Golden Country

Golden Country is by far the best book that I have read in a long time. Gilmore has created a large cast of compelling characters whose lives I immediately wanted to know more about. Moreover, it is a beautifully written book. It's hard to believe that this is a debut novel. I look forward to her next book.

Jennifer Gilmore's beautifully written novel transports the reader to early 20th century New York and beyond in this intricately woven story of three Jewish immigrant families. The reader is swept into this facinating, witty, descriptive and historical novel. This is a must read. Golden Country has a heartbeat, it's a real page turner!

Golden Country is terrific--a definite must. Gilmore is a wonderful writer with an amazing ability to develop such strong characters and images in the book that they live with you even after you've finished the book. There's the dazzle of broadway; the rawness of Jewish mafia; and the toughness of immigrant survival. Gilmore's "golden" touch is to develop ironies about the American dream through such unforgetable, fascinating characters. It's a classic, not to be missed.

Jennifer Gilmore's first novel is a stunning debut. From start to finish, Golden Country draws the reader into the inter-twining lives of the Bloom, Brodsky and Verdonik families, first and second generation Jewish immigrants raised in the "golden country" of America. Gilmore has developed brilliant, complex characters - ranging from tragically comedic Sarah, an alcoholic full of regret of how her life turned out, to Francis, the larger-than-life go-getter who doesn't let her "frumpiness"" get in the way of success. Gilmore skillfully utilizes humor, tradegy and American history to weave her story. You will laugh out loud, cry and in the end, wish for more of this wonderful novel.

"For you," one of the characters in Jennifer Gilmore's debut novel tells his sons, "I promise you a golden country." And in the 1920s in New York, the possibilities America seems to offer its new immigrants truly do appear golden, endless. Joseph works as a door-to-door salesman, all the while slaving away in bathtubs at home, trying to invent the perfect cleaning product. Frances translates her neighbors' Yiddish letters into a new language - English - for them to send back to Europe for the family left behind. Meanwhile, Solomon falls in with gangsters, bringing shame to his family. All the while, babies are born, inventions are perfected, dreams slowly expand - with no less than Irving Berlin, the invention of the television, Mae West and the 1939 World's Fair as backdrops. With her meticulous knowledge of 1920s - 1950s American life and Grace Paley-esque gift for dialogue, Jennifer Gilmore has crafted a grand, glittering novel that is universal in its themes of family heartbreak, hope and redemption. Golden Country is the best, most seductive book I've read this year.