This literary debut by Sigal Samuel is reminiscent of Nicole Krauss’s The History of Love and Myla Goldberg’s Bee Season.
Four distinct voices weave together the tale of a dysfunctional Montreal family obsessed with climbing the Kabbalah’s Tree of Life. The Meyers are widowed David, a professor of Jewish Mysticism, but not necessarily a believer in religion; his daughter Samara who secretly lights Shabbat candles and is studying for her Bat Mitzvah; and his eleven-year-old son Lev, keen to help their eccentric neighbor build the Tree of Life out of garbage. Long-held family secrets square off against faith and secularity in this story, written with extraordinary heart and intelligence.
The recent starred Library Journal review says,
"VERDICT Every character in this outstanding first novel is searching for a reason to exist—not just the Meyer family, but also their neighbors and close friends. The need for human relationships and mysticism’s relationship to life impel them forward into very questionable actions that might have disastrous consequences. This heart-stopping narrative will keep readers glued until the very end."
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– Annie