At a certain point, you'd think every novel would be similar. Not so with Azriela Jaffe's Unexpected Gifts. This is a real life novel with a touch of the unexpected, wrapped up really well.
Judging the Book by its Cover - a first glance review:
The cover was so enticing, that I couldn't even save it for my usual Friday night, post-meal treat. The fact that there isn't any hint to what the gifts might be is brilliant, in my opinion. Very often, authors try to portray half the story in the cover and it loses some effect, but here it is all up to the reader's imagination!
Some Details I Liked:
I liked that this novel has a lot of reality mixed into it. From dating, drinking, weight-issues and charity, this book has a lot of non-typical Jewish novel struggles. It also has a good balanced perspective on those issues, somethings are fine and dandy, but not everything is.
Who This Book is For:
Being that this book has those real life issues, I would say it is most appreciated by adults that can understand them. The issues are all dealt with, with proper perspective and nothing too graphic, but I do not think that a younger individual would be interested in reading about them.
Who This Book Isn’t For:
This book isn't for someone who would be shocked to read a romantic proposal or has never heard of liposuction.
What I Didn’t Like/Would Have Made it Better:
I'm really not sure there was anything that would have made this book better. It has a great plot, well developed characters and is easy to read.
In Conclusion:
If you are looking for a more open-minded, but still kosher and enjoyable, Jewish novel, this is the book for you.
Disclaimer:
I received this book for the purpose of reviewing it, but that it no way changed the way I read it and reviewed it.
