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The Finkler Questionby Howard Jacobson |
Janet Kolodner This book is an hysterical comedy about anti-Semitism.
A quintessential goy who grew up with his Jewish friend, Finkler, and never really
understood the shared understandings of the tribe, decides that maybe he is Jewish. He never
does come to fully understand the Jews, but he spends a lot of time thinking about and studying
these strange people (he calls them Finklers; he doesn't want to seem an anti-Semite) and even
falls in love and moves in with one and adopts all kinds of Jewish customs. But he's never really
comfortable, whether because he can't become comfortable or because they won't let him
in (for you to figure out). There's a ton of stereotyping in here, mostly as seen from the
outside, and the stereotyping seen from the outside is very funny -- high-brow funny
(though the self-loathing Jews part of it is a bit tedious). It's so funny because it touches
a lot of nerves, and it can be uncomfortable, because it's often hard to tell the difference
between interest in the Jews and benevolent anti-Semitism. I should admit right now that
I didn't understand the end, but I laughed a lot through the rest.
Rating:****
