The vacation community of Kaaterskill Falls is dominated by townies and the Kirshner community of Jews, who leave Washington Heights every summer and spend the summer in this lovely New York town. This book chronicles the lives of the Kirshner Jews, intertwining stories of the Rav, the leader of the community, and his struggles with his two sons, with stories of a Jewish woman, Elizabeth, who struggles with the operation of a store and the unexpected birth of a new child. Minor characters flesh out the feel of a Jewish community in the 1970s.

The writing and story telling is so smooth that you come to enjoy each character, and to look forward to their exposition. Characters are vivid -- even if they do not develop much.

The book falls short on several levels. First, you do not learn anything useful or telling about Jewish life in America. The Kirshners are in many senses a fringe community, but not a particularly interesting one. Their struggles with acculturization are not well told, and their conflicts with the townies are muted and uninteresting. Second, you do not learn anything fun or useful about vacations in America -- this very much wastes the backdrop of Kaaterskill Falls. Some plot elements seem forced -- a mysterious car accident seems to have no real plot purpose.

This book is ultimately about relationships -- sons and fathers, brothers, husbands, wives, kids. It is about orthodoxy and rule bound religion and what it means to be a good person. The book is a good read and fun, but stops short of penetrating any great questions or developing any character too well, too deep, with too much meaning.

Although this novel has received excellent reviews in all the major newspapers, it does not live up to its supposed reputation. I had never read either of Ms. Goodman's previous literary efforts, but decided to read it on the basis of the reviews in the New York Times. Since the chief plot of the work revolves arournd the so called Kirshner community theWashington Heights section of New York, I was also interested in reading it as I too have lived there for the last 10 years. Its no secret that the Kirshners are in real life the Breuers community of Washington Heights known as KAJ.In my opinion the book fails miserably in conveying to the reader the distinctivness of this refuggee Orthodox German community as compared to other ultra Orthodox communities in lets say Lakewood, NJ,, Williamsburg in Brooklyn, NY or other strictly observant communities in Riverdale, NY, and other areas of greater NY. What are the distinguishing features of the Kirshners ? What is their theology,all about, whats is their distinctive religious theology. Rabbi Kirshner must do more than supervise kosher bakeries and answer Halachic inquiries (in real life such functions were carried out by the dayanim of the Breuer community that is the ecclesiastical judges, not the rabbi).Sure we gain tidbits of insight about the community that they are German in origin, anti-Zionist in political orientation and dress in a modern albeit conservative manner. But I failed to gain much insight to their inner spiritual life, to theior spiritual beliefs and similiar concepts.In fact Goodman could just as well been describing some modern Orthodox communities in Teaneck, NJ, Kew Garden Hills, NY and Paramus, NJ , with the omission of 2 or 3 minor details. I find the characters to be pretty shallow and morose, does anyone have a sense of humor ? In addition Ms. Goodman makes numerous factual errors about ultra Orthodox Jewish life. Even a committed Modern Orthodox Jew would not eat Hebrew National products in 1976. Shipping kosher meat with non Jews and non religious Jews would present some serious problems in a ultra Orthodox community. Eating dairy on Friday nights is just not done in any Orthodox communities. But as I stated my chief criticism is the lack of understanding of what the Kirshners are all about.In fact the true drama of the Kirshners is how they fought and lost their battle to retain their distinctive ideology in the New world. Their philosophy of Torah Im Derech Eretz (mentioned just once in the novel) came under attack here by more conservative elements connected with the surviving remnants of the Lithuanian Talmudical academies.And rather than join with their neighbors at Yeshiva University with whom they shared a common outlook, they decided to abandon their ideology in favor a new foreign ideology seeking total withdrawal from the world of ideas and emotions. Rabbi Dr. Joseph Breuer the model for Rabbi Isaiah Kirshner did not leave a son as as his successor rather his subsequent successors have seen as their charge the morphing of this community into a good yeshiva community. This was the real drama of Washington Heights. Nevertheless Ms. Goodman has written a sensative story of several families and their spiritual struggle in a physical world.,

After reading both KAATERSKILL FALLS and PARADISE PARK, I feel that Ms. Goodman's talent lies in masterful characterization. From the lost yet loveable Sharon Speigelman of PARADISE PARK to Elizabeth Schulman and the surrounding Kaaterskill community, the characters are always interesting, always real!

KAATERSKILL FALLS is the story of a community of Orthodox Jews who migrate between Washington Heights (Brooklyn) and Kaaterskill Falls, an Upstate NY community, in the summer. This novel deals with this community's relationship with both non-Jews and non-religious Jews as well as with their own feelings toward their religion.

I have read some reviews saying that this book went nowhere. My perspective is somewhat different: Ms. Goodman writes here about a slice of life and life doesn't always have definite conclusions; it doesn't usually wrap itself up in a neat little ball. Plateaus may be reached but there are always new mountains to climb and ongoing decisions to be made.The novelist, in my opinion, is intentionally leaving us with questions, thus enhancing our imagination and perhaps even leaving the door open for a sequel (How about it, Ms. Goodman? I'd love to find out how Chani ever managed to explore her budding yet forbidden Zionist sentiments! How does she ever manage to get to Israel anyway?)

I look forward to reading Allegra Goodman's short stories next!

I couldn't understand the hype over this book. This was one of those books that gets good press and lands on a couple lists of best book of the year but for me, I thought it was rather simple. I think my biggest disconnect was my lack of knowledge of the Jewish culture. I honestly feel that if I was more aware of some of the family and cultural quirks, I would have enjoyed it much more.

Having read and enjoyed Kaaterskills Falls by Goodman, I eagerly looked forward to reading this. However, I found the book a let down. This story gave me the sense that Goodman had written parts of this as short stories and tried pasting them all together. There were two characters introduced midway through the book for several chapters who were then never heard from again. The first and second halves of the book don't seem to coherently fit together. I was left feeling like I got introduced to a bunch of different characters, but didn't really get to know any of them very well.

When I first started to read this book I wasn't sure if I was going to like it or even finish it. I had already read Ms Goodman's novels, KAATERSKILL FALLS and PARADISE PARK, both of which I thoroughly enjoyed. I just wasn't sure if this would be more of the same ... the same characters...the same issues. ...But I stuck with it because I enjoy her writing so much and I was pleasantly surprised!

THE FAMILY MARKOWITZ is a compilation of short stories describing different members of this complex family. From Rose, the family matriarch, to her sons, Henry and Ed, her daughters-in-law and her grandchildren, these stories span a period of about 15 years and delve into issues that face many families - religion, intermarriage, drug addiction, sibling rivalry, aging parents, etc. I didn't love all the characters but I don't think you were supposed to - they are "real" people, created so well by an author whose true talent lies in her masterful characteriztion as well as with her literary ability.

I'd like to pick up a copy of her first collection of stories, TOTAL IMMERSION, next!

I read this book in a university library in one sitting, feeling nauseated throughout the ordeal. I went to high school with Alegra Goodman, and although on paper she was the child genius, to those who put up with her she is just another over-educated and pretentious professor's kid -- an idiot savant. This book takes place in Hawaii, where she lived a very elitist and segregated life, and she although she peppers her text with Hawaiian terminology and places (like shopping malls, for crying out loud), it could really take place in any generic American suburb. And she renders Hawaii as some kind of Jewish enclave. That is a big laugh among her friends, who joked at the time of this book's publication the Jewish community in the state numbered around 50 people. She knows nothing about Hawaii (Hawaii is an extremely complicated place for ANYONE to write about, and it is more an oral than written culture and better communicated that way, as Paul Theroux has noted) but she really does not know much about Jewish life either. It is a kind of Hollywood screenwriterese version of Jewish life she presents, very generic and glib, and I would not be surprised if she got into comedy her book on the subject would be made into a film. Goodman is a kind of false virtuoso, and those of us who had to deal with her feel that the public and the publishing houses have been had. In fact, if one wants a better insight into Hawaii, buy the CD _Poi Dog with Crabs_ from the late comedian Rap Replinger -- it would be completely meaningless to anyone from outside of Hawaii, and that is my point. Now HE was a REAL creative genius, despite his lack of formal education, and not one of these Ivy-educated robots. Goodman's peers found it sad and amusing that this book has all the technical cliches that one finds in literature, but none of the truth and feeling and depth -- nothing. The fact is that Goodman really belongs in academia, where her parents were from, and where the formulaic reigns supreme. The scholars are liars, and her parents (especially her father) were infamous among their peers for their falseness and bias and pretense. The Goodmans are a kind of natural experiment of what happens when you take ordinary, mediocre people and raise them in a kind of rarified atmosphere of learning: the forms are all there, but none of the content; and these are old, stale forms. The publishing world should know better.

I loved Goodman's Kaaterskill Falls, which I thought was truly magical. I was not as pleased with this book. I felt that the stories were disjointed and the characters not particularly well-developed. I was hard pressed to hear the beautiful voice Goodman fashioned for herself in her later works.

Did she really write these stories at 21? I'm seething with envy. Allegra Goodman is everything the back cover promised - gifted, brilliant, swift to get to the truth of things. She's also full of gentle irony and very, very perceptive. I must, however, say that the fact that the stories in the book deal with almost exclusively Jewish characters may somewhat hinder its being enjoyed by readers unfamiliar with that religion and background. But, all in all, it is a wonderful collection of stories both intelligent and tremendously funny.

At first I liked Sharon and felt sympathy for her relationship with her parents. Then as she regressed in her personality as she progressed in her quest for spirituality, it became clear she inherited her selfishness from her father and her superficialty from her mother. She pursues men, endangered species, a theology degree, a women's center, orthodix Judaism and herbalism before "finding herself" and eventual happiness. Some of these ventures are believeble, some not. She certainly got what she deserved when she demanded a rambling opinion paper be accepted as a research paper. Why Sharon couldn't accept this reasonable requirement, yet would seek out her parents' opinion on her marriage to a man she barely knows, and they, not at all, is but one example of many that left me shaking my head.

I totally enjoyed Allegra Goodman's short stories, and thought that Kaaterskill Falls was an elegant, insightful work; therefore, I couldn't wait to buy her latest. What a complete disappointment! First, I just hated Sharon, the spiritual seeker in the novel. I realize that it isn't necessary to like the protagonist in order to get something out of a novel, but I had trouble getting beyond this character. Sharon embodies the worst of her generation (mine!). She is completely self centered and self serving, and all other characters exist simply to serve the narrator. This might be an interesting character study of a pathological egomaniac if Goodman had bothered to show how Sharon came to be the way she is, but all we get are hints of a lonely childhood. I hate to say this about a work by a gifted writer who features Jewish culture (my two stars are for this aspect--we need more writers like this) but I cannot recommend this book to anyone!

"Paradise Park" purports to be about Sharon Spiegelman's search for God which eventually leads her to Orthodox Judaism, marriage and a baby. At the end of the book she encounters the man who had abandoned her at the beginning of the book...could a sequel be far behind? Dancer that she is, she just seems to keep changing partners.
Throughout the book, Sharon never matures: she merely changes direction. Her marriage and motherhood seem very unfulfilling despite what we are led to believe.

On the up side, Allegra Goodman's depiction of the various religious and social organizations through which Sharon tries to find God are depicted with honesty and wit. None of them, even Judaism, are held up to be perfection.
I just don't think I've ever met a character that I wanted so much to shake and say "Grow up!"