What do you think?
Rate this book
The Mystics of Mile End: A Novel
Sigal Samuel’s debut novel, in the vein of Nicole Krauss’s bestselling The History of Love, is an imaginative story that delves into the heart of Jewish mysticism, faith, and family.
“This is not an ordinary tree I am making.
“This,” he said, “this is the Tree of Knowledge.”
In the half-Hasidic, half-hipster Montreal neighborhood of Mile End, eleven-year-old Lev Meyer is discovering that there may be a place for Judaism in his life. As he learns about science in his day school, Lev begins his own extracurricular study of the Bible’s Tree of Knowledge with neighbor Mr. Katz, who is building his own Tree out of trash. Meanwhile his sister Samara is secretly studying for her Bat Mitzvah with next-door neighbor and Holocaust survivor, Mr. Glassman. All the while his father, David, a professor of Jewish mysticism, is a non-believer.
When, years later, David has a heart attack, he begins to believe God is speaking to him. While having an affair with one of his students, he delves into the complexities of Kabbalah. Months later Samara, too, grows obsessed with the Kabbalah’s Tree of Life—hiding her interest from those who love her most–and is overcome with reaching the Tree’s highest heights. The neighbors of Mile End have been there all along, but only one of them can catch her when she falls.
“This is not an ordinary tree I am making.
“This,” he said, “this is the Tree of Knowledge.”
In the half-Hasidic, half-hipster Montreal neighborhood of Mile End, eleven-year-old Lev Meyer is discovering that there may be a place for Judaism in his life. As he learns about science in his day school, Lev begins his own extracurricular study of the Bible’s Tree of Knowledge with neighbor Mr. Katz, who is building his own Tree out of trash. Meanwhile his sister Samara is secretly studying for her Bat Mitzvah with next-door neighbor and Holocaust survivor, Mr. Glassman. All the while his father, David, a professor of Jewish mysticism, is a non-believer.
When, years later, David has a heart attack, he begins to believe God is speaking to him. While having an affair with one of his students, he delves into the complexities of Kabbalah. Months later Samara, too, grows obsessed with the Kabbalah’s Tree of Life—hiding her interest from those who love her most–and is overcome with reaching the Tree’s highest heights. The neighbors of Mile End have been there all along, but only one of them can catch her when she falls.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2015
49 people are currently reading
1669 people want to read
About the author
Sigal Samuel
5 books60 followersSigal Samuel is a novelist, journalist, and essayist. She has published work in the Daily Beast, the Rumpus, BuzzFeed, and the Walrus, among other publications. Originally from Montreal, Sigal now lives and writes in Brooklyn. The Mystics of Mile End is her first novel.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 156 reviews
October 17, 2015
4.5 stars .
This book is about the Jewish experience and no doubt , if a reader is Jewish, they may understand this in a different way , feel something about the story in a different way than I did . In all honesty there were things about this book that I did not understand, so I'll talk about those things that I did - that this was a book about grief and love and family relationships and friendship and people trying to discover themselves.
This is about dealing with this grief and the sadness that the loss of a loved carries. This is the story of how they cope - 11 year old Lev , his sister , 13 year old Sammy and David, their dad. These are lost kids with a beautiful brother - sister bond , while their father remains on the outside , grieving in his own way , by his own choice separating himself from his children .
While I did not fully understand the mysticism , climbing the Tree of Life , I found that it didn't keep me from finding a series of beautiful moments which reflect our humanity no matter who you are or what you believe: the lemons , the silent phone calls , a note in a bookcase, how the Glassman's knew they were meant to be together, the silence of understanding between a brother and a sister, the perceptive and lovely lists a young boy writes in his journal . It didn't keep me from connecting with Lev , my favorite character or the other characters I came to love - Mr Katz, the Hasidic Jew who builds a Tree of Knowledge out of toilet paper rolls and floss and painted leaves and Mr Grossman , the Jewish teacher , a Holocaust survivor and his math whiz wife .
Don't be afraid to pick up this book because you don't think you'll understand. You would miss a beautiful, meaningful story in this debut novel .
Thanks to William Morrow/HarperCollins and Edelweiss,
This book is about the Jewish experience and no doubt , if a reader is Jewish, they may understand this in a different way , feel something about the story in a different way than I did . In all honesty there were things about this book that I did not understand, so I'll talk about those things that I did - that this was a book about grief and love and family relationships and friendship and people trying to discover themselves.
This is about dealing with this grief and the sadness that the loss of a loved carries. This is the story of how they cope - 11 year old Lev , his sister , 13 year old Sammy and David, their dad. These are lost kids with a beautiful brother - sister bond , while their father remains on the outside , grieving in his own way , by his own choice separating himself from his children .
While I did not fully understand the mysticism , climbing the Tree of Life , I found that it didn't keep me from finding a series of beautiful moments which reflect our humanity no matter who you are or what you believe: the lemons , the silent phone calls , a note in a bookcase, how the Glassman's knew they were meant to be together, the silence of understanding between a brother and a sister, the perceptive and lovely lists a young boy writes in his journal . It didn't keep me from connecting with Lev , my favorite character or the other characters I came to love - Mr Katz, the Hasidic Jew who builds a Tree of Knowledge out of toilet paper rolls and floss and painted leaves and Mr Grossman , the Jewish teacher , a Holocaust survivor and his math whiz wife .
Don't be afraid to pick up this book because you don't think you'll understand. You would miss a beautiful, meaningful story in this debut novel .
Thanks to William Morrow/HarperCollins and Edelweiss,
October 21, 2015
Don't see signs in everything. It makes it impossible to live.
I'm not sure what possessed little atheistic me to enter a giveaway for a book about Jewish mysticism, (A dybbuk? Shut up, I don't believe in you!), but I'm glad I did.
Samuel's book is a gem, filled with lovely writing and interesting characters searching for something to believe in.
First we meet young Lev who becomes fascinated with an eccentric neighbor, Mr. Katz, who has been criticized as being all faith and no knowledge. Katz is attempting to build a Tree of Life in his front yard. Lev is also preoccupied with looking for a woman who will fill the empty spaces in his father's heart, and trying to understand what makes his sister so unhappy.
And there it was, the weird something in her voice. It was not too fast or too quiet but slow and steady, as if she had all the time in the world, as if it was just for her, just for this moment, that the whole world had been created. I closed my eyes. Inside her voice I could hear each letter, and each silence between each letter, and I felt happy and sad and lonely, because in each perfect silence, like dolls inside dolls that go on and on forever, and inside the smallest doll I could suddenly see the list curled up, the list of all the reasons, the reasons for my sister's sadness.
Then Lev's father, David, takes over the narration. Following the tragic death of his wife, he has been losing his faith. He's somewhat dismayed to find both of his children newly engrossed in the religion he has turned away from.
Lev's older sister Samara has been taught that girls should grow up to be good women who married good learned men. And though she has no plans to follow that path, her life changes when she decides to "climb" the Tree of Life.
Throw in King Lear and kabbalah, friends, lovers and neighbors, books of knowledge, SETI, messages delivered via paper birds, and you have a fascinating story of life and death, and a pretty damned impressive debut novel. I'm looking forward to much more from this author.
I'm not sure what possessed little atheistic me to enter a giveaway for a book about Jewish mysticism, (A dybbuk? Shut up, I don't believe in you!), but I'm glad I did.
Samuel's book is a gem, filled with lovely writing and interesting characters searching for something to believe in.
First we meet young Lev who becomes fascinated with an eccentric neighbor, Mr. Katz, who has been criticized as being all faith and no knowledge. Katz is attempting to build a Tree of Life in his front yard. Lev is also preoccupied with looking for a woman who will fill the empty spaces in his father's heart, and trying to understand what makes his sister so unhappy.
And there it was, the weird something in her voice. It was not too fast or too quiet but slow and steady, as if she had all the time in the world, as if it was just for her, just for this moment, that the whole world had been created. I closed my eyes. Inside her voice I could hear each letter, and each silence between each letter, and I felt happy and sad and lonely, because in each perfect silence, like dolls inside dolls that go on and on forever, and inside the smallest doll I could suddenly see the list curled up, the list of all the reasons, the reasons for my sister's sadness.
Then Lev's father, David, takes over the narration. Following the tragic death of his wife, he has been losing his faith. He's somewhat dismayed to find both of his children newly engrossed in the religion he has turned away from.
Lev's older sister Samara has been taught that girls should grow up to be good women who married good learned men. And though she has no plans to follow that path, her life changes when she decides to "climb" the Tree of Life.
Throw in King Lear and kabbalah, friends, lovers and neighbors, books of knowledge, SETI, messages delivered via paper birds, and you have a fascinating story of life and death, and a pretty damned impressive debut novel. I'm looking forward to much more from this author.
July 27, 2015
Jewish mysticism, religion, science, chaos, loss, grief, secrets, and searching for meaning
in life, are themes explored. This is a wonderful tender story...with an aura of the mythic,
the magical, and mystery of the universe.
Sigal Samuel irresistibly drew me into the characters, the struggles, the failings, the pain, betrayals, the friendships, the trust, and the wonder of how faith and science empowers us.
The Myer family lives in Montreal. They live in Mile End --which is a 'tribe' neighborhood of other 'Jewish' families...Hasidic Jews and hipsters.
Old man, Mr. Katz is considered a kooky neighbor. He can be found sitting in front of his house
building a replica of the mythical 'Tree of Life', out of cardboard, toilet paper rolls, dental floss, tin cans, and painted green leaves.
In this story:
The three MAIN characters are David, a University Professor of Jewish mysticism, but a non-believer, and his two children, Lev, and Samara.
Each of these 3 family members have their own section - as narrators told in first person.
David, Lev, and Samara, are dealing with the loss of Miriam. They have also had a complete
breakdown of religious rituals and faith taught in the house ...spearheaded by Miriam.
without her direction ... the kids are left to fend for themselves. David has completely turn
away from religion, parenting, setting rules and boundaries. He stays at the University late,
often leaving Lev and Samara alone to fix their own dinner. Home made pizza with gummy
Bears - chocolate nibs and cheese anyone?
Lev is a couple years younger than Samara. He idolizes her and loves her. He's willing to
keep her secrets....
but when Samara suddenly and drastically changes her path..(within a day)... Lev begins to
enter a life of Hasidic isolation. It's around this time in the story when you see how loss everyone is.
David starts to re-examine his faith... After he is diagnosed with an unusual heart murmur...
Later... Samara...begins to explore what her father was trying to discover.
It gets complex when trying to decipher the conflicts between science and religion.
The supporting cast is important and terrific:
.....Mr. Glassman, Holocaust Survivor, and Jewish teacher.
..... Alex, ( Lev's best friend), when Alex & Lev are presenting their science fair
project to their class. They plan to communicate with Extraterrestrial Intelligence with a small
radio. They make many attempts trying to reach the International Space Station, and then finally, a voice speaks back to them. It was a great metaphor of hearing God's voice --
the blending of science and faith.
Just as completing tzedakah (charity), is recognized as a service...
And the Bar and Bat Mitzvah ceremony is a milestone life-cycle event in the life of
a Jewish child and their years of culmination of study... It marks the beginning of lifetime
learning, study, and participation in the Jewish Community....
In "The Mystics of Mile End", ...we have a chance, ( as readers), no matters what our
beliefs are about religion and science...to explore ourselves "what type of study and participation are important to us in our modern communities today"?
Wonderful novel!!!!! .....layers upon layers of page-turning charming & heartbreaking scenarios!!!
Thank You to Harper Collins Publishers and Edelewiss, and Sigal Samuel for the
opportunity to read this book!! I loved it!!!
in life, are themes explored. This is a wonderful tender story...with an aura of the mythic,
the magical, and mystery of the universe.
Sigal Samuel irresistibly drew me into the characters, the struggles, the failings, the pain, betrayals, the friendships, the trust, and the wonder of how faith and science empowers us.
The Myer family lives in Montreal. They live in Mile End --which is a 'tribe' neighborhood of other 'Jewish' families...Hasidic Jews and hipsters.
Old man, Mr. Katz is considered a kooky neighbor. He can be found sitting in front of his house
building a replica of the mythical 'Tree of Life', out of cardboard, toilet paper rolls, dental floss, tin cans, and painted green leaves.
In this story:
The three MAIN characters are David, a University Professor of Jewish mysticism, but a non-believer, and his two children, Lev, and Samara.
Each of these 3 family members have their own section - as narrators told in first person.
David, Lev, and Samara, are dealing with the loss of Miriam. They have also had a complete
breakdown of religious rituals and faith taught in the house ...spearheaded by Miriam.
without her direction ... the kids are left to fend for themselves. David has completely turn
away from religion, parenting, setting rules and boundaries. He stays at the University late,
often leaving Lev and Samara alone to fix their own dinner. Home made pizza with gummy
Bears - chocolate nibs and cheese anyone?
Lev is a couple years younger than Samara. He idolizes her and loves her. He's willing to
keep her secrets....
but when Samara suddenly and drastically changes her path..(within a day)... Lev begins to
enter a life of Hasidic isolation. It's around this time in the story when you see how loss everyone is.
David starts to re-examine his faith... After he is diagnosed with an unusual heart murmur...
Later... Samara...begins to explore what her father was trying to discover.
It gets complex when trying to decipher the conflicts between science and religion.
The supporting cast is important and terrific:
.....Mr. Glassman, Holocaust Survivor, and Jewish teacher.
..... Alex, ( Lev's best friend), when Alex & Lev are presenting their science fair
project to their class. They plan to communicate with Extraterrestrial Intelligence with a small
radio. They make many attempts trying to reach the International Space Station, and then finally, a voice speaks back to them. It was a great metaphor of hearing God's voice --
the blending of science and faith.
Just as completing tzedakah (charity), is recognized as a service...
And the Bar and Bat Mitzvah ceremony is a milestone life-cycle event in the life of
a Jewish child and their years of culmination of study... It marks the beginning of lifetime
learning, study, and participation in the Jewish Community....
In "The Mystics of Mile End", ...we have a chance, ( as readers), no matters what our
beliefs are about religion and science...to explore ourselves "what type of study and participation are important to us in our modern communities today"?
Wonderful novel!!!!! .....layers upon layers of page-turning charming & heartbreaking scenarios!!!
Thank You to Harper Collins Publishers and Edelewiss, and Sigal Samuel for the
opportunity to read this book!! I loved it!!!
December 12, 2018
Set in the Mile End neighborhood of Montreal, where Hasidic Jews live intertwined with hipsters, two siblings are making sense of their own identities in the context of parental loss, being called back to religious practice, and more. The characters are vivid and it goes deep into some Jewish mystic beliefs. Within the Jewish characters are those who are all belief with no logic (and they are criticized by those who come at their belief from the opposite perspective.) I love how the author captured the neighborhood and these complex differences.
August 9, 2015
This ambitious novel succeeded at every level for me. The writing is exquisite and the characters are memorable and engaging. The story itself is complex, exploring the themes of science, religion, faith, Jewish mysticism, joy, despair, love, life, death, and more. What a feat to pull all that off so convincingly! A really wonderful story, one I managed to finish reading in record time and won't soon forget.
April 26, 2015
What a beautiful and complex novel-- I loved being enveloped in the stories of Lev, Samara, and David, and seeing the lines cross over each other. An ambitious undertaking, but Sigal Samuel is a bold guide into an area I know very little about. Her phrases flashed at me like beacons to follow, ones like "Everywhere I looked, a thousand tiny outstretched hands waited to pull me up. There was nothing I touched that did not sing, and there was nothing I saw that did not contain a clue."
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
May 20, 2015
I just saw Sigal read from this novel last night at her Vancouver launch, and I fell in love with the book all over again. I might have to read it a second time! It captivates with its themes of mysticism, tradition, queer identity, death and recovery. Wonderfully ambitious, yet deftly crafted.
September 7, 2018
4.5* What a beautiful story! The characters are so well developed and their point of views and interactions are on point. Samuel does an amazing job with each voice, especially Lev as a kid. The final Miles End section, the only one told in the 3rd voice, wrap everything up and reveals more about Mr. Glassman, their neighbour and religious studies teacher, and his wife. There are one or two unexplained inconsistencies but otherwise a beautiful book. Looking to see and read more from Sigal Samuel!
July 19, 2018
It has taken me quite a while to digest this novel. It started out very strong, written from the point of view of Lev Meyer, who is exploring religion and what role it plays in his life. There were three other parts to the novel, all from the points of view of different narrators. I wish it had all been in Lev's voice. I think I would have liked it more. For some reason I couldn't connect with the other characters. I don't want to say I didn't care about them but their voices were not as strong as Lev's. My enjoyment of the book gradually diminished until, by the end, I was just ready to put it down. I enjoyed the author's writing style quite a bit, though.
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
May 11, 2016
(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)
Say what you will about the school of Jewish mysticism known as Kabbalah, but it's certainly served as a great basis for all kinds of metaphorically and symbolically wonderful pieces of contemporary fiction, from Myla Goldberg's haunting Bee Season to Darren Aronofsky's head-scratching Pi; and now here's another, Sigal Samuel's imminently readable The Mystics of Mile End, which distinguishes itself from these others by being a coming-of-age domestic drama as well, much like reading a beach novel cross-pollinated with a treatise on Judaic intellectualism since this is precisely what it is. Set in one of the "artsy" neighborhoods on the edge of Montreal, which partly got that way by also being the home of a community of Hasidic Jews, the family under discussion here is not actually part of that community -- the single father's a rationalist college professor, while his kids are normal teenagers pursuing normal things -- although as the years continue, both of these facts about the neighborhood have more and more of an influence on them all, each of them in turn having their lives changed in different ways by the concept of "climbing the Tree of Life" that lies at the heart of Kabbalah. To be clear, you don't really need to know anything about those subjects, or even really about Judaism in general, to enjoy this family-based relationship story; but it's also a smart and well-researched look at those topics for those who do know a bit about it, an examination of modern versus historical Jewishness that also serves as a nice metaphor about aging, whether that's from child to adult or from middle-age to the elderly years. It comes recommended to a general audience, and especially to book clubs looking for something unique and worthy of discussion to choose as their next pick.
Out of 10: 9.4
Say what you will about the school of Jewish mysticism known as Kabbalah, but it's certainly served as a great basis for all kinds of metaphorically and symbolically wonderful pieces of contemporary fiction, from Myla Goldberg's haunting Bee Season to Darren Aronofsky's head-scratching Pi; and now here's another, Sigal Samuel's imminently readable The Mystics of Mile End, which distinguishes itself from these others by being a coming-of-age domestic drama as well, much like reading a beach novel cross-pollinated with a treatise on Judaic intellectualism since this is precisely what it is. Set in one of the "artsy" neighborhoods on the edge of Montreal, which partly got that way by also being the home of a community of Hasidic Jews, the family under discussion here is not actually part of that community -- the single father's a rationalist college professor, while his kids are normal teenagers pursuing normal things -- although as the years continue, both of these facts about the neighborhood have more and more of an influence on them all, each of them in turn having their lives changed in different ways by the concept of "climbing the Tree of Life" that lies at the heart of Kabbalah. To be clear, you don't really need to know anything about those subjects, or even really about Judaism in general, to enjoy this family-based relationship story; but it's also a smart and well-researched look at those topics for those who do know a bit about it, an examination of modern versus historical Jewishness that also serves as a nice metaphor about aging, whether that's from child to adult or from middle-age to the elderly years. It comes recommended to a general audience, and especially to book clubs looking for something unique and worthy of discussion to choose as their next pick.
Out of 10: 9.4
December 3, 2015
I really wanted to like this book, especially since it is set in one of my favorite parts of Montreal. I loved the first section, the story being told from the perspective of young Lev, but did not enjoy the narratives of his father and sister, partially because I did to like them, partially because as the story delved more and more into the Kaballah study it became less and less believable to me. There were other secondary characters who I loved - Mr. Katz, Mr Glassman and his wife, Lev's friend; the science geek Alex, but the Kabballah theme running through the story seemed to be trying too hard to take the story of a sad family to a whole new level. For me it just didn't work. The study of the Kabballah seems fascinating, but this novel was not.
I was disappointed that the author, who is from Montreal, did not bring this vibrant neighborhood to life. This area is often compared to the Lower East Side in NYC, a place where new immigrants often settled, and whose main street was often called the dividing line between French and English Montreal (not so much now). Though Jews lived there in the early part of the century and some still do, there is also a strong presence of other immigrant groups, as well as "hipsters", students, artists etc. At one point when the father is running he refers to the area as suburban - ummm, not by any description, unless he crossed a bridge, and that would have been one hell of a run!
I was disappointed that the author, who is from Montreal, did not bring this vibrant neighborhood to life. This area is often compared to the Lower East Side in NYC, a place where new immigrants often settled, and whose main street was often called the dividing line between French and English Montreal (not so much now). Though Jews lived there in the early part of the century and some still do, there is also a strong presence of other immigrant groups, as well as "hipsters", students, artists etc. At one point when the father is running he refers to the area as suburban - ummm, not by any description, unless he crossed a bridge, and that would have been one hell of a run!
May 27, 2015
The study of the Tree of Life is one of the most hallowed and important facets of Jewish mysticism. The allure of “climbing” the tree, of learning more and more and eventually ascending into another form, is so enticing, that the study of this branch of Kabbalah is for the most part only allowed to be undertaken by married men over the age of forty. Such is the danger of losing oneself to the beautiful dream.
Sigal Samuel’s debut novel, The Mystics of Mile End, follows the fortunes of the Meyer family of the eponymous Montreal district. When his wife dies after being hit by a car, professor of Jewish mysticism David Meyer turns almost completely inward, and his actions and thoughts become constant sources of anxiety and anguish for his two children, Lev and Samara. Adding to this family chaos is the forbidden study of the Tree of Life, which effects each of the Meyer clan in its own way, leading the younger child Lev into a life of Hasidic isolation, David into confronting his faith, long left shattered after his wife’s untimely demise, and Samara into, well, you’ll have to read to find out.
Check out the rest of my review at This Nerding Life: http://thisnerdinglife.com/2015/05/26...
Sigal Samuel’s debut novel, The Mystics of Mile End, follows the fortunes of the Meyer family of the eponymous Montreal district. When his wife dies after being hit by a car, professor of Jewish mysticism David Meyer turns almost completely inward, and his actions and thoughts become constant sources of anxiety and anguish for his two children, Lev and Samara. Adding to this family chaos is the forbidden study of the Tree of Life, which effects each of the Meyer clan in its own way, leading the younger child Lev into a life of Hasidic isolation, David into confronting his faith, long left shattered after his wife’s untimely demise, and Samara into, well, you’ll have to read to find out.
Check out the rest of my review at This Nerding Life: http://thisnerdinglife.com/2015/05/26...
August 4, 2023
It starts off with a lot of promise, but as the story becomes more and more entwined with mystical/religious/magical thinking, it unravels...at least, for me. I had begun to invest in the main characters...and the final resolution, I believe, doesn't do them justice. One particular irritant is that Lev's transformation to pious Yeshiva student isn't adequately explained...which sticks in my craw until the end of the novel.
April 24, 2020
Beau livre sur la vie par rapport à la religion juive et son interprétation. Depuis mes origines catholiques non pratiquante, peut-être certains aspects religieux/historiques m'ont-ils échappés, mais j'ai trouvé le message très beau tout de même. J'aurais préféré suivre Lev comme narrateur tout le long de l'histoire. J'ai moins accroché aux 3 autres parties du livres non narrées par lui.
En gros, je dirais un 3,75 bien mérité.
En gros, je dirais un 3,75 bien mérité.
September 30, 2016
The Mystics of Mile End by Sigal Samuel is, above all, an amazing book, such a sure-footed, beautifully written novel that it’s hard to believe it’s her first. It’s one of those books that was so good I’m not quite sure where to begin describing it...At its core, The Mystics of Mile End is a story about a family. Lev and Samara Meyer live with their father David in Montreal’s Mile End neighbourhood, a curious mix of Hasidic Jews (a branch of Orthodox Judaism) and young hipsters. Samuel lovingly and richly sets the scene of Montreal; you can feel the thick humid summer air, smell the coffee at funky neighbourhood coffee shops, and hear the Hasidic Jews call to each other in Yiddish and Hebrew as they walk in groups to and from synagogue.
David is a cynical professor of Jewish mysticism at McGill university, but has rejected the Orthodox faith in part because of his wife’s early death; as children both Lev and Samara have to hide their interest in Judaism and spirituality, Samara even keeping her preparations for her bat mitzvah—which is happening one year later than it should—a secret. Lev and Samara share a close bond, a comfortable intimacy that does not need to be spoken, which only makes their distant father feel more separate from them.
Despite David’s avowed disinterest in religious practice, however, his children begin to notice strange behaviour as he (and they) grow older that suggests his spiritual, in addition to his intellectual, interest in Jewish mysticism is returning. The concept David is becoming increasingly obsessed with is the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. The Tree of Life—as I’ve learned from this novel—is a mystical symbol representing different stages of enlightenment: at the bottom is ani (“I,” associated with the ego or unified self) and at the top is ayin (“nothingness,” associated with the annihilation of the ego), with many layers in between. The study of the Tree of Life and the consequent urge to ascend the Tree are supposed to be restricted to scholars over the age of forty, because, as the neighbourhood’s wise teacher says, young people who have recognized the meaning of the Tree’s holy vision have been “consumed by fire.” In other words, they go crazy.
Eventually, Samara sets out on the same dangerous path as her father, to disastrous results, and it is up to her family and friends—including her girlfriend Jenny, Lev’s best friend Alex, and neighbour and Holocaust survivor Mr. Glassman—to save the Meyers and bridge the communication gaps that keep them apart and threaten to destroy their family...
See the rest of my review here.
David is a cynical professor of Jewish mysticism at McGill university, but has rejected the Orthodox faith in part because of his wife’s early death; as children both Lev and Samara have to hide their interest in Judaism and spirituality, Samara even keeping her preparations for her bat mitzvah—which is happening one year later than it should—a secret. Lev and Samara share a close bond, a comfortable intimacy that does not need to be spoken, which only makes their distant father feel more separate from them.
Despite David’s avowed disinterest in religious practice, however, his children begin to notice strange behaviour as he (and they) grow older that suggests his spiritual, in addition to his intellectual, interest in Jewish mysticism is returning. The concept David is becoming increasingly obsessed with is the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. The Tree of Life—as I’ve learned from this novel—is a mystical symbol representing different stages of enlightenment: at the bottom is ani (“I,” associated with the ego or unified self) and at the top is ayin (“nothingness,” associated with the annihilation of the ego), with many layers in between. The study of the Tree of Life and the consequent urge to ascend the Tree are supposed to be restricted to scholars over the age of forty, because, as the neighbourhood’s wise teacher says, young people who have recognized the meaning of the Tree’s holy vision have been “consumed by fire.” In other words, they go crazy.
Eventually, Samara sets out on the same dangerous path as her father, to disastrous results, and it is up to her family and friends—including her girlfriend Jenny, Lev’s best friend Alex, and neighbour and Holocaust survivor Mr. Glassman—to save the Meyers and bridge the communication gaps that keep them apart and threaten to destroy their family...
See the rest of my review here.
November 20, 2015
Is an “eminently readable” novel a good thing? Not always. In this case, it is: and not just because this novel takes place in my own neighborhood. The Mystics of the Mile End is an enchanting, modern-day story told in vignettes by a small cast of characters (a family, an eccentric neighbor Mr. Katz, and a mathematician couple who are Holocaust survivors) connected by their relationships to each other, Judiasm, and the goings-on of their neighborhood of hipsters and Hasidic Jews. The absence of the mother, Miriam, who died in a car accident when Samara and her brother Lev were young, creates a dazzling void around which the characters seek to understand their religion, their father David’s not-entirely-successful flight from it into scientific rationalism, only to enter it again through a love affair, and their own existential quests. For Samara, estranged from her family, that means studying kabbalah against the teachings (one must be at least 40, and married), in an attempt to ascend through the 10 levels composing the mystic “Tree of Life,” the physical structure of which Mr. Katz is attempting to recreate. What results are communications both astral and other-worldly, and a deeply humane portrait of what it’s like to push past the screen of often unsatisfying secular answers to life-and-death phenomena. "You must make your heart like an empty instrument . . . Any blockage at all will prevent the making of this divine music. Even something that is traditionally considered good and worthy can constitute a blockage: knowledge, for instance." Here, we glimpse the origins of the universe and heart as both an emittance of word and sound, shattering into “one thousand flaws” from its former unity in order to be born.
July 31, 2016
In the early pages of this book, I was thinking it would end up being maybe 3 stars. As I got further into it, that went up to 4. By the final section and more and more clearly throughout the final pages, it was a definite 5-star book.
I liked the separate viewpoints and how each of the three that were from a specific narrator had its own voice and its own feeling. I liked how the mysticism is there throughout, but that it slowly builds around and within the story, so that as it increases its presence in the lives of the characters, so to it increases its presence in the reader's mind and in the reading experience. The author was able to write about this subject without it seeming either silly/absurd/woo-woo/etc or like we were meant to see it as dangerous or bad. I'm Jewish but don't know anything about Kabbalah or mysticism, so I'm not speaking from knowledge, but it does feel to me like she did a very good job at elucidating some of it. It felt very real, very grounded, and thus the impact on the characters felt very believable and powerful.
The writing is also lovely and poetic at times, and the urgency of emotion that the characters experience is rendered such that you really feel it too. Many times in this book, I found myself biting my lip, furrowing my brow, holding a hand to my chest...I so love being moved that much by a book!
I liked the separate viewpoints and how each of the three that were from a specific narrator had its own voice and its own feeling. I liked how the mysticism is there throughout, but that it slowly builds around and within the story, so that as it increases its presence in the lives of the characters, so to it increases its presence in the reader's mind and in the reading experience. The author was able to write about this subject without it seeming either silly/absurd/woo-woo/etc or like we were meant to see it as dangerous or bad. I'm Jewish but don't know anything about Kabbalah or mysticism, so I'm not speaking from knowledge, but it does feel to me like she did a very good job at elucidating some of it. It felt very real, very grounded, and thus the impact on the characters felt very believable and powerful.
The writing is also lovely and poetic at times, and the urgency of emotion that the characters experience is rendered such that you really feel it too. Many times in this book, I found myself biting my lip, furrowing my brow, holding a hand to my chest...I so love being moved that much by a book!
October 21, 2015
This is a book that lingers long after you are finished reading. The story is thought-provoking and well-crafted, and the prose is absolutely poetic. At times it reads like a fable or fairy-tale, which I happen to love. Sigal Samuel brings the quirky neighborhood of Mile End to life with vivid details and spectacular color. Her characters are lovable and heart-breaking. Though this book tells a family story filled with very realistic examples of teen angst, misunderstanding, secrets and loss, it goes beyond what is simple and everyday to tell the very internal and mystical struggles the characters face as they attempt to ascend the kabalah's Tree of Life. My favorite parts of this book were the stories told by Mr. Glassman, the wise neighbor and teacher who lives next door and teaches Torah. His wife is a gifted mathematician who is forever baking bowls of charmed rugelach - "commas baked into curled pastries." I love the way the author talks about speech and silences. Her love of words and language and her gift for them is evident on every single page of this miraculous book. This is a must read.
May 12, 2016
I read this for a book group and was not fond of it. It started off great. I thought it would be a coming-of-age novel featuring Lev Meyer and his friend Alex. Through skillful turns of phrase, the author makes the reader realize how much Lev and his older sister, Samara, miss their mother who died when they were 5 and 7. Their mother had practiced the orthodox branch of Judaism while their father wanted nothing to do with religion. I really liked the characters of Lev and his geeky friend Alex but I turned the page and here was part 2. Part 2, taking place 10 years later, was narrated by David, Lev and Samara's father. He was one of the most unlikeable characters I have met in a book. Consequently, the reading experience went downhill. Parts 3 and 4 dealt mostly with Samara. A couple of other characters, neighbors Mr. Katz and Mr. Glassman, added some enjoyment to the book. I also felt that a slight knowledge of mysticism and the kabbalah might make the book easier to understand.
January 18, 2016
This story takes place in the Hasidic neighborhood of Mile End, Montreal. It begins as two children Lev (heart in Hebrew) and his sister Samara try to bring themselves up. Their mother had died several years ago and their father remains distant, hiding himself in his study. The story is told from the point of view of Lev, the fifth grader, then through the voice of their father David ten years later and right before he dies. Lastly, we see the struggles through the college student Samara and then through a narrator. This book is organized around the esoteric Hasidic concept of Kabbalah as it pertains to the tree of life. For someone unaware of this concept the story is sometimes difficult to follow. Nevertheless, the push and pull Lev and Samara experienced to and from their small Hasidic community and the secular world is interesting to read about. It held my interest enough for me to finish the book but it was not one of my favorites.
May 13, 2018
Creative and well written. The author did a good job giving each member of the family a distinctive and interesting voice. I enjoyed each of Lev, David, and Samara’s chapters equally. I expected a little more of.... I don’t know, something.... from the last chapter but on the whole I liked it this a lot and I would recommend it. I also appreciated that this is substantive and thought provoking but also very accessible and not difficult or burdensome to read.
June 10, 2024
I was very excited for this T_T
Anyway, I realized in the last thirty pages or so that the novel made way more sense as a project (big disconnect between ambition/ideas and novelistic execution??) when I remembered the author is also a playwright..........
Anyway, I realized in the last thirty pages or so that the novel made way more sense as a project (big disconnect between ambition/ideas and novelistic execution??) when I remembered the author is also a playwright..........
September 10, 2022
less about mile end and more about religion than i thought… also more gay
October 13, 2015
The Mystics of Mile End is a rich and satisfying novel in a number of ways. It juxtaposes Jewish mysticism and rationalism; it presents a world populated by a mix of hipsters and conservative Jews; it explores the crisis moments in life that can lead to an embrace or rejection of faith; it contrasts scientifically based narrative with the narrative of the Torah and Kabbalah. Add to this the fact that it’s narrated in four different voices and what the reader encounters is a world that’s new at every turn.
The Meyer family has lost its mother, and her sudden death leaves not just a gap in the family, but unresolved questions of faith. Her husband, David, an academic, has rejected the conservative Judaism they once shared, replacing it with a rigid rationalism. Samara, the oldest of the two siblings has chosen to secretly prepare for her Bat Mitzvah, a ritual her father has refused to allow her to participate in. Younger brother Lev lives a sort of dual existence, attending Hebrew school in the afternoons, then hanging out with his best friend, who is obsessed with astronomy. He embraces faith and science, without seeing the potential conflicts between them.
This is the situation at the novel’s start. Samuel takes us through years of this family’s life as its members move toward and away from their original faith. At the center of this to-and-fro movement is the Tree of Life—a mystical construction embodying God’s creative energy and the human spirit. Each of the novel’s central characters undertakes a study of the Tree: Lev as a part of his Hebrew school lessons; David after a heart attack; Samara in an attempt to understand her father; and Lev’s astronomer friend in an attempt to understand Samara, for whom he has an unrequited love.
Spending time in the world of Mile End offers readers food for both the heart and mind. This is the sort of story you’ll find yourself turning over as you fall asleep at night, reflecting on the philosophical walls each character builds to circumscribe her/his world and the things that can happen as the foundations of these walls are gradually undermined.
The Meyer family has lost its mother, and her sudden death leaves not just a gap in the family, but unresolved questions of faith. Her husband, David, an academic, has rejected the conservative Judaism they once shared, replacing it with a rigid rationalism. Samara, the oldest of the two siblings has chosen to secretly prepare for her Bat Mitzvah, a ritual her father has refused to allow her to participate in. Younger brother Lev lives a sort of dual existence, attending Hebrew school in the afternoons, then hanging out with his best friend, who is obsessed with astronomy. He embraces faith and science, without seeing the potential conflicts between them.
This is the situation at the novel’s start. Samuel takes us through years of this family’s life as its members move toward and away from their original faith. At the center of this to-and-fro movement is the Tree of Life—a mystical construction embodying God’s creative energy and the human spirit. Each of the novel’s central characters undertakes a study of the Tree: Lev as a part of his Hebrew school lessons; David after a heart attack; Samara in an attempt to understand her father; and Lev’s astronomer friend in an attempt to understand Samara, for whom he has an unrequited love.
Spending time in the world of Mile End offers readers food for both the heart and mind. This is the sort of story you’ll find yourself turning over as you fall asleep at night, reflecting on the philosophical walls each character builds to circumscribe her/his world and the things that can happen as the foundations of these walls are gradually undermined.
October 13, 2015
This book and one other have, in the last month, taught me more about Judaism than I think I had heard for my entire life.
Mystics is separated into four main sections. The first three focus on the points of view of a son (Lev), a father (David) and a daughter (Samara), concerning Judaism in general and study of the Kabbalah in particular. The fourth section is titled 'Mile End' and seems to have more than one narrator/focal person, all of whom are known to the family previously listed.
There is at least as much 'mental action' in Mystics as there is physical action. But then, real life is like that sometimes. We ponder on our beliefs; after all, they are what spur us into action.
Do we reach 'resolution'? Do we complete the work that is ours in this life to do? Well, the answer to those questions is different for every person that has ever lived. It is certainly different for each of the main characters (Lev, David, Samara) and for some of the surrounding characters (Alex, Mr/s Glassman, Jenny, Valerie, Mr. Katz).
Mystics is a full, rich story, satisfying and nourishing the mind much as a good meal satisfies and nourishes the body. It tells the tale of a brother, a sister, their father, a people, a religion and a study of mysticism. Some stories are like the old joke about a meal of Chinese food - rich and filling, but you are 'hungry' again a few hours later. (This is not a criticism, merely a way to sort in my own mind.) Other books stick to your ribs, for lack of a better term. Not only do they fill you up, but this satisfaction stays with you for a long time - maybe forever. The Mystics of Mile End by Sigal Samuel is one such book.
(Disclosure: I received a print copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.)
Mystics is separated into four main sections. The first three focus on the points of view of a son (Lev), a father (David) and a daughter (Samara), concerning Judaism in general and study of the Kabbalah in particular. The fourth section is titled 'Mile End' and seems to have more than one narrator/focal person, all of whom are known to the family previously listed.
There is at least as much 'mental action' in Mystics as there is physical action. But then, real life is like that sometimes. We ponder on our beliefs; after all, they are what spur us into action.
Do we reach 'resolution'? Do we complete the work that is ours in this life to do? Well, the answer to those questions is different for every person that has ever lived. It is certainly different for each of the main characters (Lev, David, Samara) and for some of the surrounding characters (Alex, Mr/s Glassman, Jenny, Valerie, Mr. Katz).
Mystics is a full, rich story, satisfying and nourishing the mind much as a good meal satisfies and nourishes the body. It tells the tale of a brother, a sister, their father, a people, a religion and a study of mysticism. Some stories are like the old joke about a meal of Chinese food - rich and filling, but you are 'hungry' again a few hours later. (This is not a criticism, merely a way to sort in my own mind.) Other books stick to your ribs, for lack of a better term. Not only do they fill you up, but this satisfaction stays with you for a long time - maybe forever. The Mystics of Mile End by Sigal Samuel is one such book.
(Disclosure: I received a print copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.)
October 27, 2015
The Mystics of Mile End by Sigal Samuel is a novel taking place in a Jewish community in Montréal, Canada.
The book is divided into four parts, the first three are told through the eyes of the main characters Lev, his father David, and sister/daughter Samara. The fourth part is told through the eyes of the surrounding characters in Mile End.
The Mystics of Mile End by Sigal Samuel is a book about Judaism, mysticism and how the two get affected by loss and grief. This is not a quick read, but a book which needs to be taken in and contemplated.
The characters in this book are rich and complex. Not only the three main characters of which some of the story is told through their eyes, but also the secondary characters. All have an interesting history, different viewpoint and perspective and each individual is a world of their own.
This is a very rich story, I had to do some mental gymnastics to get my head wrapped around the mysticism concepts (which I was familiar with to begin with, but cannot claim to understand), but that is not a complaint. This is a meaningful story with great narrative, and, like the characters in the book, I’m sure we’ll all see something different in it.
For more reviews and bookish posts please visit: http://www.ManOfLaBook.com
The book is divided into four parts, the first three are told through the eyes of the main characters Lev, his father David, and sister/daughter Samara. The fourth part is told through the eyes of the surrounding characters in Mile End.
The Mystics of Mile End by Sigal Samuel is a book about Judaism, mysticism and how the two get affected by loss and grief. This is not a quick read, but a book which needs to be taken in and contemplated.
The characters in this book are rich and complex. Not only the three main characters of which some of the story is told through their eyes, but also the secondary characters. All have an interesting history, different viewpoint and perspective and each individual is a world of their own.
This is a very rich story, I had to do some mental gymnastics to get my head wrapped around the mysticism concepts (which I was familiar with to begin with, but cannot claim to understand), but that is not a complaint. This is a meaningful story with great narrative, and, like the characters in the book, I’m sure we’ll all see something different in it.
For more reviews and bookish posts please visit: http://www.ManOfLaBook.com
October 26, 2016
Mehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I don't know, this grabbed me in the first quarter, then took a sharp left out of nowhere. I really, truly enjoyed the first part of the book, getting to know the characters, sensing a mystery developing...but then it just dipped into some weird territory and became so disjointed that I felt like someone had come in and swapped the book out to a new one when I wasn't looking. Basically, this book made me feel like I was drunk, but not the good kind, like the "black-out-what-the-hell-did-I-say" kind.
While an interesting premise, I won't be revisiting this story. It went from believable to other-worldly too fast with no segue or explanation. That said, my confusion could come from a general ignorance of Hebrew/Jewish culture as the book centered around Jewish Orthodox beliefs and practices.
Meh.
My (very complex and intelligent) Rating System*:
* - HATED IT, and most likely hate-read it
** - Meh, mostly a waste of time but not completely awful
*** - A perfectly good story, but I wouldn't want or need to read it again.
**** - A very good story that I would recommend to friends and keep on my bookshelf
***** - HOLYSH*TTHISBLEWMYMIND-can't-wait-to-read-it-again book
*subject to change on a whim
While an interesting premise, I won't be revisiting this story. It went from believable to other-worldly too fast with no segue or explanation. That said, my confusion could come from a general ignorance of Hebrew/Jewish culture as the book centered around Jewish Orthodox beliefs and practices.
Meh.
My (very complex and intelligent) Rating System*:
* - HATED IT, and most likely hate-read it
** - Meh, mostly a waste of time but not completely awful
*** - A perfectly good story, but I wouldn't want or need to read it again.
**** - A very good story that I would recommend to friends and keep on my bookshelf
***** - HOLYSH*TTHISBLEWMYMIND-can't-wait-to-read-it-again book
*subject to change on a whim
June 17, 2015
This is a profoundly creative tale about mysticism, faith, and the power of strong beliefs to build or tear apart families. Set in a Hasidic neighborhood in Canada, three surviving members of a family struggle with their individual and collective views of religious belief and orthodoxy; while each is profoundly drawn to religious mysticism although never all at the same time. The book is filled with Talmudic tales, Holocaust terrors and Biblical stories that combine to create a fantasy-like feeling complete with evil incarnate and wise kings. The author has done an exquisite job of weaving science and religion, especially binary systems and the use of sound in prayer. This is a book that will engage readers on many levels, all while telling multiple family stories across several decades. The book is a real treat and not to be missed. I received my copy from the publisher through edelweiss.
Read
September 8, 2016Wonderful book exploring mysticism brought about through loss, grief.
All the characters were fabulous, each served an important role in the exploration of mysticism as they forged their own conclusions. Their challenges, questions, quests fed the soul of mysticism.
The heart of the story is mysticism, its many forms and shapes merge together to make this story mesmerizing. The story touches upon mysticism bleeding through mathematics, religion, science, linguistics, relationships, grief, joy and much more.
Samuel brilliantly creates a story of high interest, thought-provoking. Evident this wasn't an easy story or subject matter to illustrate in such a tangible manner, however Samuel managed successfully.
Wonderful story engaging the reader to explore their beliefs or at least asking themselves several questions such as the meaning of life.
Visit Raven Haired Girl for more reviews & giveaways
All the characters were fabulous, each served an important role in the exploration of mysticism as they forged their own conclusions. Their challenges, questions, quests fed the soul of mysticism.
The heart of the story is mysticism, its many forms and shapes merge together to make this story mesmerizing. The story touches upon mysticism bleeding through mathematics, religion, science, linguistics, relationships, grief, joy and much more.
Samuel brilliantly creates a story of high interest, thought-provoking. Evident this wasn't an easy story or subject matter to illustrate in such a tangible manner, however Samuel managed successfully.
Wonderful story engaging the reader to explore their beliefs or at least asking themselves several questions such as the meaning of life.
Visit Raven Haired Girl for more reviews & giveaways
April 16, 2016
This is a book like few others that I have read--partly due to the subject matter of the Kabbalah that I don't know that much about. But the book also had a number of characters not often encountered in novels--a Hassidic man who is looked at as an outsider due to his artistic renderings of biblical teachings, a Holocaust survivor whose wife only communicates in mathematical formulas. Lest I make this novel sound too much like a bunch of Jewish eccentrics, at the heart of the story is a brother and sister and their religious studies professor father, all trying to find meaning in the world, fluctuating between science and religion. While I am not sure all the religious themes came together perfectly for me in the end, I appreciated this first novelist's bold attempt to render a very original story that made me think long after the book was done.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 156 reviews