Raphael, Lev. Dancing on Tisha B'Av. St. Martin's.
Nov. 1990. c.244p. ISBN 0-312-04682-9. $15.95
[FICTION]
The 19 short stories in this first collection give the
reader a glimpse of what it's like to be gay and Jewish, probing
the problems encountered when trying to reconcile seemingly
incompatible sensibilities. The author draws interesting
parallels between the treatment of Jews in Europe before and
during World War II: several stories include concentration camp
survivors parenting gay children, with each generation painfully
aware of the discrimination and suffering experienced by the
other. The title story begins with a sister admiring her
brother's devotion to Orthodoxy, while refusing to confront his
homosexuality; it concludes with his expulsion from his religious
minyan, the torching of his dorm room by bigots, and her new
understanding and sensitivity to another potential holocaust.
Recommended.
Kevin M. Roddy, Oakland Public Library, California