the yiddish policeman's union

The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon

The book opens with a hungover detective having to deal with a dead body that has been discovered in the flop house he is sleeping in. The plot twists and turns and builds. The solution to the crime, the events that surround it, are brilliantly hidden and very little is obvious. That said, it isn't a case of "I didn't see that coming". The pace of the book is just right, information is left laying around to help you build the picture.

However, the actual murder/mystery part of the book is just a driving point for the story. The real story is the lives of the detective and those around him. Mr. Chabon has built a whole new world with its inherent problems. The book is set in Alaska, in the present day. But it isn't a world that we readily recognise. The Jewish occupation of Israel in 1948 failed, so instead they have settled in a small section of Alaska, and built their Israel in Sitka. However, the Americans didn't given them the land in perpetuity, and the time for the Jews to leave is fast approaching. With the threat of expulsion in two months hanging over the populace, the police authorities decide to close as many cases as possible, to leave a clean slate for the incoming Americans. The killing of a junkie in a flea-ridden flop house is not even worth opening a file on and the detective is told to ignore the case. Except...he doesn't.

The writing is wonderful, Chabon even invents a whole new slang for his book. When I got to the end I discovered that there was a glossary of the terms used. However, the wrting is so vivid and descriptive that I understood all the invented words. I love the way that he introduces the changes in world history subtly, letting the reader discover the changes, rather than sledgehammering the facts in there.

And I don't really know what else to say except: A really enjoyable book.

Comments

[(S)wine]

good to know. i've liked him ever since his debut with "Mysteries of Pittsburgh" and, of course, "Wonder Boys" which is a fantastic novel, and a pretty good movie. i heard he will be part of an omnibus of non-fiction book of essays coming out soon (or out already, must research)

[Helen]

Hmm, I haven't read a book in a while, Will. This sounds like a good one. I'm tempted to go to the library.