The Romance Reader

Written by Pearl Abraham

Narrated by Suzanne Toren

Filled with laughter and tears, author Pearl Abraham's moving novel takes you behind the mysterious, closed doors of a Chassidic Jewish community in New York state. The Romance Reader is her absorbing tale of a headstrong, teenaged girl attempting to live in two worlds: one traditional, one modern. Since Rachel is the rabbi's oldest child, everyone expects her to set a proper example for other young believers. But at night, after everyone is in bed, she hungrily reads books-forbidden books about romance and contemporary women. She wonders if the life she reads about in those pages actually exists. Do beautiful, daring women really travel alone? Can they choose their own gallant, broad-shouldered husbands? Soon Rachel's search for answers clashes with the restrictive world she knows only too well. Having grown up in a Chassidic family enables Pearl Abraham to write with poignancy and authority about this intriguing, ultra-Orthodox lifestyle. Her sensitive story earned a chorus of praise from reviewers, and Library Journal named it a Best Book. With Suzanne Toren's compelling narration, Rachel will become your friend, and you won't want to say good-by.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 4, 2011
• ISBN: 9781456124007

Reviews for The Romance Reader

[kgramer-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really liked it. I want to know what happened to Rachel and the rest of her family.

[squeakychu · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novel tells of Rachel, a teenager and the oldest child of a Chasidic family in upstate New York. Thwarted by the restrictive culture of ultra-Orthodox Judaism, she pines for more freedom in her life. Light and easy to read, The Romance Reader peeps into the fascinating culture of Chasidic Judaism. I especially loved reading about how Rachel handled the situation in which she was forced to meet the young man selected by the matchmaker to be her future husband. Though very well written, I felt it ended too abruptly. I wanted to read much more about Rachel's life. I do hope that Ms. Abraham continues to write stories which share this very special culture with the world.

[ffortsa · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It's a coming of age story set in a very particular Chassidic family in a very particular Chassidic sect, modern day, and the narrator is the oldest girl of seven children. Her father is determined to have his own synagogue and congregation, and the family subsists on the sales of a book on the Kabbalah that he writes and sells through travel and through the mail. What Rachel wants is to be free to choose her own life, and she bucks against the rules over and over again, reading English language books, learning to be a life-guard and wear a swim-suit, eat what is forbidden, and so forth.The story covers her late teenage years, and I was interested to find out how the author handles the obligatory early wedding with minimal courtship. SPOILERI think the author got her into and out of a disastrous marriage in rather arbitrary ways, without resolving how she would spend her life afterwards But ultimately, I wasn't interested enough in the details to read more than the first third and last third of the book, skimming the rest.

[bnbookgirl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My first foray into the Hassidic Jewish lifestyle. I found it quite fascinating and eye-opening. I thought the characters were well written and I really enjoyed Rachel. She stood up for herself and wanted to live her own life and I applaud that.

[wassilissa · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Mich interessiert schon lange, wie orthodoxe Juden leben und wie es Frauen in dieser Gesellschaft geht. Das Buch stellt dieses Leben aus der Sicht von Rachel dar. Rachel stößt sich allerdings an den Beschränkungen des strengen Lebens, so fällt die Betrachtung des Buches eher negativ aus. Ich hatte große Schwierigkeiten in das Buch hineinzukommen und wollte es anfangs schon wieder weglegen. Nun habe ich es fertig gelesen und es hat mir gefallen. Es ist erstaunlich, wie verschieden die Strömungen des Judentums sind. Einerseits gibt es Frauen als Rabbinerinnen, andererseits diese ultrakonservativen Gesellschaften.Das Titelbild finde ich übrigens komplett verfehlt.

[annwieland-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book...my first exposure to this lifestyle and so it was fascinating. And it didn't hurt that coming of age is my favorite kind of book, and I loved Rachel (protagonist).

[loveatfirstbook · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Romance Reader by Pearl Abraham is a book that was brought to my attention recently, while reading Unorthodox by Deborah Feldman.Unorthodox is the true story of Deborah’s “escape” from a strict Hasidic (Jewish) community. One of her inspirations for leaving was Pearl Abraham’s novel, The Romance Reader.And it’s interesting, too, because The Romance Reader really is the fictional version of Unorthodox.The title is sooo misleading: this book is NOT a romance.For the full review, visit Love at First Book

[maggie_rum · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A story of the unheard world of Hassidic Judaism. I knew almost nothing about it before reading this, and I'm still in awe of some of the strange rituals and rules of the religion. The story telling is apt, but the real joy in this novel is the eye-opening world of ultra-conservative Judaisim

[gregory_gwen · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Got this at a book exchange party. Feeding my fascination with orthodox Judaism, specifically Chasidic in this book.

[ltfl_jmls · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Got this at a book exchange party. Feeding my fascination with orthodox Judaism, specifically Chasidic in this book.

[melydia_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Rachel is the teenaged daughter of a rabbi in a cloistered Hasidic community. She's quite the rebel: she gets a library card, reads romance novels, wears sheer stockings, goes out without a kerchief, and wants to wear a swimsuit while working as a lifeguard (as opposed to an ankle-length dress). This book would have been much less frustrating had the rest of the family been more sympathetic. Everyone was so spiteful and self-centered, ready to sell out their kin in an instant to make themselves look good in front of the neighbors. It was frankly sickening. The ending was moderately uplifting, but by that point I was so tired of the petty bickering that I was just ready for it to be over. It was interesting to learn a little bit about Orthodox Jewish customs, such as the various things they cannot do during Shabbat and their wedding rituals, but mostly I wanted to take everyone in this family by the shoulders and give them a good shake.Note: All comments in this review refer exclusively to the characters and situations in this novel. None of my comments are meant to apply to Hasidic culture or the Jewish community in general.

[tarendz · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

[The Romance Reader] by [[Pearl Abraham]] describes the Chassidic girl Rachel between the ages of 13 and 17. The cover told me that Rachel grows up in a stifling religious atmosphere, so I expected the girls in the novel to be treated differently than the boys, but still some of the rituals really shocked me. The story is well-written, with a clear voice that perfectly suits a teenager, and I think Abrahams describes the mood and attitude swings of an adolescent girl really well. Rachel sways back and forth between being rebellious and putting up with her parents’ wishes (that mostly have to do with keeping up appearances). However, Rachel’s many brothers and sisters remain hazy. Similarly, her parents switch from ultra-old-fashioned to a bit more reasonable (and then back again to medieval values). Though this annoyed me at some points, reading this novel still was a great experience.

[vnovak_12 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A coming-of-age story set in the cloistered world of Hasidic Judaism. Rachel rebels against her strict upbringing by wearing sheer stockings, getting a library card and taking lifeguard lessons. When she turns 17, she is expected to marry. The book ends in a failed arranged marriage. Fascinating way to learn about another culture, but not much depth to the characters.

[emhromp2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very beautiful book about a girl who just wasn't made to live in a chassidic community. She reads romances and dreams about living in the goj world. The book gives good insight into chassidic communities. I have a feeling that this book may be a bit biographical as Pearl Abraham herself stepped out of her chassidic community.

[drpeff · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

2nd time reading it. Better this time around. Still hard to fathom the lifestyle. I wonder if such a community really existed. Key relationships w/mom & dad explore, but characters still hazy for me.