BOOK REVIEW: Snow In August

One of my strict rules is never spoil any unexpected plot twists or endings for readers. Author Pete Hamill’s SNOW IN AUGUST is a beautifully written story with an ending that I simply will have to wait until after you read it and then we can talk. 

 Eleven-year-old Michael Devlin is growing up in working-class Brooklyn. The year is 1947. Michael’s father had been killed in the recent war and his mother is working hard to raise her son as well as keep food on the table.

One Saturday as Michael is hurrying through a blizzard to fulfill his obligation as the altar boy for the early morning mass, he meets Rabbi Judah Hirsch, a refugee from Prague. Despite their initial awe of each other, the two of them form a remarkable friendship. Rabbi Hirsch wants to learn idiomatic English and an understanding of the great American sport, baseball. Michael wants to learn Yiddish and is intrigued by the rabbi’s life in Prague and the ancient stories of Jewish traditions.

Brooklyn in the 1940’s is still full of some anti-Semitic feelings and one gang of thugs hate not only the Jews but the people who associate with them. Michael has already come to the attention of these young toughs by being present at a horrible beating of a Jewish shop owner. The fear that he may “rat” on the leader of the gang added to his friendship with the rabbi has put him and his mother in danger.

It is 1947 and the rumor is that the Dodgers are actually going to sign a black player, Jackie Robinson. The comparison in racial hatred is very striking. (The scene of Michael and Rabbi Hirsch at a game at Ebbets Field is especially well done.) The anti-Semitic feelings in the neighborhood becomes very real and very dangerous for Michael, his mother and Rabbi Hirsch. It seems that only a miracle will make all right.

It was impossible not to fall in love with Michael and his friend Judah. Michael is a typical pre-teen of the time. His life revolves around baseball, his friends, and the fantastic superheroes from the comic books. Judah has his own history of pre-war Europe and the atrocities that he lived through. He escapes to America only to be subjected to the same hatred.

The author shares his love of words through Michael’s language lessons with Rabbi Hirsch. He also has much to say about love, loyalty, friendship, and the power of tradition.

Since character is very important to me as a reader, I have to comment on the depth of each “side character”. I knew that each of them had rich lives away from their appearances on pages of the book.

I am not sure how I felt about the conclusion of the story. It took a large leap of faith for me and after the very realistic tone of the book, I am not sure if I was ready for it.

For all of the above reasons, I truly loved SNOW IN AUGUST. “And love,” as the rabbi thoughtfully notes,”it’s almost always about words.”