The Singing Fire: A Novel

By Lilian Nattel

Book Overview

With vivid prose and magical realism, Lilian Nattel brings another remarkable novel set in a historic Jewish community the bustling alleys of London's East End in the late nineteenth century to life.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743249674
• ISBN13: 9780743249676
• Release Date: October 2005
• Publisher: Scribner
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.68 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.7" x 5.3"

Customer Reviews

East Meets West

I couldn't put this book down. I was riveted by the sights and smells and color of East End London in the late 19th century. Even more than that, as an adoptive mom, I could identify with Nehama's desire for children and her love and passion to protect her daughter, hers by adoption rather than birth. I was intrigued by the different possibilities for Nehama and Emilia, because of their background and education. As a working-class immigrant, Nehama's dream of a bookshop and a better life for her family were limited and yet she still is able to create a warm family life with her friends and community and to advocate on behalf of her neighbors. As a woman from a middle-class family, even though Emilia flees to London and lives for a while in poor circumstances, she is able to better her situation in ways that Nehama can only dream of. And yet the price she pays for doing so haunts her. As one reviewer (The Baltimore Sun) wrote: "From time to time, all too rarely, there comes a novel that so exceeds my expectations of mere excellence that I am tossed into the experience of magic."

Fantastic Novel

This is a fantastic novel in many senses of the word. Powerfully written and in the tradition of both Jewish fabulist fiction and contemporary magic realism. Centered on women's lives of about 100 years ago but relevant to both our practical and spiritual lives today. And you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy and treasure it!

The Singing Fire

Truly unforgettable.This is a wonderful, sensitive, real portrayal of women. I am recommending it to my book group and friends. I would have given it 5 stars but I found the first 25 pages difficult to get through. Once past the beginning, I loved it.