David and Jonathan [Hardcover]

Cynthia Voigt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1992

To preserve his relationship with his best friend, Jonathan, Hank becomes enmeshed in Jonathan's struggle to save his cousin, David, a Holocaust survivor, from his horrific memories of the war and his self-destructive behavior.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This could be the problem novel to end all problem novels: suicide, anti-Semitism, homoerotic fantasies, family rifts, botched abortions, alcoholism, life-and-death operations--all figure on- or offstage in the Newbery winner's newest. At its center, the Holocaust; as its frames, the grown protagonists' experiences in Vietnam. When the central narrative opens, the Korean War is raging while another battle is about to erupt in Cape Cod, home to best friends Henry Marr and Jonathan Nafiche. Both young men are gratingly precocious; the latter, with his extemporaneously invented parables, nearly parodies the young geniuses of Chaim Potok. Their formidable intellects provide thin armor when the Nafiches take in David Steintodt, a 20-year-old presumed to be the sole relative to have survived the Holocaust. (And although the direct discussion of the Holocaust is brief, it is inaccurate, with David telling Henry and Jonathan that the Nazis made prostitutes of all young and pretty Jewish women in the camps.) David, driven by a powerful death wish, permanently damages almost everyone in his wake. Sadly, the weight of her characters' many crises and unarticulated encounters with the profound overwhelms even Voigt's prodigious talents. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 9-12-- A complex novel, set in the 1950s, that explores what it was like to be Jewish in the years following World War II--the sorrow of losing one's family, the guilt of having survived when so many did not, and the religious doubt such tragedy evokes. Sixteen-year-old Henry, a New England WASP, finds that his close friendship with Jonathan is threatened when Jonathan's older cousin David, an emotionally disturbed Holocaust survivor, moves in with the Nafiche family. Having lived through the war, David is now intent on suicide. He seems to despise both boys, yet constantly demands their attention. The troubled young man's presence takes a terrible toll on all the Nafiches and changes Henry's life. Voigt's writing is intelligent and witty, but her voice is inconsistent. Both Henry and Jonathan are extremely well-read and constantly volley literary quotations and allusions back and forth. Their perspective is unconvincingly mature as they grapple with the heavy subject matter. Although they are said to be very different, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish who is speaking. The main narration is framed by short scenes of the friends in Vietnam in 1967, a device that underscores the coming-of-age and impact-of-war themes. There is a great deal more talk than action, and the questions raised are difficult ones. Dense and intense, this book will require patience from its readers, but will also give them much to consider. --Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, County of Henrico Public Library, Richmond, VA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 14 and up
  
• Hardcover: 249 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Trade (April 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0590451650
• ISBN-13: 978-0590451659
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,209,135 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Cynthia Voigt won the Newbery Medal for Dicey's Song and the Newbery Honor Award for A Solitary Blue, both part of the beloved Tillerman Cycle. She is also the author of many other celebrated books for middle-grade and teen readers, including Izzy, Willy-Nilly and Jackaroo. She was awarded the Margaret A. Edwards Award in 1995 for her work in literature, and the Katahdin Award in 2004. She lives in Maine.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a totally unique book, May 11, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: David and Jonathan (Point) (Paperback)

I've read David and Jonathan over and over again, and every time I get so much more out of it. It's the kind of book you can't just read once because it's so wonderfully written and it has so much to say. My friend wrote to me, after I told her to read David and Jonathan, "At 16, I could only really grasp enough of it to realize how much I truly didn't understand. I don't read books over very often... I am obviously going to be reading this many more times, however. It has been a long time since I read a book I couldn't understand. I don't regret it for a moment. Thank you." David and Jonathan is definitely not just a young adult book, however it's advertised. It's a wonderful book for anyone who's interested in relationships and how they grow, develop, and are strengthened

4.0 out of 5 stars A Powerful Book, March 24, 2010

By 

Nick Costa (Burlingame, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: David and Jonathan (Point) (Paperback)

This is a powerful and unique book about friendship and family and how things fall apart. The topic of homosexuality is touched upon and I thought the author's positive approach to it was refreshing. I think Henry was in love with both David and Jonathan, but he did not know how to express those feelings. He and Jon had a very deep emotional bond and I liked how in the end Jonathana accepted Henry. Lots of tough subject matters but overall a great book to read!

5.0 out of 5 stars Confusing at first, but a wonderful book, October 8, 2000

A Kid's Review

This review is from: David and Jonathan (Hardcover)

It can be confusing at first, but it is an AMAZING book! It deals with controversial subjects like religion and death camps and homosexual urges, so it's definately for more mature readers only. I thought that this was a GREAT book! I LOVE this book and I would suggest it for anyone who enjoys reading.