Review by Mom14043 -- Gates to Tangier by Mois Benarroch
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub review of Gates to Tangier by Mois Benarroch.]
Gates to Tangier is a work of fiction by Mois Benarroch about a family that discovers their father had been hiding an incredible secret from them, and it is only revealed to them after his death. The secret is they have a half brother living in Morocco, and they are required to go and seek this brother out in order to receive their inheritance. The brothers and sisters of this family have different motives for getting the inheritance because of their different occupations and needs for the money. The book chronicles their journey through their eyes and gives you insights into each of the people on the journey as well as their feelings about each piece of news as it is revealed to them.
I really enjoyed reading this book. The writing in the book is very formal and can be difficult to read at times, but once you get into the swing of the language it's easy to read. There are point of view switches between the characters, which some readers may have a hard time following. However, in my opinion I think it really adds to the characters and depth of the story. I particularly like that there is a point of view for the dead brother, I really like seeing his point of view on his death through his eyes, and his story in this book as well. He is mentioned often, and in high regard. It really makes the reader understand how special he was, and also how his absence affects his family. I also learned a great deal about the Jewish faith and their different words and beliefs from this story. I looked up the words that were unfamiliar to me to truly understand the characters in this story.
There are also wonderful little vignettes between chapters that lighten up the mood of the book. They are both inspirational and beautiful, and it was one of my favorite parts of the whole book. Those little nuggets of beauty between the chapters. My favorite was a father talking to his son about life and death. These were the only thing that deviated from the formal speech, and it really worked well for the story.
Gates to Tangier is a work of fiction by Mois Benarroch about a family that discovers their father had been hiding an incredible secret from them, and it is only revealed to them after his death. The secret is they have a half brother living in Morocco, and they are required to go and seek this brother out in order to receive their inheritance. The brothers and sisters of this family have different motives for getting the inheritance because of their different occupations and needs for the money. The book chronicles their journey through their eyes and gives you insights into each of the people on the journey as well as their feelings about each piece of news as it is revealed to them.
I really enjoyed reading this book. The writing in the book is very formal and can be difficult to read at times, but once you get into the swing of the language it's easy to read. There are point of view switches between the characters, which some readers may have a hard time following. However, in my opinion I think it really adds to the characters and depth of the story. I particularly like that there is a point of view for the dead brother, I really like seeing his point of view on his death through his eyes, and his story in this book as well. He is mentioned often, and in high regard. It really makes the reader understand how special he was, and also how his absence affects his family. I also learned a great deal about the Jewish faith and their different words and beliefs from this story. I looked up the words that were unfamiliar to me to truly understand the characters in this story.
There are also wonderful little vignettes between chapters that lighten up the mood of the book. They are both inspirational and beautiful, and it was one of my favorite parts of the whole book. Those little nuggets of beauty between the chapters. My favorite was a father talking to his son about life and death. These were the only thing that deviated from the formal speech, and it really worked well for the story.
My favorite character was the little sister because she really had the heart of the family in mind. She was so special and so amazing in so many ways and always had very deep and beautiful thoughts about things that were acknowledged by the family. Her mind is very insightful, and that is acknowledged by her brothers. There was a twist in the story that was TOTALLY unexpected and lends so much to the plot changing. It really had me turning pages after, and made it hard to put down. I literally read half this book in one sitting. It's such an interesting twist in the story that is left unresolved. I hope that Mr. Benarroch continues the story, because it's riveting and draws the reader into his world. I really want to see what happens next.
I gave this work a 3 out of 4 stars due to the formality of the language and the readability that would not be understandable or enjoyed by all readers. It lends well to the translation into many languages, but takes away from the smoothness of the read itself, and takes away from the reader feeling something for the characters. I think this book is great for people who love to read about family secrets as well as those who would like to learn a little more about the Jewish faith through a work of fiction. There were some sex scenes that were described in loose detail so if you don't like that, then you should probably avoid this book.
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Gates to Tangier
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