Customer Reviews

The War of the Rosens

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4 star:		(1)
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The story is about Emma Rosen, 10-years old, and her growing up amidst a tumultuous Jewish family in a Bronx housing project, in 1965. Besides capturing the period and the drama with pitch-perfect accuracy, wit and humor, the book is noteworthy for its examination of themes of non-belief and figuring out how to be a "good Jew" despite a lack of belief, and how to cope with tragedy without this belief to fall back on. This challenge, of course, is not uniquely Jewish. Emma's father, Leo, a self-described "politically progressive Jewish atheist", is a dogmatic, volatile man who will trouble readers on account of his temperament, but his philosophical views are especially timely in this age of so-called "New Atheism."

The book is a breakthrough in another way. Unlike the earlier generation of Jewish novels, whose protagonists were immigrants and their children - e.g. Call It Sleep - this story is about the next generation - the second-generation Americans, like Emma's parents, scarred by the tragedies of their upbringing, the deprivations of their own parents' limitations, and, in this case, the disappointments of failed Communism. Since readers have the benefit of hindsight, we also can't help but feel especially sympathetic to Annette, Emma's mother, who was born just a bit too early and doesn't yet have the benefits of a new feminism to awaken her own independence and freedom.

This is a marvelous book, with appeal to Jews and non-Jews alike. Enjoy!

Rabbi Peter Schweitzer
The City Congregation for Humanistic Judaism
New York City

Reading this book was an absolute pleasure. Not that the subject matter is easy to feel good about, it's simply that Janice's characters are so real and so likable, even amid all their sometimes tragic flaws, I could not wait to find out what happened to them. This is a beautiful book about growing up in the violent, often spiritually impoverished New York of 1965. The domestic violence is so clearly depicted that it can be harrowing to read about, yet the underlying innocence of the characters and the love that informs and motivates them, will give you a lot of hope. This is not a story you will soon forget.

This is a novel about the relationships among and between a mother and father and two daughters. The narrator reveals her family; her father whose politics put him at odds with the rest of the neighbors, her mother who works hard to care for husband and daughters, and her sister with whom she has tremendous sibling rivalry.

In one incident, the ten-year-old narrator sneaks into a Catholic church and has a conversation with the Virgin Mary. She dips her hand into the holy water font and fears that she has baptized herself.

I have met the writer and plan to read her other books.

A cousin of mine lives in Italy and her women's book group is considering inviting the author, Janice Eidus, of War of the Rosens to participate in their fall event. So she asked me to read it. The author is new to me and she is a deceptively powerful writer. I don't know how she did it but eventhough this age group, location, the projects in the Bronx in 1965, were totally foreign to me, I was there! It taught me that you don't have to identify with characters or their circumstances inorder to appreciate fine writing and poignancy.Do yourself a favor..read it, buy it!

I found myself so engrossed in the Rosen family, that I read this book in 3 days. The characters were unusual, complex, yet sympathetic despite their flaws. They continue to linger with me, and I'm looking forward to the next book. (I also recommend "The Celibacy Club"--a short story collection by the same author. The first story "Elvis, Axl, and Me" is hysterical!)

I loved this book! I didn't think I would at first. Why would I be interested in a coming-of-age tale of a 10 year old girl? But Janice Eidus is such a talented writer. Before long, the reader discovers that this is more than the little girl's story. Eidus has an amazing ability to explore the actions and inner feelings of all of the book's main characters. I feel as if I've come to know these characters as well as I have ever known any fictional family.
Also, while Eidus does a wonderful job of depicting the lives and times of Bronx in the 1960's, her story is universal. The issues faced by the Rosen family, crises of religious faith, love and fidelity between husbands and wives, sibling rivalries, adolescent love, tensions between parents and children, and questions of illness and mortality will resound with readers of any time and from any background.
The book made me laugh and cry and I recommend it highly.

A book about a 10-year old Jewish girl in the Bronx seemed to me an unlikely page-turner, but I found this a compelling read. The social milieu is well-defined, and the characters are alive. Eidus does not shy away from portraying the little black corners of the two sisters' hearts (nasty characters are always more interesting), but the ultimate result of this 'war' is not devastation, but creation. Her quirky sense of humor(great names, for example)keep things moving along. I look forward to a sequel.