story takes place mid-19th century into mid 1920s
set primarily in Lodz; the town springs up from something of a village; much heavier Jewish concentration than most places; commercial and manufacturing center for textiles
Poland then part of Russia; Lodz merchants doing business throughout Russia; growth and change
twin Ashkenazi brothers - more detailed focus on Max - feverishly working to be #1 in the local industry (textiles); Jacob less talented, less intelligent, less diligent - but natural personality and physical gifts and unnaturally good luck
two other primary characters - Nissan and Tevye "The World Is Not Lawless" - work in local factories and seek to organize them; socialist speeches, Marxist dogma that would have sounded right at home in '20 presidential campaigns (complete with deeply religious strands)
all four leading characters working hard for entirely different things but in parallel ways and with similar results
all four leading characters from deeply Jewish backgrounds; changing but some retention
lots of character development including families of the four; earlier generation deeply traditional from the countryside/shtetl (typically relatively new to Lodz, it being a new town); Hasidic; rabbis with vast authority; this changes over time
some - certainly the Ashkenazi brothers - seek assimilation; not accepted but keep trying; as shocks such as economic downturn, war, inflation hit - guess who gets blamed
boom years in Lodz; then 1905 war with Japan; WWI; German occupation (shut down businesses, strip assets and ship west); Poles reassert themselves after Versailles treaty; part of the plot moves to Russia (during the 1917 revolution and thereafter - business couldn't be conducted during German occupation)
throughout - Jews tolerated to a point especially when useful, otherwise look out;
strand about considering Palestine
Buddenbrooks comparison, which makes sense
no way to assess accuracy - but much liked that Singer painted this detailed picture of what that world must have been like - the level of detail indicates he knew all about it
recommended - there's a lot going on here
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