A Blessing on the Moon -- RIP Challenge

Just in time for the start of October, today I'm posting my first review for the fifth annual Readers Imbibing Peril (R.I.P.) challenge hosted by Carl over at Stainless Steel Droppings.

I picked up A Blessing on the Moon by Jospeh Skibell last year (I think at the local library book sale). As with many books, I think I picked this one based on the cover (no matter the old saying, this is why graphic designers are so important). I saw that the book had been compared to a Chagall painting -- which is an interesting concept to me -- but did not realize that the book was a ghost story until I started it.

Plot Summary: This book is set in Poland during and just after World War II. We meet the main character, Chiam Skibelski just as he is being shot and thrown into a mass grave with the other Jewish residents of his small town. Chiam climbs out of the pit alone and it takes him quite awhile to realize that he is dead (although he immediately understands that his former rabbi is now personified as a crow).

Initially Chiam wanders through his town, living in his old house (which has been taken over by another family) and office (which continues to do business). He is trying to understand what has happened to his community and why he is left alone to wander, rather than moving on. We also start to hear the first references to the moon. It has apparently disappeared and the Polish Jews are being blamed. Eventually, Chiam has to wander further from home and take on new quests on his way to finding peace.

My Reaction: This was a very different take on a difficult subject. Since we are seeing the world through Chiam's point of view, even the most macabre details are told in a very matter-of-fact way. The surreal quality of the story does remind me of a painting, at times.

As we wander with Chiam, we have the opportunity to explore, from the victim's point of view, how a person can grieve for his family and community, as well as whether or not this type of tragedy can make a leader out of a regular family and business man. I think the story about the moon that threads throughout the novel is meant to address how man-made tragedies like the Holocaust affect us all -- perpetrators, victims, and future generations.

For all of those serious themes, this book is full of humor (although dark humor) and Chiam is a believable -- even likable -- character. I did feel like there were some Yiddish folktale elements that were going over my head, but even without that background, I found this book really thought provoking and I'm glad that I read it.

Bottom Line: This novel read like a dark fairy tale (think Grimm Brothers, not Disney) and is a very unique way of coping with some of the impacts of the Holocaust.