I'm not gone. . .

It's probably obvious by now that I've been a bit sidetracked from The Jewish Book World lately. Between a lot of assignments that need to get done and just living life there hasn't been much time for me to sit down a write. In terms of books lately I just finished a great book, Deep Blue, by Meir Uri Gottesman. It's not a new book and I knew we owned it for a while. My attention was turned to it when someone who I respect started gushing about how much she loved this book. While I usually choose non-fiction over novels I had to pick this one up and see what it was all about. The final result? This book is great. The thing that sticks out the most is that this is a well written Jewish novel, both in plot and word choice. One complaint that I have heard from others who regularly read Jewish novels is that they are not exactly up to par with their non-Jewish equivalents. Deep Blue is the exception to the rule. The basic plot focuses around the will of Captain Elijah, who bequeaths the majority of his fortune to two of his grandsons, both of whom are already successful businessmen, leaving a set of shas and some worthless stock to his third and favorite grandson, Uri, who is a father, a Rebbi, and very much in need of some extra parnasa. What happens afterwards is an adventure that leads Uri on a mission to fulfill his grandfather's last instructions. This book keeps you hooked until the end which is something I really appreciated. There is something annoying about being hooked by a lot of build up only to find out after a couple hundred pages that the climax just isn't anything special. Meir Uri Gottesman is also the author a couple of other novels, including The Harp, The Wing, and The Morning Star, and I hope to get a chance to read them as well.