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tofi_15's review
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is a story about Jewish family in the span of more than a century - from the year 1922 to 2023 to be exact. And while that does sound like a lot of informations are gonna be there and they kind of are, the way this story is written is... just GOOD. It's not chronological, there's new POV every chapter - from different family members (eight of them)... Throughout these 226 pages you can see and learn so much! There's mental illness representation (depression, PTSD), chronic illness (MS), queer rep (bisexual, lesbian, nonbinary), struggling with addiction, generational trauma, domestic ab*se... And of course you'll read about all the horrible things that happened to Jews during WWII, that are still happening... It's difficult to read about this. It's important to read and know about this. And this book does everything that is in it justice.
.
You'll read about these characters and you'll hate some of them just to turn a page and... I don't know... understand them? Pity them? The same thing then happens to the character you love. And suddenly you don't know what to think. Because not everything is black and white... I just loved this aspect of the book 🫶❤️.
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The last thing I wanted to mention is the use of the different POVs - third person for the majority of the book and second person (not that common but I absolutely LOVE it in books) in one of the chapters. Second person always feels more personal to me and that one chapter really affected me, partly because of the use of second person.
.
I don't want to say I enjoyed this book, because there was not much joy included. But I loved it, I'm glad I got to read it, it was spectacular ✨❤️.
orlandoreads's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
bookishmillennial's review
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial
This is a fast-paced, character-driven, generational tale of a Jewish family (the Altenbergs), starting in the 1920s and spanning into present-day. Once I recognized that we were being given vignettes and shorter stories and perspectives of different family members, the story was very accessible to navigate!
"From Where We Are" was packed with a lot of heavy topics, which paralleled so many real world issues, like racism, antisemitism, extreme zionism, and mental health. However, I think that Nicole Zelniker took great care in highlighting these traumatic situations while also crafting a compelling and inquisitive story.
My favorite part of the book was the story in which we follow Miranda's POV from 2001-2022; the chapter is told in second-person narrative, which I adore! I am such a sucker for those POVs in books, so I was absolutely delighted to find it here. The impact of the ruminations, anxieties, and curiosities just hit a bit differently in second-person. Miranda reflects on so much, because we are running through her childhood, teenage years, and early adulthood. She interrogates her feelings and experiences with antisemitism, connection to her Jewish roots and ancestry, difference of opinions with elder family members, the concept of the Birthright trips, ex-IOF soldiers' experiences, sexual orientation (go sapphics!!!), her parents' and grandparents' trauma wrt Nazi Germany, being displaced and forcibly removed from their homes in Europe, and more.
What especially stood out to me was Miranda's dynamic feelings of feeling nervous for her brother and father who still attend temple as anti-semitism rose and struggling to reckon with "if those feelings are selfish in the face of what the Palestinians in Gaza had gone through, still went through." She ended that thought with mentioning she talked about it in therapy, which I appreciated, because she took time to sift through her feelings and examine them, rather than center *only* them. I genuinely felt like NZ painted such a layered, beautifully human picture of what Miranda especially was grappling with.
At the very end, NZ shares resources and historical context for some of the situations in her book:
This is a fast-paced, character-driven, generational tale of a Jewish family (the Altenbergs), starting in the 1920s and spanning into present-day. Once I recognized that we were being given vignettes and shorter stories and perspectives of different family members, the story was very accessible to navigate!
"From Where We Are" was packed with a lot of heavy topics, which paralleled so many real world issues, like racism, antisemitism, extreme zionism, and mental health. However, I think that Nicole Zelniker took great care in highlighting these traumatic situations while also crafting a compelling and inquisitive story.
My favorite part of the book was the story in which we follow Miranda's POV from 2001-2022; the chapter is told in second-person narrative, which I adore! I am such a sucker for those POVs in books, so I was absolutely delighted to find it here. The impact of the ruminations, anxieties, and curiosities just hit a bit differently in second-person. Miranda reflects on so much, because we are running through her childhood, teenage years, and early adulthood. She interrogates her feelings and experiences with antisemitism, connection to her Jewish roots and ancestry, difference of opinions with elder family members, the concept of the Birthright trips, ex-IOF soldiers' experiences, sexual orientation (go sapphics!!!), her parents' and grandparents' trauma wrt Nazi Germany, being displaced and forcibly removed from their homes in Europe, and more.
What especially stood out to me was Miranda's dynamic feelings of feeling nervous for her brother and father who still attend temple as anti-semitism rose and struggling to reckon with "if those feelings are selfish in the face of what the Palestinians in Gaza had gone through, still went through." She ended that thought with mentioning she talked about it in therapy, which I appreciated, because she took time to sift through her feelings and examine them, rather than center *only* them. I genuinely felt like NZ painted such a layered, beautifully human picture of what Miranda especially was grappling with.
At the very end, NZ shares resources and historical context for some of the situations in her book:
- Breaking the Silence: an organization comprised of ex-Israeli Defense Force soldiers working to expose the realities of what goes on in the military. Their ultimate goal is to bring an end to the Israeli occupation in Palestine. You can check out their work at breakingthesilence.org.il.
- Jewish Voice for Peace: Their goal is to create real policy changes in the US around Israel and Palestine. They were the first major Jewish group to demand an end to US military aid to Israel until the end of the occupation in Palestine and are currently the only to support Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions, or BDS, a Palestinian movement to move away from Israeli goods. You can learn more at their website, jewishvoiceforpeace.org, and learn more about BDS at bdsmovement.net.
- The shooting that claimed one of the characters' lives is fictional, but NZ mentions the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting that took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on November 4, 2018. Eleven people died. Their names were Bernice and Sylvan Simon, Cecil and David Rosenthal, Daniel Stein, Irving Younger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Joyce Fienberg, Melvin Wax, Richard Gottfried, and Rose Mallinger.
I am very grateful I read this book, and I will absolutely be reading more from Nicole Zelniker in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Antisemitism, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Misogyny, Mental illness, Homophobia, Gun violence, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Racism, Suicide, and Xenophobia
kate_303's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
An amazing journey of one family from before the Holocaust to present day. Covering topics from PTSD, Palestinian's in Gaza, Loss, Love, and how to be a family. Zelnicker writes an engrossing narrative equal parts historical lesson and family drama. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
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