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The Jewel Trader of Pegu: A Novel

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I was delighted when I received an Advanced Readers Copy of "The Jewel Trader of Pegu" by Jefferey Hantover to review. Everything about the description of this book enchanted me. It looked like it would be a tantalizing and sensuous mix of literary delights: an adventure story set in the 16th century Burmese Kingdom of Pegu, a tender romance with ancient multiracial and multireligious overtones, a thinking-reader's tale rife with thematic undercurrents, and a work of dreamy and lyrical prose.

I finished the novel easily in one day. The experience was pleasant enough, but the book left me feeling sorely disappointed. It wasn't the ending that disappointed. Rather, it was the insubstantial literary weight of the entire work. I wanted to like this work. There was great promise, on multiple levels, but none of the parts measured up. The novel left me feeling empty.

Typically, I write a review within a day or two after finishing a book. But I didn't for this book. Instead, I kept waiting. I let almost a week go by hoping time might provide further insight that I could use to appreciate this book in a better light. But the more time passed, the more I found myself finding even greater fault with this work.

On the good side, the author succeeded in giving me an intriguing glimpse of two separate late-16th-century worlds: the Jewish Ghetto of Venice, and the Southeast-Asian Kingdom of Pegu. But even here, I felt cheated. I wanted much more detail. Historical fiction typically takes its readers deep into the culture, politics, economy, technology, and customs of a new world. This book merely gave an overall feeling for the times. That might have been all right, if the novel had delivered convincing deeply wrought main characters. But here, too, I felt let down. For me, none of the characters came to life. They weren't flat. They were just not real three-dimensional human beings. Frankly, the main characters, Abraham and Mya, were nothing more than flimsy fantasy--too perfect to be real.

The inspiration for the story evidently came from a single sentence in an unnamed Southeast Asian history book: "In Pegu and other ports of Burma and Siam, foreign traders were asked to initiate brides." From this one source, the author builds the entire scaffolding for his novel. But I found his framework to be little more than a house of cards. I was completely unable to buy into the author's fantasy of what this sentence might suggest. The more I thought about it, the more upset it made me. How dare the author create a fictional history on so little evidence? To me this idea seemed little more than a late-night sailor's tale that somehow made its way into some obscure history tome. But perhaps more important, is how poorly the author succeeds in making us believe these rituals: the deflowering of ancient merchant-class Burmese brides by foreign traders in order to bring their families good luck. Nonsense!

The novel did have one significant redeeming quality: the prose was fresh, reflective, and at times delightfully lyrical.

In the end, this novel was nothing more than a light sensual soft-core romance-- uncommon in its unusual ancient multicultural setting, but nonetheless very forgettable.

Jeff Hantover took me along on the best literary road trip I've been on in memory. From the first pages, the reader is there in the moment with the main character, Abraham, as the young man steps off the boat and is drawn into the exotic, slightly creepy, utterly sensual kingdom of Pegu.

One of the great pleasures of this book is Hantover's writing. He is like an artisan diamond cutter who obsesses over the tiniest details: The words, sentences and paragraphs of this book sparkle, and were clearly crafted with great precision. The result is a book that is luxurious, elegantly understated, and flawless.

A major seaport, Pegu was founded in 825AD by two brothers from Thaton. Considered the golden land of the Mons, Pegu's golden era started in 1365 when it became the capital of Lower Myanmar. Its greatness lasted for 270 years and early European visitors often mentioned Pegu's importance as a seaport and centre for trade, each generation of seafarers commenting on its magnificence.

Certainly Abraham, a twenty-eight-year-old Jewish jewel murchant who in 1598 comes to this great city for a year to do business in the stone trade, is totally overwhelmed by this strange and exotic city, where wonders exist that would turn the "Grand Canal black with ink." A place that is synonymous with eternity, Pegu proves to be a city of solace for Abraham, far from the narrow and twisting streets of Venice and the dark segregated life in the enclaves of the Jewish ghetto.

Abraham writes to his cousin Joseph aboard the ship and it is here that he first mixes with Gujaratis, Malays, Siamese and all of the other "brown-faced heathens," even as in their eyes, Abraham is considered one of the big-nosed and hairy barbarians. From his ship Abraham sees jungles that are so thick with towering trees that sunlight rarely pierces their branches where strange lands that appear like magical incanations, that "an alchemist might chant."

But it is in Pegu that Abraham truly awakens to new possiblities. A grand city of wide streets, the metropolis is filled with giant coconut palms that fan out over streets, the avenues constantly glittering with gilded spires. It is also here that the jewel trader comes face to face with these strange and remarkable Peguans, the tatooed men, covered from navel to knee with all kinds of wild and strange creatures, and the women, their faces painted with yellow powder and paste.

Abraham's broker, a small bald fellow by the name of Maung Win, helps acclimate Abraham to this exotic new environment. A man of strong will, Win is only one of only four royal jewel brokers and because he speaks redimentary Italian he is able to help Abraham navigate his first months at the royal trading house where the selling of Indian cloth enables him to accumulate a fine supply of stones that his clients, the retainers and rivals and their wives and lovers in the noble houses of Venice will pay handsomely for.

The young Jewel trader is finding himself strangely taken with the trade as these jewels are transformed into priceless rubies and sapphires that in Venice will turn to gold and silver, and for the first time Abraham finds himself a part of the world, so far from the life that he has knowni Venice. Abrahm, however must not only meet his obligations as a trader; there is something else that is expected of him, something that proves to be reprehensible to his spirit.

It is a custom in Pegu for brides from good families have a foreigner take their maidenhead and it is an honor to both. Win tells Abraham that the Genoese perform this service for many and as a foreigner he is automatically protected by the spirits. By sleeping with these girls on their wedding night, Abraham will bring good fortune to the marriage. But Abraham is appalled at what he must do, seeing the act as a type of barbarism.

Abraham meets the young Mya whose has come upriver from a life in the paddy fields to marry a man whom she has never met. Win asks him to deflower her, but events take a dramatic turn when he becomes attracted to her, the sexual longing and the deep love that develops between them bringing on a host of unexpected complications. As Mya becomes his sweetheart, Abraham finds himself becoming ever more caught up the lives of these people even as the political instabilities of the kingdom and the accompanying social upheaval forces him to make some difficult choices.

This quiet novel, filled with philosophy and spiritualism is layered with some of the most descriptions of Peguan history and culture and author Jeffrey Hantover certainly works to bring all of the sites, sounds and smells of this exotic place to life within the context of Abraham's journey and his letters back to Joseph.

As Abraham gradually opens his heart to love, his experiences of this new and foreign place portray a man humbled and slow to pass judgement on those whose legs are tattooed with birds and beasts and whose cheeks are scarred with war. But perhaps the true wonders that he discovers are the ones that lay waiting in his heart. Mya offers him hope and a new form of intimacy that cures his soul and eventually brings him a sudden and unexpected joy in a world of straight roads and twisting paths. Mike Leonard February 08.

I was really looking forward to read this book, not only because I enjoy historical fiction, but because of the exotic place in which it develops and of the way in which the story is narrated. This is not the first time I have read a novel in which we find out about what is going on through letters, but even though the concept is not new, it worked very well in this case. Especially because this allows the main character, Abraham, to fully describe the places, people and customs of Pegu, a city in Burma that today is known as Bago.

The book delivers in transporting the reader to this unusual land, but it is lacking in terms of the overall interest of the story and the empathy the reader feels for the characters. I found that my interest level followed a normal curve (bell-shaped), since at first it took me a while to get into the story and I felt the pace drag, then we reached a point in which the story becomes mesmerizing, and it last for about a third of the book, only to slow-down again and end in a very anticlimactic way. The "good part" has to do with the role the main character plays in Pegu, the very special services he provides to the newlyweds, and also with the love story that serves as the backbone of the plot.

I recommend this novel to those that are mainly interested in knowing more about the fascinating land of Pegu, but if you are looking for a riveting read that keeps you wanting to devour page after page, you will likely be disappointed. Hantover shows that he is a good writer and that he is in the right path, but he definitely needs to improve in terms of keeping the reader engaged.

Jeffrey Hantover is what I call a Word Weaver. He has the incredible rare talent of blending words and phrases, creating sentences and paragraphs so beautiful it almost makes you weep for the experience of reading his work. This novel is beyond beautiful, a book as shining as the jewels he writes about. The reader immediately gets pulled in with evocative descriptions of the lush and exotic world of Pegu, its flora and fauna, its people and culture. Our main character Abraham is a quiet and solemn soul, and is a man of few words because of the unfortunate life he lives as a Jew amongst Christians in his home land of Venice. The author offers informative and vivid portrayals of how the Jews were cruelly treated and ostracized in 16th century Italy. When Abraham sets his feet on Burmese soil, his sense of craved freedom breathes life into his heart and into his story. Lost and uncertain in a strange land, alien to these new surroundings and odd cultural ways, Abraham soon finds peace and serenity among beautiful people of Buddhist faith. Again his religion clashes against another, but here he is treated with respect and love and feels freedom unbound. I felt while reading this story that I WAS Abraham, instead of the usual reader experience of watching the story unfold as an outsider on the sidelines. I saw what he saw, felt what he felt, smelled what he smelled. This style of writing reeks of talent so rare. Our Abraham soon meets Mya, a young Burmese woman, under peculiar circumstances that challenge Abraham's faith, views of life and love, and his beliefs of what is right and wrong. But, as he and Mya learn about each other's worlds, obstacles are easily overcome and their love prevails. This novel is like a masterpiece of art, one you will read more than once just to experience again and again the exquisite blend of the alluring and mysterious setting, with the deep sensual characters, both so rich in life. There is great wisdom, philosophy and love here in this tale, dont' miss this literary gem. It truly sparkles!

The Jewel Merchant of Pegu
This novel is written in the form of a series of letters to a cousin. Our traveler is Abraham and he writes to Joseph in the Venice ghetto. The Jews of Venice have been walled into what was once a shipyard and armory. In the Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare tells us that Jews when leaving the Ghetto were required to wear red hats to identify their Jewishness. Here in the Pagu tale we are told that a yellow hat was required in Venice by Jews visiting outside the Ghetto. Also in the Pegu story we are told that the windows were bricked over, in MOV Shylock tells his daughter Jessica to come away from the casements lest they be disturbed by the Gentiles' revelry. A minor point, surely, but was only the ghetto wall bricked up or all the houses: not clear.

The central theme is not the trade in uncut jewels ( I would have liked to hear more about that) no, only one page deals with gemstone trading. Most of our time is taken up with a supposed marriage ritual: that Pegu brides were given to a visiting merchant for their first sexual experience and the blood-stained sheet was reverently handed over to the family in proof of the virtuous daughters' defilement. Virginity was highly prized by most Cultures and we have much historical evidence for that, why a complete reversal in the Pegu society. I don't buy it for a moment! The young groom wouldn't allow it for his bloodlines sake. Nonsense! Our Jewish gem merchant falls in love with one of the deflowered brides and these tender moments are well done and shows promise of the authors writing skills.

What destroyed the enterprise for me was that it is written with 21th century word structure, modern idioms, modern phrases and purports to know about things like astronomy, lenses, planets, and other philosophical ideas which had just or were just about invented or discussed in the early 17th century by the leaders in Science and Philosophy. It would have taken 50 years for these innovative thoughts to have filtered down to our Jewish trader. Not one of the reviewers on this page has mentioned this fact. Many have alluded to a feeling of inauthenticty but have not perceived why the tale hangs limply. A phony tale told by a not too imaginative writer.

Abraham is a devout man who flees the repression of Jews in 1598 Venice. A gem trader, Abraham pursues his family's business in an exotic land, the Burmese kingdom of Pegu. Twenty-eight, Abraham has long ago lost wife and child to death, unencumbered in his new environment. Recounting his ocean voyage and the extraordinary sights along the way, Abraham's lengthy letters to his cousin, Joseph, become a repository of his ambitions, successes and moral choices, revealing the cultural dilemmas must safely navigate in Pegu, an island rich in religion, superstition and natural resources. Abraham describes his journey in detail, the strange rituals of this tiny kingdom ruled by a rigid and acquisitive king. By the end of the novel, as terrified families flee the invaders on the horizon, the king has squandered both good will and military might, able men leaving the city rather than face certain death on behalf of their king.

Viewing all around him with curiosity and wonder, Abraham believes he can remain above politics and cultural roadblocks, benefiting from a brisk trading market; but he is challenged early on by the specific demands of a common village practice, the villagers harboring certain expectations of a man of Abraham's stature in the community. After wrestling with his conscience and praying for guidance, Abraham gives way to tradition, aware that his refusal would hamper his success and that of the family investment. Rich in local color, a varied culture and Buddhist religious traditions, Pegu offers Abraham a new beginning, a future yet to be written. But nothing is as significant as the arrival of Aya, a new bride and overnight widow from a remote village who seeks shelter in Abraham's home. Falling in love with Aya changes Abraham's life, a profound experience that he describes in detail in his missives to Joseph.

The letters come to an abrupt end, Aya's lone voice telling of their flight from home and a pervasive fear of the invaders who have filled the country with the sounds and smells of death. The couple and their companions carry their meager belongings, walking into an uncertain fate, the lush country so beautifully described by the author annihilated by a marauding army. Years later, a grieving father gently unfolds the yellowing pages of Abraham's letters, his personal diaspora into an unfamiliar world where this lonely man finds completion in the arms of a loving wife. Part travelogue, part discourse on the cultural bounty of Pegu, Abraham travels a magical landscape he could never have anticipated. Luan Gaines/ 2009.

This is a perfect jewel of a story that I know I will be thinking about for a long time. It transported me to an exotic, long-ago setting, yet its themes are timeless and transcend cultural borders. It is about our need to connect with our common humanity, our universal longing for spiritual truth, and our ability to embrace the "other" within as well as outside ourselves.

I stumbled upon this book in a second hand bookstore just as I was about to leave, finding nothing else interesting enough. I am sure it was my lucky day. Or, on second thought, may be it was not pure luck, that the book was there waiting to be picked up.

Mr. Hantover wrote beautifully: the perfectly chosen words, the scenes, the mood which drew readers into a realm so surreal and yet real at the same time that readers long for their own presence in that far off ancient city of Pegu.

I doubt if I will ever visit that city this life-time, not as long as the junta rules. But through this book, I feel I have been there already.

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Jeffrey Hantover weaves an interesting tale of a Jewish man, Abraham, whose world has collapsed around him. Both his wife and son have passed away, leaving him lost in a familiar surrounding. He decides to travel from his comfortable land in Europe to the unfamiliar area of Pegu located in Burma.

Abraham's task while in Pegu is to set up shop as a jewel trader, gain a large sum of money, and travel back with this new found fortune. Upon his arrival in Pegu, Abraham is quite closed and nearly pessimistic in how perceives what the future holds for him there. He looks at the native people and their culture as "heathens" and can't quite grasp the Buddhist customs.


As time passes, he realizes just how accepting these "heathens" are with a man like himself, who is just as foreign to them as they are to him. He stays in a home that some see as auspicious, which instantly gains him credibility among the locals. His connections, and new found credibility, help him garner good trades which in turn will bring him and his employers alot of money.

But that's not the only storyline here. One of the customs the locals have makes Abraham very uncomfortable, but if he does not partake in this ritual he may lose the favor of the king and make trading nearly impossible. He has no choice but to take part, and in the process finds what he is not looking for at all, love.

The book reads like a travel diary, detailing events of Abraham's travels as they happen day to day and week to week. As time goes on though, the writing style changes, as Abraham does. The pessimism turns to optimism and the "heathens" become teachers.

"The Jewel Trader of Pegu" is a journey worth taking, and truly makes the reader feel like they are right there with Abraham feeling all he is feeling. Jeffrey Hantover's writing is delicate in the way he tells Abraham's tale. You feel transported to a land so many of us will never travel, yet feel afterward like you've truly been there and experienced all that Abraham has.