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Questioning Return: A Novel
A year in Jerusalem questioning American Jews who "return" to Israel and to traditional religion changes Wendy Goldberg's life forever. Every year, 700,000 Americans visit Israel. Wendy Goldberg spends a year in Jerusalem questioning the lives of American Jews who do "Aliya"—a return both to Israel itself and to traditional religious practices. Are they sincere? Are they happier? The unexpected answers and Wendy's experiences (a bus bombing, a funeral, an unexpected suicide, a love affair, and a lawsuit) lead her to reconsider her own true Jewish identity. The ambitious graduate student is certain she's on the path to academic glory. But from the moment her plane takes off Wendy is confronted with unanswerable questions of faith and identity. As she becomes immersed in the rhythm of Israeli life, her sense of distance from it fades. Her ability to be an outside observer terminates abruptly when a student commits a horrible act immediately after his interview with her. Wendy is not sure how or if she is implicated in his action, but in her search for understanding, she is led to knowledge and love in unforeseen places. Beth Kissileff , a resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has received fellowships from Yaddo and the National Endowment for the Humanities. She has taught at Carleton College, the University of Minnesota, Smith College, and Mount Holyoke College. Her fiction and nonfiction on Israeli cultural, literary, and religious topics appears regularly in many publications including the New York Times, The Forward , and The Jerusalem Post . She also the editor of a new book, Reading Beginnings .
- GenresFiction
374 pages, Paperback
Published November 15, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 2, 2018
I feel like I'm ending the year with a gracious star rating. This book could definitely be a bit plodding. I particularly didn't like how the author used her character's internal thoughts to tell, not show her development. The rambling, theoretical conversations could also be a bit overwhelming. But subjectively, it certainly hit all of my sweet spots.
The plot involves a young Jewish American woman who comes to Israel on a fullbright scholarship to study her baalei t'shuvah country people, aka more secular Jews who have chosen to become Orthodox. She's writing a dissertation for the religion program at Princeton about the narratives these people tell and the possible fault lines between their old and new identities.
I've complained in the past about books that feel too slight in covering their subject matters; here, we have everything and the kitchen sink. We start with Wendy arriving in Jerusalem, and we follow her both through personal and professional avenues. By default she becomes more religious--not in the ultra-Orthodox way of her subjects, but simply by making connections and living in the Jewish state. So many people go to Jerusalem to nurture their Jewish identities, and I feel like I should point out something that author Beth Kissileff largely ignores--many of these spiritual questers come from Diaspora. There's a lot of attention paid to the fact that one cannot immerse themselves as fully in Judaism, say in America, but I still believe that Diaspora Jews make Israel's Judaism more multi-faceted.
It's easy to look at Wendy as my sort of Jewish identity battery--she has enough of a cultural background to play Jewish geography, forge relationships and feel somewhat comfortable intellectually. (She also has that photographic memory skill for literary quotes, which makes me so jealous. :P) A lot of that has to do with her academic background as well, and I appreciate that she also contends with her fears about her career and schisms with her parents about where she should go next. Wendy's not a perfect character--she can be pretty judgmental at times, and a woman scorned in her romantic life--but throughout the novel she grows as a person.
From the cover copy, one (or at least I) might assume that the bulk of the plot would be given over to a dramatic event concerning one of her interview subjects--he kills himself shortly after they meet, and Wendy must contend with guilt, plus the possibility of a lawsuit. In the grand scheme of things it's not actually so big--the death doesn't even occur until halfway into the novel--and although it changes Wendy's trajectory, it doesn't completely derail her. I really appreciated that. It felt real.
I also think that Kissilieff gave great consideration to the fact that all Jews are unique. She has Wendy encounter a lot of them, whether personally and professionally, and I felt like everyone came off as an individual rather than a stereotype. Quite the feat, especially as Wendy comes to observe that some haredi yeshivot work hard to make their pupils into yes-folk. But in general, Orhtodoxy and religiosity are much more nuanced here.
The descriptions of Jerusalem life, particularly involving restaurants and eateries, was absolutely vivid. The story takes place in the mid-90s, and includes some homicide bombing bus attacks where a couple of the fullbright scholars die. Overall these politics, including Wendy's slight ruminations on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, are a bit of a footnote. But I still kinda wish that I could be Wendy--asking these Jewish questions, having these Jewish experiences, though without all of the pressure of interviewing strangers and meeting academic deadlines. :P I close out 2017 thinking about how much of my Jewish expression comes through reading novels (and more nonfiction next/this year!) I don't mean to stop, or dismiss this, and I'm certainly not packing my bags for Jerusalem. But it's still a reminder that the more traditional option of interpersonal connections to foster Jewish identity is still out there.
The plot involves a young Jewish American woman who comes to Israel on a fullbright scholarship to study her baalei t'shuvah country people, aka more secular Jews who have chosen to become Orthodox. She's writing a dissertation for the religion program at Princeton about the narratives these people tell and the possible fault lines between their old and new identities.
I've complained in the past about books that feel too slight in covering their subject matters; here, we have everything and the kitchen sink. We start with Wendy arriving in Jerusalem, and we follow her both through personal and professional avenues. By default she becomes more religious--not in the ultra-Orthodox way of her subjects, but simply by making connections and living in the Jewish state. So many people go to Jerusalem to nurture their Jewish identities, and I feel like I should point out something that author Beth Kissileff largely ignores--many of these spiritual questers come from Diaspora. There's a lot of attention paid to the fact that one cannot immerse themselves as fully in Judaism, say in America, but I still believe that Diaspora Jews make Israel's Judaism more multi-faceted.
It's easy to look at Wendy as my sort of Jewish identity battery--she has enough of a cultural background to play Jewish geography, forge relationships and feel somewhat comfortable intellectually. (She also has that photographic memory skill for literary quotes, which makes me so jealous. :P) A lot of that has to do with her academic background as well, and I appreciate that she also contends with her fears about her career and schisms with her parents about where she should go next. Wendy's not a perfect character--she can be pretty judgmental at times, and a woman scorned in her romantic life--but throughout the novel she grows as a person.
From the cover copy, one (or at least I) might assume that the bulk of the plot would be given over to a dramatic event concerning one of her interview subjects--he kills himself shortly after they meet, and Wendy must contend with guilt, plus the possibility of a lawsuit. In the grand scheme of things it's not actually so big--the death doesn't even occur until halfway into the novel--and although it changes Wendy's trajectory, it doesn't completely derail her. I really appreciated that. It felt real.
I also think that Kissilieff gave great consideration to the fact that all Jews are unique. She has Wendy encounter a lot of them, whether personally and professionally, and I felt like everyone came off as an individual rather than a stereotype. Quite the feat, especially as Wendy comes to observe that some haredi yeshivot work hard to make their pupils into yes-folk. But in general, Orhtodoxy and religiosity are much more nuanced here.
The descriptions of Jerusalem life, particularly involving restaurants and eateries, was absolutely vivid. The story takes place in the mid-90s, and includes some homicide bombing bus attacks where a couple of the fullbright scholars die. Overall these politics, including Wendy's slight ruminations on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, are a bit of a footnote. But I still kinda wish that I could be Wendy--asking these Jewish questions, having these Jewish experiences, though without all of the pressure of interviewing strangers and meeting academic deadlines. :P I close out 2017 thinking about how much of my Jewish expression comes through reading novels (and more nonfiction next/this year!) I don't mean to stop, or dismiss this, and I'm certainly not packing my bags for Jerusalem. But it's still a reminder that the more traditional option of interpersonal connections to foster Jewish identity is still out there.
May 4, 2017
See my review at http://www.thereportergroup.org/Artic...
July 8, 2017
Loved it. Me, I'm all about the questions. Here's my thoughts on the book (no spoilers, I promise): https://readingfaith.org/just-keep-as...
August 25, 2019
Very heavy-handed and full of rambling psychological monologues. Too much verbose exposition. Too much telling rather than showing. Interesting subject matter, but poor execution.
November 4, 2016
read a pre-release draft. great to see it in print.
November 25, 2016
Wendy Goldberg is a Ph.D. candidate writing a dissertation on "ba'alei teshuvah" & how they came to embrace Orthodox Jewish observance. She focuses on American Jews in Israel & is spending a year in Israel, interviewing & researching. In the process, she learns a lot , also about herself. The book is rather "talky."
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December 14, 2016"The act and art of questioning and the essence of the questioner are central to Beth Kissileff’s new novel, Questioning Return." Review by Renita Last for the Jewish Book Council.
January 10, 2017
This book is about the adventures of a Ph.D candidate in Jerusalem; her dissertation focuses on Jews who become Orthodox, and she has many adventures along the way. I generally found this book to be engaging; i was especially surprised by many of the plot twists.
December 5, 2016
An enjoyable read and an important topic. This book takes you through the protagonist's struggle to find the balance between meaningful spiritual development and remaining true to herself.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews