Customer Reviews

The German Bride: A Novel

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In The German Bride, Joanna Hershon proves once more that she's one of the most unique and compelling voices in literature today--as well as one of the most daring. Her third and most accomplished novel not only explores surprising territory--the lives of German-Jewish merchants in post Civil War Santa Fe--but does it with trademark Hershon grace, elegance, and the perfect touch of spine-tingling surrealism. I found Eva Frank's unlikely journey in turns touching, illuminating, humorous and--in the end--all but impossible to put down, and the colorful (and well-researched) cast of characters that surround her--heavy-stakes gamblers, stiff-lipped French nuns, sharpshooting brothel madams, and of course the fellow Jews with whom Eva shares her Passover meals) make every chapter a discovery. I can't recommend this book highly enough!

I loved this book! Joanna Hersshon does a marvelous job of describing the Western landscape as well as the Jewish experience in America during the 1860s. It's amazing that no one has covered the subject before a novel. Her descriptions of the Southwest are amazing as well as her character development. I highly recommend "The German Bride"

As a resident of Santa Fe, I was eager to read this novel. I have taken a course in Jewish Santa Fe and the merchant families who had settled here in the mid-1800's, and had grown along with the community. These merchants had prospered by trading with the native peoples AND by securing Army contracts. Many of the men in these merchant families had gone back to Germany for brides and had brought them to this new, wild land. As the century turned from 19th to 20th, many of these families moved Back East to a more cultured life than the wild west of Santa Fe could offer.

I expected Hershon to write the "conventional" story, that of young German bride, brought to Santa Fe and prospering along with her husband.
Instead, she writes of a misalliance, a marriage between a young woman and a profligate man, who gambled, drank, and caroused both his own money and that of his brother, with whom he worked.

This is quite a story she writes; earning easily the five stars it's been awarded so far by all the reviewers.

In Hershon's third novel, THE GERMAN BRIDE-- (I have read them all and enjoyed them immensely)-- she takes on new historical narrative territory, moving from a sensual romance in Germany to the truly Wild West of early (barely settled) Santa Fe-- the depiction of action here is visceral, as real as any I've read-- it made me feel the grit under my fingernails, made me sympathize with Eva's displacement, and her longing for her earlier life, while she takes on all the difficulties that come her way, including her problematic husband. Even today, women will feel great empathy for this character, "Eva," and look forward to what Joanna Hershon might write next!

I loved THE OUTSIDE OF AUGUST by Joanna Hershon, so I jumped at the opportunity to read and review her current work of fiction, THE GERMAN BRIDE. Although I didn't like the latter as much as I did the former, both books are written beautifully. The one big difference is that while THE OUTSIDE OF AUGUST is set in contemporary times, THE GERMAN BRIDE is a historical novel, taking place in the 1860s. There's almost an epic-like feel to it, with the story set initially in Germany and then moving on to America.

Eva Frank and her sister, Henriette, are two young ladies who are having their portraits painted at the start of the story. They are both unmarried and live a life of ease with their parents. Henriette is the older of the two, but it is Eva who catches the eye of the painter, and soon the two are having a secret love affair.

After a tragic accident occurs one night, which fills Eva with tremendous guilt, she hastily marries (after a very brief courtship) a Jewish German merchant, Abraham Shein, who claims he has built a fortune in America. She leaves her home in Germany for the unknown American Wild West with a man she barely knows, hoping to forget the tragedy and move on with her life.

While she thinks she has escaped this terrible incident, it still haunts Eva in many ways, as does her affair with the painter. She also realizes, after many years of hardship in America, that what Abraham promised in terms of a home life of comfort and ease was not to be. She struggles with her marriage, her desire to create a baby, and her need to live in some sort of luxury instead of the ramshackle place they have in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It doesn't help that her husband is rarely home, and it isn't for a long while that Eva understands what is enticing him away.

While the reader may not connect with the characters, one will agree that Hershon does a magnificent job bringing to life the backdrop of the American West. One can imagine the hardships that immigrants faced from the time they left the port in Europe to the moment they set foot on American soil, often dreaming of a better life but never finding it. The author uses Eva to paint the story of the Jewish German immigrant, in particular those who settled in New Mexico and the harsh lives they led to achieve some sort of a livelihood.

I can imagine that Eva's story doesn't end here, and I would be delighted if Hershon continues it in a sequel. Although difficult to read at times, I appreciated the beauty of Hershon's writing and her success in capturing this part of American history through the fictional lives of Eva Frank and Abraham Shein.

--- Reviewed by Marie Hashima Lofton

THE GERMAN BRIDE by Joanna Hershon
June 28, 2008

Amazon Rating: 3.5/5 stars

THE GERMAN BRIDE takes the reader to 1860's Germany, and then on to America, as a young woman tries to escape a tragedy that she blames herself for.

Eva Frank and her sister Henriette are having their portraits painted in their home in Germany, when Eva and the artist find a mutual interest in each other. The two embark on a secret love affair, kept hidden even from Henriette, until one fateful night when Henriette discovers the truth. It is this knowledge that Eva believes brought tragedy to their family. She immediately breaks off her relationship with the painter, and then meets a Jewish German merchant who has built a fortune in America. She marries Abraham Shein after a quick courtship, and follows him back to America and the Wild West of New Mexico, hoping to escape the tragedy that will ultimately haunt her.

Eva's troubles follow her to America. Her life there is not what she had expected. After living a life of ease, she is now living in near poverty. The house Abraham had promised her is not being built for some reason, and she feels alone. However, she meets a man that in some ways will change her life in America, who will be the turning point for Eva who has yet to find any happiness in her new homeland.

I didn't enjoy THE GERMAN BRIDE as much as I had her previous book, THE OUTSIDE OF AUGUST, but I am still recommending this book. It is beautifully written and fans of serious fiction (this is not chick lit or a beach read) will appreciate Hershon's efforts in writing an immigrant story that I found of great interest. I am a fan of historical fiction, in particular stories that do involve the immigrant experience, and while I didn't quite connect with Eva, I was still interested in hearing her story, to find out what would become of her and her husband.

The story of a young Jewish woman from a wealthy family in Germany who falls in love with a painter. Their match will never be accepted, but they continue to secretly see each other, leading to a ill-fated tragedy. Punishing herself, the young woman quickly marries a man who claims to be making a great fortune in America. However she finds he has a lot of secrets and eventually she is forced to make a life for herself free of him and free of blame.

Joanna Hershon's captivating story is really two tales, racing along in parallel: Eva's physical journey from Berlin to Santa Fe, rife with hardships; and her emotional journey as she struggles to face life's challenges with bravery and character and still, ultimately, remain true to herself. Through Hershon's eloquent, passionate telling, I came to care deeply for Eva, finding her experiences, both internal and external, at turns heartwarming and heartbreaking.

This is the story of Eva Frank. As a teenager, she had an affair with a painter. Her sister found out and, then, died in childbirth. Eva blames herself for the loss for many years.

Eva marries the next interested man. He takes her to America and on an arduous journey to Santa Fe. She never complains, but accepts this as a consequence for causing her sister's death with her immoral behavior.

Her husband gambles their money away while she lives in poverty. She has pregnancies, but the babies die. She is unhappy, but won't leave her husband.

She becomes pregnant, again, and the child survives. She ends up leaving Santa Fe for San Francisco and is determined to make a life for herself and her infant daughter. I liked the end when she stood up for herself and went away. She seemed to let go of that guilt of years before.

I fell in love with this remarkable novel and look forward to a second read. I found it to be totally engaging with an intensely absorbing narrative. The writing is gorgeous--at once lyrical and laid bare. These characters are real in the best sense--nuanced, surprising and complex but amazingly full humor and grace. The struggles of these remarkable pioneers are rendered with much insight. The scope and specificity of the landscape completely transported me. The German Bride is a page-turning, deliciously unconventional romance, full of intricate detail set in an absolutely fascinating time and place. At once a literary joy and a moving, compelling, sexy, dramatic ride. I am huge fan of Joanna Hershon's work. She writes from a woman's point of view with uncanny clarity and unforced sensuality that is most appreciated by this reader.