the author chose, though it's not bad. Again, I think if there'd been a richer plot leading up to the ending, it would have felt more satisfying.
Despite my qualms, this is a book that I hope many people read. I also wish it had been written before 1932, for people to have read back then.
September 27, 2024
I was hooked as soon as I read the plot summary for this one, and it was just as good as I hoped. It had fantastic sci-fi elements, but the human and character driven moments were the heart and soul of this one. The backdrop of Jewish hate and antisemitism was a fantastic element as well given how prevalent that is in the real world.
If anything I might’ve hoped for a little more sci-fi explanations towards the beginning, but I’m not going to complain about that at all. Easily 4.5 stars rounded up.
If anything I might’ve hoped for a little more sci-fi explanations towards the beginning, but I’m not going to complain about that at all. Easily 4.5 stars rounded up.
February 20, 2025
I wish I liked this more. The tropes ring out: messianic claims, a twist on a mini-Rapture, antisemitic mobs, a version of the ghettos in the original Venetian and later Reich senses, post-lockdown malaise, giant holes called anamolies which first swallowed up Israel and now proliferate in subway stations worldwide, an ironic ingathering of the Jews as they reassemble among their own for safety or fear.
Resnick has promising ideas. But as with much speculative fiction, the initial concept attracts rather than the characters, who with the exception of Joel, father of Ella, don't appear to undergo convincing or at least compelling transformation as the narrative plods along its dystopian track. Protagonist Ethan remains a schlub; his fate doesn't keep the pages turning, or you forgetting their accumulation.
The economic and social chaos seems at odds with "miracles" which pop up and come and go, discarded casually. This facile, arch recourse to magic realism isn't explained, but only tallied. So the marginal, yet somehow global, upheaval doesn't sweep you up into gripping scenes, but instead you watch the breakdown unfold in an oddly stolid fashion. The prose refuses to compel suspension of any disbelief. Resnick combines a dispassionate distance from his figures, who remain ciphers or symbols, with a background stuffed full of if not Easter Eggs than Passover afikomen, hints hidden for insiders.
It's also set up for an inconclusive finish. Lacking a climactic scene. Perhaps aiming for a sequel, as so many such tales nowadays hold out, in screened, streamed or print versions, for keeping the audience hooked. Parts felt as if drafted for MFA workshops, while others expected a knowledge of Judaism in many recondite references which may escape assimilated MoTs as much as their Gentle counterparts.
How SkyMall persists a generation at least past our present-day shopping patterns: another curiosity.
Set in a unnamed New York City, but I haven't any clue why it's left vague. Same with the backdrop of a delivery system of goods that lacks an explanation for the means of production in a time a few years after our own, where items appear and disappear but without a rationale for scarcity vs abundance. Power grids remain erratic, internet and train passes iffy, but media jobs continue, police and services continue, and contrary to now, it's as if neither converts to Judaism nor intermarriage as default settings persist. For a few million survivors, it feels as if Jews exist in excess of much-reduced ranks.
The planet is rocked by chaos yet people go about business not that markedly different than usual, at least if they are not Jews. Again, this gap between normality and fantasy may be a sly commentary on how a majority carry on as a persecuted minority huddles behind barriers, but too much is left vague.
Which leaves me puzzled over who's meant to seek this out. While the theme merits serious thought, in our time after the Hamas attacks of late 2023, Resnick appears too wary of sentimentality (a good caution in itself) to let his imagination commit totally to a coherence which would enable readers to balance their wish to let go of quotidian concerns and escape into a fabulous near-future where again Jewish survival diminishes, with a discipline as a writer which would build an alternative vision with its parts cohesive, allowing whatever mystery as to whys and hows sufficient space to expand the flimsy novel. It's cluttered with details leading nowhere, and too casually sketched to sustain the plot.
Resnick has promising ideas. But as with much speculative fiction, the initial concept attracts rather than the characters, who with the exception of Joel, father of Ella, don't appear to undergo convincing or at least compelling transformation as the narrative plods along its dystopian track. Protagonist Ethan remains a schlub; his fate doesn't keep the pages turning, or you forgetting their accumulation.
The economic and social chaos seems at odds with "miracles" which pop up and come and go, discarded casually. This facile, arch recourse to magic realism isn't explained, but only tallied. So the marginal, yet somehow global, upheaval doesn't sweep you up into gripping scenes, but instead you watch the breakdown unfold in an oddly stolid fashion. The prose refuses to compel suspension of any disbelief. Resnick combines a dispassionate distance from his figures, who remain ciphers or symbols, with a background stuffed full of if not Easter Eggs than Passover afikomen, hints hidden for insiders.
It's also set up for an inconclusive finish. Lacking a climactic scene. Perhaps aiming for a sequel, as so many such tales nowadays hold out, in screened, streamed or print versions, for keeping the audience hooked. Parts felt as if drafted for MFA workshops, while others expected a knowledge of Judaism in many recondite references which may escape assimilated MoTs as much as their Gentle counterparts.
How SkyMall persists a generation at least past our present-day shopping patterns: another curiosity.
Set in a unnamed New York City, but I haven't any clue why it's left vague. Same with the backdrop of a delivery system of goods that lacks an explanation for the means of production in a time a few years after our own, where items appear and disappear but without a rationale for scarcity vs abundance. Power grids remain erratic, internet and train passes iffy, but media jobs continue, police and services continue, and contrary to now, it's as if neither converts to Judaism nor intermarriage as default settings persist. For a few million survivors, it feels as if Jews exist in excess of much-reduced ranks.
The planet is rocked by chaos yet people go about business not that markedly different than usual, at least if they are not Jews. Again, this gap between normality and fantasy may be a sly commentary on how a majority carry on as a persecuted minority huddles behind barriers, but too much is left vague.
Which leaves me puzzled over who's meant to seek this out. While the theme merits serious thought, in our time after the Hamas attacks of late 2023, Resnick appears too wary of sentimentality (a good caution in itself) to let his imagination commit totally to a coherence which would enable readers to balance their wish to let go of quotidian concerns and escape into a fabulous near-future where again Jewish survival diminishes, with a discipline as a writer which would build an alternative vision with its parts cohesive, allowing whatever mystery as to whys and hows sufficient space to expand the flimsy novel. It's cluttered with details leading nowhere, and too casually sketched to sustain the plot.
September 14, 2024
I wish I could rate this book higher. The theme is pervasive worldwide wide antisemitism which is immensely concerning at this time. Ethan and Ella, a young Jewish couple meet , fall in love, marry and have a son, Michael. Living in a big city ( which is deftly described and reminded me of New York) they go about daily life until life starts falling apart. First Israel is sucked into a black hole. Planes disappear in flight- black hole again. Everything familiar deteriorates and becomes unrecognizable. Jews once again is history are the scapegoats and are forced to relocate into the city ghetto, dubbed “The Pale.” Jews are restricted from jobs, schools and stores, reminiscent of Nazi Germany. In many ways this has become the fear of the world Jewish population based upon the disturbing uptick of antisemitic actions and rhetoric coupled with the world wide rise to power of virulent antisemites.
These concerns are timely, accurate and very troubling. The topic is important . Yet I found myself reading in a rush to finish, not because I was so engaged with the storyline but because sci fi intrusions often split off on tangents that were disruptive to plot and also very difficult to interpret. It’s likely the author used symbolism to make his point ie israel falling into a black hole is representative of the isolation of Israel in the current abyss of world politics. I did not enjoy those parts. Disturbing and dark, this book is a cautionary tale of what will happen if hatred continues to flourish.
Benjamin Resnick is a rabbi who has something valuable and necessary to say. There is a lot of substance within the pages for an engaging book club discussion. Three stars for a book that is worth reading if you can read past its flaws. Many thanks to Netgalley and Avid Reader Press/ Simon & Schuster for an ARC in exchange for my review. It was published a few days ago and is available now
October 21, 2024
4.5
I'm not a huge science fiction fan, but the fact that this book was largely Jewish is what pulled me in. It was quick-paced, interestingly topical, and snappy. I couldn't believe it was Resnick's first novel. While this was a work of fiction, it was set against a world full of antisemitism (very similar to the real one right now) and took a dystopian look at what would happen if you're Jewish. I think there were things that probably went over my head, but I thought the story was well done and enjoyable.
I'm not a huge science fiction fan, but the fact that this book was largely Jewish is what pulled me in. It was quick-paced, interestingly topical, and snappy. I couldn't believe it was Resnick's first novel. While this was a work of fiction, it was set against a world full of antisemitism (very similar to the real one right now) and took a dystopian look at what would happen if you're Jewish. I think there were things that probably went over my head, but I thought the story was well done and enjoyable.
December 21, 2024
This is a very difficult book to rate and review. As an exploration of antisemitism and othering, it's 5 star. But it only succeeds by ignoring - literally erasing - the huge elephant in the room: the Palestinian people, their othering, exploitation, and abuse. They do not exist in the world of the novel - presumably they were erased along with the State of Israel in the "First Event." But their presence loomed as I read this novel. Once feels horror for the way that Jews were treated around the world and in the US city where the book is set. But also? It pales in comparison to how Palestinians in Gaza have been living, not just for the last year but since Israel was created, here in the real world. I think readers should judge the book they have in front of them, rather than the book it could or should have been. But in this case, I found it impossible to read this book without thinking about what was missing from it.
Also, this book is not science fiction, it's magical realism. There is no explanation of the phenomena that structure the setting, they are not situated them in the physics of the real world - either the Events or the miracles that surround them. They are miraculous/supernatural events. And again there is inconsistency at best and erasure at worse - these phenomena are directed at and felt by Jews, yet the State of Israel disappears in the anomaly - presumably its non-Jewish population disappears as well? What happens to them? In this world they don't exist.
Ultimately the importance of the exploration of antisemitism was, for this reader, overshadowed by what was omitted.
Also, this book is not science fiction, it's magical realism. There is no explanation of the phenomena that structure the setting, they are not situated them in the physics of the real world - either the Events or the miracles that surround them. They are miraculous/supernatural events. And again there is inconsistency at best and erasure at worse - these phenomena are directed at and felt by Jews, yet the State of Israel disappears in the anomaly - presumably its non-Jewish population disappears as well? What happens to them? In this world they don't exist.
Ultimately the importance of the exploration of antisemitism was, for this reader, overshadowed by what was omitted.
November 3, 2024
Dense and gripping Jewish mysticism and speculative sci-fi, held back by a frustratingly vague final act. Found the language in the final moments of this book so flowery and impressionistic that I lost the ability to track the plot, and started wondering if I'd wildly misinterpreted key plot points from earlier in the book.
But it's not such a misfire that it takes away from what a special experience the rest of this was for me. Really touching, powerful, and upsetting depiction of Jewish identity, community and collective shame; also a lovely story about the murkiness of parenting. Need more time to decide what I think about the Zionist conceit at the center of this-- or about the morality of a book coming out in such a trying time to be Jewish, both for our complicity and our victimhood. Loved that the narration was never prudish, about religion or sex or violence or otherwise.
Lots of questions about the basics of the narrative that I desperately wanted explained by the end-- especially with an ending that's so fatalistic-- but I guess it wouldn't be a Jewish book if I didn't have a bunch of shit left unanswered. Great, infuriating stuff.
"And she wanted to say that because he did not yet have children he did not understand that death was unacceptable."
"That's right. If I'm not back that means I'm dead."
"See, motherfuckers, little miracles happen everywhere!"
"Watching him, Ella forgot about the fires in the trees and she thought, Here is the creation of the world."
"Do you know what the ancient rabbis said about people who ignore danger? They said, 'God protects the simple.'"
But it's not such a misfire that it takes away from what a special experience the rest of this was for me. Really touching, powerful, and upsetting depiction of Jewish identity, community and collective shame; also a lovely story about the murkiness of parenting. Need more time to decide what I think about the Zionist conceit at the center of this-- or about the morality of a book coming out in such a trying time to be Jewish, both for our complicity and our victimhood. Loved that the narration was never prudish, about religion or sex or violence or otherwise.
Lots of questions about the basics of the narrative that I desperately wanted explained by the end-- especially with an ending that's so fatalistic-- but I guess it wouldn't be a Jewish book if I didn't have a bunch of shit left unanswered. Great, infuriating stuff.
"And she wanted to say that because he did not yet have children he did not understand that death was unacceptable."
"That's right. If I'm not back that means I'm dead."
"See, motherfuckers, little miracles happen everywhere!"
"Watching him, Ella forgot about the fires in the trees and she thought, Here is the creation of the world."
"Do you know what the ancient rabbis said about people who ignore danger? They said, 'God protects the simple.'"
June 10, 2024
I normally don’t write reviews but because this book is an ARC, I will. First, I think what the author is trying to do is admirable. Exposing the dangers and evolution of anti-semitism in a post-pandemic, 21st century context (albeit slightly apocalyptic?) is important. The writing, however, is flat. I felt little connection to either of the main characters, and straight out hated one of them after they abandoned their pet. Who would do that and feel no remorse?! I don’t trust that person. Anyways, the premise was interesting but could’ve been executed wayyyyyy better. Also, only the children can enter the Promised Land? Does history have to repeat itself?
I would give this book a 2.5 honestly.
I would give this book a 2.5 honestly.
November 27, 2024
Thank you to Goodreads and anyone else involved in the giveaway where I was able to win my free copy. I really appreciate the opportunity to check this book out, but I’m sorry to report that it wasn’t what I hoped for. I don’t particularly care for the vague manner in which the author talked about and described people, places and events and I just couldn’t get into the book like I had hoped. Ultimately I didn’t finish it. I’m sure others will like it, but this one wasn’t for me, but thank you very much anyways.
September 24, 2024
This is a great book! If you are Jewish, it is a must read. If you are an Antisemite, it is even more imperative to read!
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January 14, 2025This book first appeared on my blog BookishlyJewish Check us out for similar content.
The traditional publishing timeline is not immediately obvious to people not working in the industry, so I'd like to provide some background before diving in to Benjamin Resnick's debut dystopian novel Next Stop. Typically speaking, once a writer has their completed fiction manuscript (nonfiction is different) they spend a whole lot of time querying agents to represent them. Those lucky enough to find representation then go through some revisions before submitting to editors who can, and often do, take over a year to respond. Then the acquired book is slated for publication in 1-2 years from the date of acquisition.
Sound like a behemoth? It is.
Why am I telling you this? Because I want you to understand that the book I am currently holding in my hands is a literal unicorn. Except maybe I should choose a less happy mythical creature, because Next Stop is kind of bleak - in a good way.
People looking to understand how recent world events have affected the fiction publishing landscape often forget that the books coming out at any given time were acquired way before the political and social moments in which they release. There might be some shifts in marketing priorities, but it's much more pertinent to look at acquisition announcements, or announcements that an author has found representation.
Next Stop, on the other hand, manages to hit the current moment in time like a sledgehammer. In part this is due to the author realizing the tenuous nature of Jewish existence, especially as it relates to the diaspora, way before most of us caught on. However, it is also a testament to publishing being able to move a whole lot quicker than usual when a book in the submission pile actually rises to meet the occasion.
Next Stop follows Ethan and Ella, who fall in love and raise Ella's young son against a backdrop of an increasingly antisemitic world. A huge black hole deemed the 'anomaly' has engulfed the state of Israel and smaller anomalies are popping up around the globe. Since the anomalies began in a geographical area the general public associates with Jews, the world very quickly gives in to their underlying antisemitism and blames Jews around the world. A wave of restrictions that mirrors both Hitler's Germany and numerous previous government sponsored Jewish persecutions - that everyone who isn't a Jew often forgets about - sprout up. It's a story that has played out time and again, and I believe it is not without intention that Resnick chose to use terms from persecutions of the past - the Jewish Ghetto is called "The Pale" for example - to remind us that none of this is new.
Resnick is prescient in not just predicting the future, but also in analyzing the past. When his characters look back on the time of the pandemic, their emotions touch on what is becoming a new reality for many of us. I found myself uniquely moved by the mother who states that during the pandemic, for all its uncertainty, we were "living like kings in Odessa," but simply didn't know it. She's not referring to an abundance of riches. She's referring to an emotion that many of us who struggled to raise children during that critical time now share. With hindsight comes the knowledge that we and our children did not die, and thus the ability to realize that it was a unique time when we were all actually together. Sure, we were so together we sometimes erected cardboard structures in our apartments to give everyone their own space. Sure we cycled through obsessions like Cosmic Kids Yoga and bread baking. But memory is a malleable thing, and so now our minds focus on the fact that we did these things as a family in a way we are so rarely able to achieve anymore. It's hard to parse, because many people actually did lose their lives, but there it is. A grain of joy amongst the horror.
This emotional poignancy runs through the entire book. Even the smallest moments, that are unrelated to the overarching plot, are treated with care and an understanding of the fragility of humanity - especially minority populations.
I was not surprised to learn that Resnick is a Rabbi. If you've ever met a competent Rabbi, you'll have discovered that they are uniquely analytic. Jewish spiritual leaders are not here to give us all the answers. They're here to help point out the questions we ought to be asking ourselves.
Next Stop is possibly the bleakest thing I'm going to read all year - or maybe all century, my readers know I'm kind of a lightweight in terms of tolerating horror and the like. However, it is also uniquely hopeful, and no that is not a contradiction. The ending I was dreading actually caps off the second portion of the book and there is a third section that I was not entirely expecting but was extremely grateful for. The many mysteries about the anomaly are not revealed, nor is it apparent to me that the author even knows the answers to those questions, but instead Resnick pulls hard on the thematic strand of children and the hope they represent. Judaism is a religion uniquely focused on the next generation - our communal next stop so to speak - and this comes through in the ending.
I was shaken, and terrified, and had some trouble sleeping, but I was also deeply moved and deeply seen. I do not regret reading it and I look forward to reading whatever Resnick produces next. Rabbi, you have this readers attention.
The traditional publishing timeline is not immediately obvious to people not working in the industry, so I'd like to provide some background before diving in to Benjamin Resnick's debut dystopian novel Next Stop. Typically speaking, once a writer has their completed fiction manuscript (nonfiction is different) they spend a whole lot of time querying agents to represent them. Those lucky enough to find representation then go through some revisions before submitting to editors who can, and often do, take over a year to respond. Then the acquired book is slated for publication in 1-2 years from the date of acquisition.
Sound like a behemoth? It is.
Why am I telling you this? Because I want you to understand that the book I am currently holding in my hands is a literal unicorn. Except maybe I should choose a less happy mythical creature, because Next Stop is kind of bleak - in a good way.
People looking to understand how recent world events have affected the fiction publishing landscape often forget that the books coming out at any given time were acquired way before the political and social moments in which they release. There might be some shifts in marketing priorities, but it's much more pertinent to look at acquisition announcements, or announcements that an author has found representation.
Next Stop, on the other hand, manages to hit the current moment in time like a sledgehammer. In part this is due to the author realizing the tenuous nature of Jewish existence, especially as it relates to the diaspora, way before most of us caught on. However, it is also a testament to publishing being able to move a whole lot quicker than usual when a book in the submission pile actually rises to meet the occasion.
Next Stop follows Ethan and Ella, who fall in love and raise Ella's young son against a backdrop of an increasingly antisemitic world. A huge black hole deemed the 'anomaly' has engulfed the state of Israel and smaller anomalies are popping up around the globe. Since the anomalies began in a geographical area the general public associates with Jews, the world very quickly gives in to their underlying antisemitism and blames Jews around the world. A wave of restrictions that mirrors both Hitler's Germany and numerous previous government sponsored Jewish persecutions - that everyone who isn't a Jew often forgets about - sprout up. It's a story that has played out time and again, and I believe it is not without intention that Resnick chose to use terms from persecutions of the past - the Jewish Ghetto is called "The Pale" for example - to remind us that none of this is new.
Resnick is prescient in not just predicting the future, but also in analyzing the past. When his characters look back on the time of the pandemic, their emotions touch on what is becoming a new reality for many of us. I found myself uniquely moved by the mother who states that during the pandemic, for all its uncertainty, we were "living like kings in Odessa," but simply didn't know it. She's not referring to an abundance of riches. She's referring to an emotion that many of us who struggled to raise children during that critical time now share. With hindsight comes the knowledge that we and our children did not die, and thus the ability to realize that it was a unique time when we were all actually together. Sure, we were so together we sometimes erected cardboard structures in our apartments to give everyone their own space. Sure we cycled through obsessions like Cosmic Kids Yoga and bread baking. But memory is a malleable thing, and so now our minds focus on the fact that we did these things as a family in a way we are so rarely able to achieve anymore. It's hard to parse, because many people actually did lose their lives, but there it is. A grain of joy amongst the horror.
This emotional poignancy runs through the entire book. Even the smallest moments, that are unrelated to the overarching plot, are treated with care and an understanding of the fragility of humanity - especially minority populations.
I was not surprised to learn that Resnick is a Rabbi. If you've ever met a competent Rabbi, you'll have discovered that they are uniquely analytic. Jewish spiritual leaders are not here to give us all the answers. They're here to help point out the questions we ought to be asking ourselves.
Next Stop is possibly the bleakest thing I'm going to read all year - or maybe all century, my readers know I'm kind of a lightweight in terms of tolerating horror and the like. However, it is also uniquely hopeful, and no that is not a contradiction. The ending I was dreading actually caps off the second portion of the book and there is a third section that I was not entirely expecting but was extremely grateful for. The many mysteries about the anomaly are not revealed, nor is it apparent to me that the author even knows the answers to those questions, but instead Resnick pulls hard on the thematic strand of children and the hope they represent. Judaism is a religion uniquely focused on the next generation - our communal next stop so to speak - and this comes through in the ending.
I was shaken, and terrified, and had some trouble sleeping, but I was also deeply moved and deeply seen. I do not regret reading it and I look forward to reading whatever Resnick produces next. Rabbi, you have this readers attention.
March 28, 2025
I finished this book 30 minutes ago and am still sitting in the coffee shop crying. Good tears, sad tears, happy tears, grieving tears.
Rabbi Benjamin Resnick landed this novel somewhere between Vonnegut, The Last of Us, and the Old Testament. He left me simultaneously wanting to reinhabit this surreal world and hoping to never experience it outside the book's cover.
I feel the way I did when observing Billy Pilgrim observe the unshod horse stumbling across a bombed Dresden. I feel devastated and hopeful.
Rabbi Benjamin Resnick landed this novel somewhere between Vonnegut, The Last of Us, and the Old Testament. He left me simultaneously wanting to reinhabit this surreal world and hoping to never experience it outside the book's cover.
I feel the way I did when observing Billy Pilgrim observe the unshod horse stumbling across a bombed Dresden. I feel devastated and hopeful.
November 4, 2024
The very end of this book was very interesting, but most of it didn’t really engage me. I felt like the characters were flat and poorly written, and that Ella and Ethan didn’t have much chemistry on the page.
Between interactions of two dimensional characters, there’s a ton of exposition dump before jumping into another slow scene. I felt like as the reader, we didn’t get enough context or time to learn the new rules of the universe.
Between interactions of two dimensional characters, there’s a ton of exposition dump before jumping into another slow scene. I felt like as the reader, we didn’t get enough context or time to learn the new rules of the universe.
December 11, 2024
This dystopian story takes place somewhere in the U.S., in a city where antisemitism continues after an anomaly in which a black hole consumes Israel. Jewish people are drawn to this anomaly and others that appear, and are pulled underground. The Jews are blamed and shunned, forced to live in an area in the city called the Pale. Ella and Ethan meet and form a relationship, trying to live as a family with Ella’s father and son, even during these difficult times. The tone of the book reminded me a bit of Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, although the stories are not alike. I do not feel that I have intelligence one needs for a book like this, but the Jewish themes made it meaningful and relatable.
September 30, 2024
4.5 stars
January 16, 2025
3.5 stars
May 13, 2025
A Jewish dystopian novel where Jews are blamed for the end of the world and huddled into ghettos, say less
April 2, 2025
A speculative, dystopian novel set in a future that doesn’t seem so far away, Next Stop by Benjamin Resnick is supposed to make you think.
In Next Stop, the world is falling apart - black holes are opening up around the world, planes are falling from the sky, and no one understands what’s going on or why. Horrifically timely, Next Stop holds up a mirror to ask us: when chaos reigns, how do you respond to propaganda? To the creation of a scapegoat? To handling the unknown?
I felt like this was a powerful and relevant read, especially right now. If you’re looking for a comfy book where everything is neatly wrapped up, this isn’t the book for you right now (but please keep it on your TBR). If you’re looking for a book that’s going to make you think, or maybe challenge some of your perceptions, then please give this a shot!
Thank you to Goodreads & partners for my gifted copy - all thoughts are my own.
In Next Stop, the world is falling apart - black holes are opening up around the world, planes are falling from the sky, and no one understands what’s going on or why. Horrifically timely, Next Stop holds up a mirror to ask us: when chaos reigns, how do you respond to propaganda? To the creation of a scapegoat? To handling the unknown?
I felt like this was a powerful and relevant read, especially right now. If you’re looking for a comfy book where everything is neatly wrapped up, this isn’t the book for you right now (but please keep it on your TBR). If you’re looking for a book that’s going to make you think, or maybe challenge some of your perceptions, then please give this a shot!
Thank you to Goodreads & partners for my gifted copy - all thoughts are my own.
March 17, 2025
Love a jewish dystopian thriller. What a fantastic debut.
September 21, 2024
Resnick's novel is a fresh and creative approach to old themes and questions on the diversity of Jewishness in a contemporary world; the difficulties and joys of diaspora; and the slog of antisemitism that is at once hackneyed and always reinventing itself. Resnick builds a magical realist, dystopian, and futurist narrative with poignant and relatable characters living in a world that is just slightly off from our own -- but one, with a bit of suspension of disbelief, that could appear in the coming decades.
I'm still trying to wrap my head around the politics of this text, and what it means to center antisemitism as the central conflict motivating the narrative -- particularly now. Many parts of this story rely on thinking with metaphors. This includes the dominant plot point about "anomalies," or black holes, opening up around the world, pulling Jews in to their center of gravity, and the way this fuels antisemitic conspiracy theories (perhaps, some, which have grains of truth to them in this world). It includes the theme of the paper plane, which represents the relationship to the personal past, the inevitability of the long duree of Jewish history, and the prospect of a Jewish future. And relatedly, the "child," almost predictably, is used as a device of hope for the World to Come.
I found myself wondering if we could read the novel's approach to antisemitism, too, as a metaphor for other kinds of discrimination (i.e., Islamophobia). But I'm not sure this is what the author had in mind. The risk of not reading the novel's approach to antisemitism in this metaphorical fashion is that it could really contribute to fear mongering and tropes of Jewish exceptionalism.
Despite this open question for me, which I'll undoubtedly think through in greater detail when I write something longer about this novel, I found the book thoroughly entertaining and one of the best pieces of Jewish literature I've read in a long time.
I'm still trying to wrap my head around the politics of this text, and what it means to center antisemitism as the central conflict motivating the narrative -- particularly now. Many parts of this story rely on thinking with metaphors. This includes the dominant plot point about "anomalies," or black holes, opening up around the world, pulling Jews in to their center of gravity, and the way this fuels antisemitic conspiracy theories (perhaps, some, which have grains of truth to them in this world). It includes the theme of the paper plane, which represents the relationship to the personal past, the inevitability of the long duree of Jewish history, and the prospect of a Jewish future. And relatedly, the "child," almost predictably, is used as a device of hope for the World to Come.
I found myself wondering if we could read the novel's approach to antisemitism, too, as a metaphor for other kinds of discrimination (i.e., Islamophobia). But I'm not sure this is what the author had in mind. The risk of not reading the novel's approach to antisemitism in this metaphorical fashion is that it could really contribute to fear mongering and tropes of Jewish exceptionalism.
Despite this open question for me, which I'll undoubtedly think through in greater detail when I write something longer about this novel, I found the book thoroughly entertaining and one of the best pieces of Jewish literature I've read in a long time.
December 29, 2024
Thank you Goodreads giveaway for the free copy of this book. I don't normally write reviews for books, but I do feel obligated to give something back since I was gifted this copy of the book.
I am very conflicted about this book. Concept is great, execution needs work. It is an urban dystopian fiction story based on Jewish Characters. Characters could have been better developed but for a first book was not that bad. I will read the next book by this author when released.
I am very conflicted about this book. Concept is great, execution needs work. It is an urban dystopian fiction story based on Jewish Characters. Characters could have been better developed but for a first book was not that bad. I will read the next book by this author when released.
December 31, 2025
Picked this up at the library because of the rad cover art and really intriguing description. Would've loved to here about different parts of the world and their handling of the anomalies. Middle flagged for me, especially since I took a little detour to read Martyr!... Ending was disappointing but the books creativity was enough to get me through.
February 26, 2025
Next Stop
Well, I’ll give this one 2 stars because I have a lot of mixed feelings about this one.
The story focuses on Ethan and Ella, and Ella’s son Michael. They are Jewish, and after a supernatural event where anomalies appear in multiple locations around the world, antisemitism is rising. The plot (spoilers), basically follows them and the community that develops as they survive and collaborate with other Jews in a city called the Pale. Stuff gets worse and worse, with the outside world continuing to keep Jewish people occupied, and many Jews decide to enter into the anomalies of their own accord
I did love and really appreciate some things about this book for sure. The themes about parenting, the covid pandemic, and military occupation were really captivating. I found the fathers in the book really interesting as well. What parents will do for their children is something that I understand as a human, but haven’t fully appreciated what that really means. Existing by myself and honoring relationships with people my age and my parents is one thing, but existing with someone wholly dependent upon you is almost otherworldly.
To the parts I didn’t like so much:
When reading other reviews someone mentioned the Palestinian people, and the lack of their existence in the book. That’s definitely another weird spot for me. If they were supposedly in the anomaly that swallowed Israel, does that mean that they are in the subway with everyone else, or are they now gone? Not addressing or explaining what happens to non-Jews is weird in my opinion. I feel that if the book had non-Jewish people existing in the underground I would have a much different opinion on it.
I thought the story was going to go into a “Monsters are Due on Maple Street” direction, a story from the Twilight Zone where weird stuff happens and people become paranoid, but there seemed to be an actual link in the story between Jewish people and the anomalies? The ending clearly alludes to a possible second coming, but even before that, Jewish people in the story react differently around the anomaly. Which seems to take away from the critique of antisemitism almost.
If a supernatural event happened, people would surely use Jewish people as a scapegoat even if it was completely unrelated, and the book does touch on this. A lonely man on an island connects a blight of trees to Jews, which is obviously ridiculous, but then actual differences in interacting with the anomaly kinda throws this off. They can’t speak when they’re near it, which doesn’t make any sense. If I were to suspend my disbelief, I would say that then this makes Judaism the closest to being “real” in this world, which also rings a little weird to me?
Anyway, if this was done with another group, I don’t know how the world would react to a certain ethnic background being concretely linked to a supernatural event. The sci-fi elements of the story then don’t seem necessary when in real life people attribute all sorts of things incorrectly to Jewish people
The ending was open ended, and reading that Ella and Ethan couldn’t go with Michael was sad. I understood that was the direction the story was heading (there was foreshadowing with Ella’s father), but it fell kind of flat for me. With this, I’ll describe the pacing. The pacing was pretty steady and therefore not interesting, with time jumps happening every chapter, and again, stuff just getting worse and worse slowly, with no real development on the sci-fi. I get that that might be the point, existing and providing for the next generation, but I feel like the whole arc in the underground could’ve been cut to 3 paragraphs.
In conclusion, this is a bleak book that I did appreciate some parts of, but couldn’t really take anything from the main thrust of it.
Well, I’ll give this one 2 stars because I have a lot of mixed feelings about this one.
The story focuses on Ethan and Ella, and Ella’s son Michael. They are Jewish, and after a supernatural event where anomalies appear in multiple locations around the world, antisemitism is rising. The plot (spoilers), basically follows them and the community that develops as they survive and collaborate with other Jews in a city called the Pale. Stuff gets worse and worse, with the outside world continuing to keep Jewish people occupied, and many Jews decide to enter into the anomalies of their own accord
I did love and really appreciate some things about this book for sure. The themes about parenting, the covid pandemic, and military occupation were really captivating. I found the fathers in the book really interesting as well. What parents will do for their children is something that I understand as a human, but haven’t fully appreciated what that really means. Existing by myself and honoring relationships with people my age and my parents is one thing, but existing with someone wholly dependent upon you is almost otherworldly.
To the parts I didn’t like so much:
When reading other reviews someone mentioned the Palestinian people, and the lack of their existence in the book. That’s definitely another weird spot for me. If they were supposedly in the anomaly that swallowed Israel, does that mean that they are in the subway with everyone else, or are they now gone? Not addressing or explaining what happens to non-Jews is weird in my opinion. I feel that if the book had non-Jewish people existing in the underground I would have a much different opinion on it.
I thought the story was going to go into a “Monsters are Due on Maple Street” direction, a story from the Twilight Zone where weird stuff happens and people become paranoid, but there seemed to be an actual link in the story between Jewish people and the anomalies? The ending clearly alludes to a possible second coming, but even before that, Jewish people in the story react differently around the anomaly. Which seems to take away from the critique of antisemitism almost.
If a supernatural event happened, people would surely use Jewish people as a scapegoat even if it was completely unrelated, and the book does touch on this. A lonely man on an island connects a blight of trees to Jews, which is obviously ridiculous, but then actual differences in interacting with the anomaly kinda throws this off. They can’t speak when they’re near it, which doesn’t make any sense. If I were to suspend my disbelief, I would say that then this makes Judaism the closest to being “real” in this world, which also rings a little weird to me?
Anyway, if this was done with another group, I don’t know how the world would react to a certain ethnic background being concretely linked to a supernatural event. The sci-fi elements of the story then don’t seem necessary when in real life people attribute all sorts of things incorrectly to Jewish people
The ending was open ended, and reading that Ella and Ethan couldn’t go with Michael was sad. I understood that was the direction the story was heading (there was foreshadowing with Ella’s father), but it fell kind of flat for me. With this, I’ll describe the pacing. The pacing was pretty steady and therefore not interesting, with time jumps happening every chapter, and again, stuff just getting worse and worse slowly, with no real development on the sci-fi. I get that that might be the point, existing and providing for the next generation, but I feel like the whole arc in the underground could’ve been cut to 3 paragraphs.
In conclusion, this is a bleak book that I did appreciate some parts of, but couldn’t really take anything from the main thrust of it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 6, 2024
Ethan, a quiet and reserved journalist, first sees Ella on a balcony of the office building where he works, throwing a paper airplane out into the clear blue sky. This simple, private act alights something in Ethan; as a child paper airplanes were a love language between him and his father.
Ethan seeks out Ella, a photographer, wants to know her.
But as Ethan falls in love with both Ella and her inquisitive, precocious young son, Michael, the world around them is crumbling. Particularly for them.
Because they are Jewish.
And so the novel becomes speculative.
The First Event is a black hole that swallows all of Israel; the Second is when, on a single night, all airplanes fall from the sky.
Despite the ever present fear, food rationing, being forced to live in the outskirts in an area called The Pale, Ethan and Ella work to find small joys with Michael - open fire hydrants and a cake on his birthday. A seder with neighborhood friends.
But as danger creeps ever closer in the form of armed robot dogs, border guards, and policing drones, Ethan and Ella decide to join other Jews in an underground, abandoned subway, hoping to find freedom, escape, or something they can’t name. But as they navigate a new reality, both begin to change, to lose themselves.
This is a quiet novel with such a powerful punch. Thought provoking, it’s a story that forces the reader to face prejudices, memories, and group thought.
It’s not neat and tidy, and the ending is nothing short of upsetting and difficult to understand, but I’m glad I read it. It’s important, I think, to read what makes you push against expected and move toward new.
Ethan seeks out Ella, a photographer, wants to know her.
But as Ethan falls in love with both Ella and her inquisitive, precocious young son, Michael, the world around them is crumbling. Particularly for them.
Because they are Jewish.
And so the novel becomes speculative.
The First Event is a black hole that swallows all of Israel; the Second is when, on a single night, all airplanes fall from the sky.
Despite the ever present fear, food rationing, being forced to live in the outskirts in an area called The Pale, Ethan and Ella work to find small joys with Michael - open fire hydrants and a cake on his birthday. A seder with neighborhood friends.
But as danger creeps ever closer in the form of armed robot dogs, border guards, and policing drones, Ethan and Ella decide to join other Jews in an underground, abandoned subway, hoping to find freedom, escape, or something they can’t name. But as they navigate a new reality, both begin to change, to lose themselves.
This is a quiet novel with such a powerful punch. Thought provoking, it’s a story that forces the reader to face prejudices, memories, and group thought.
It’s not neat and tidy, and the ending is nothing short of upsetting and difficult to understand, but I’m glad I read it. It’s important, I think, to read what makes you push against expected and move toward new.
February 16, 2025
4.5 stars. My book club review: I love dark, distopian books so I loved the theme and mood of this one. His portrayal of antisemitism was exquisite and so eloquent. I’ve never felt so seen by a novel in terms of Judaism—I loved his discussion of the awkwardness around the washing hands ritual, turning on the hot plate before Shabbat, etc. The Jewish novels I’ve read typically miss those details about observance that I grew up with.
Now for the bad: I agree with other reviewers that it felt like not much happened, and the events/plot were confusing. In some ways this book felt very similar to the Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, from the train theme to portrayal of systemic oppression and use of magical realism. However, the plot in that book really progressed. Here, everything going on was so murky and unspecific, it was hard to tell what was happening. The ending of this book was also much more unsatisfying, although I appreciated the metaphors.
Overall I loved the writing style, the level of nuance and the joy of so many layers and double meaning. There were some loose ends that remained untied but otherwise I really enjoyed this book.
Now for the bad: I agree with other reviewers that it felt like not much happened, and the events/plot were confusing. In some ways this book felt very similar to the Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, from the train theme to portrayal of systemic oppression and use of magical realism. However, the plot in that book really progressed. Here, everything going on was so murky and unspecific, it was hard to tell what was happening. The ending of this book was also much more unsatisfying, although I appreciated the metaphors.
Overall I loved the writing style, the level of nuance and the joy of so many layers and double meaning. There were some loose ends that remained untied but otherwise I really enjoyed this book.
July 28, 2025
I love dystopian fiction, so I was very excited to discover a dystopian novel with a Jewish theme.
Since anti-Semitism is so prevalent lately, unfortunately reading this book was not escapist fiction for me, as it once would have been.
In the story, Israel is sucked into an anomaly (like a black hole), and similar anomalies appear around the world. As more events occur, the Jews are blamed, punished, and isolated from the rest of society.
Although the story is fictional, it resonated with me because of its realistic portrayal of current Jewish experiences, both being blamed for so many problems around the world and being treated differently than other minorities. It is authentically Jewish in its depiction of how the Jewish community and individual Jews respond to these challenges -- by organizing the community, helping others, focusing on education, and on staying optimistic.
Since anti-Semitism is so prevalent lately, unfortunately reading this book was not escapist fiction for me, as it once would have been.
In the story, Israel is sucked into an anomaly (like a black hole), and similar anomalies appear around the world. As more events occur, the Jews are blamed, punished, and isolated from the rest of society.
Although the story is fictional, it resonated with me because of its realistic portrayal of current Jewish experiences, both being blamed for so many problems around the world and being treated differently than other minorities. It is authentically Jewish in its depiction of how the Jewish community and individual Jews respond to these challenges -- by organizing the community, helping others, focusing on education, and on staying optimistic.
August 4, 2024
In this dark and confusing dystopian novel, Ella and Ethan - who were both young children during the COVID-19 pandemic - meet and fall in love while a black hole swallows up the State of Israel and more "anomalies" occur all over the world. The Jews are to blame and are forced to live in a segregated neighborhood called "The Pale" that is plagued by violence, drone surveillance and robotic dogs. But I never fully understood what I was reading and what (if anything?) Resnick, a New York Rabbi, was trying to say about Jews in America and the future of Judaism. Is this suppose to be postapocalyptic fiction or a political fable? I couldn't figure it out. As the Kirkus review concluded: "This creepy tale must be making a point about antisemitism, but the SF [science fiction] elements complicate it beyond clear translation."
September 20, 2024
I guarantee that you’ve never read a similar story to the one written by Rabbi Benjamin Resnick.
The novel is both a romance and a story about what happens when black holes on earth appear to first swallow the entire state of Israel, then appear in cities throughout the world. Jews are blamed and soon find themselves subject in the U.S. to discrimination, then Jim Crow laws, the being confined to ghettos; the NYC ghetto is known as The Pale.
But the social history is often secondary to the romance between the two main protagonists, and their reactions to each other and the events happening around them.
This may be a little difficult to navigate at times for non-Jews. There is the occasional discussion of Judaism and Jewish holidays, and the use of Yiddish and Jewish colloquialisms.
But this is a literary masterpiece that can be enjoyed by all readers.
The novel is both a romance and a story about what happens when black holes on earth appear to first swallow the entire state of Israel, then appear in cities throughout the world. Jews are blamed and soon find themselves subject in the U.S. to discrimination, then Jim Crow laws, the being confined to ghettos; the NYC ghetto is known as The Pale.
But the social history is often secondary to the romance between the two main protagonists, and their reactions to each other and the events happening around them.
This may be a little difficult to navigate at times for non-Jews. There is the occasional discussion of Judaism and Jewish holidays, and the use of Yiddish and Jewish colloquialisms.
But this is a literary masterpiece that can be enjoyed by all readers.
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