Listened to this book on tape. Never read anything by Singer before and probably will try more. Very odd plot here. Polish Jew hides in a hayloft for three years during Nazi occupation. Had bad relationship with wife before this; the wife and his two children are shot in a Nazi camp. He marries the peasant/servant girl who fed him and sheltered him in the hayloft, and moves to New York (Coney Island). But he's not in love with her; instead is in love with the beautiful and mercurial Masha, who lives with her mother.He lies to the peasant that he is a book salesman and needs to travel regularly; spends this time with Masha. Then his wife shows up in America - she had been shot but somehow survived. Somehow they have a very strong relationship after their experiences.
I can't say I've read anything quite like this. Interesting to have the perspective of camp survivors in America. Some of the dialogue, especially with Masha, is quite funny. Overview of loss of faith by folks swept up in the camps.
I guess this was made into a popular movie pretty recently, I need to check it out.
And why was there such a large Jewish population in Poland? Doesn't seem like a natural destination. This book talked about how the Jews were blamed for the black death in the 14th century - poisoning the wells, the usual scapegoat stuff, etc. - and were welcomed by Polish nobles while being expelled from western Europe. The Polish nobles needed the administrative skills etc. No idea if that theory is accurate, there probably were plenty of other persecution incidents (including Polish when it was convenient for them).
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