Review of At Vitoria
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Svenja S
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- Latest Review: At Vitoria by Marcia Riman Selz
Review of At Vitoria
[Following is a volunteer review of "At Vitoria" by Marcia Riman Selz.]
“At Vitoria” is a historical novel that accompanies the Crevago Brothers, a Jewish family in ancient Spain, in their struggle to find happiness and justice. The storyline sheds light on the historic events of 1492, when Jews were expelled from Spain and had to start over either as conversos or as fugitives in a different country. Even though the lives of all the Crevagos were shaped by unfortunate strokes of fate, discrimination, and loss, they still believed in the possibility of happiness and new beginnings.
The book is written in 18 chapters that provide the structure. Each chapter is illustrated with a quote and marked by a date. While it helps to guide the reader, the dates are sometimes confusing, e.g., “1488 Later that Summer Afternoon and Weeks Afterward” (page 75).
The research behind “At Vitoria” is extensive and detailed. The author, Marcia Riman Selz, has incorporated many additional documents, drawings, and illustrations that provide a solid historical background for the reader. The time period that covers the expulsion of the Jews in Spain is not well known today, which is why these materials were included to elaborate on the historical events and serve as support for the reader.
The author presents historical events from multiple points of view and discusses the developments controversially. I admire how the author includes and connects such a variety of different opinions and reactions from all the Crevago Brothers. As a reader, however, it is sometimes difficult to keep track of the many characters, their perspectives, and backgrounds. Marcia Riman Selz has included a family tree that supports the reader and organizes all the different names.
All the diverse lives of the Crevagos deserve their own storyline. The book tries to do justice to all of their backgrounds in the form of various subplots. While this helps ensure that the plot never grows boring and keeps the reader immersed, the subplots seem to only scratch the surface. I think the storyline could aspire to even more depth by bringing some subplots into focus and accompanying those protagonists more closely.
In keeping with the times, the story focuses mainly on the opinions and actions of the male family members. If a female perspective is mentioned, it is only in passing and has no major influence on the plot. Although this was the attitude of the time and should be respected in a historical novel, I was missing a female point of view on the events.
I am absolutely convinced by the historical background and the thorough research that the author has done. You can tell that she has put a lot of time and love into the book by the interesting figures and their stories, as well as all the additional material they have added to the novel. The author even provided discussion questions for reading groups. Nonetheless, I think that the plot could be elevated by deliberately limiting the subplots and thus exploring a few selected protagonists more deeply. The book also contains numerous errors, which is why I rate it 3 out of 5 stars. I recommend the book to everyone who wants to learn more about this historical period and gain insight into the individual fates of some Jewish families.
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At Vitoria
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
“At Vitoria” is a historical novel that accompanies the Crevago Brothers, a Jewish family in ancient Spain, in their struggle to find happiness and justice. The storyline sheds light on the historic events of 1492, when Jews were expelled from Spain and had to start over either as conversos or as fugitives in a different country. Even though the lives of all the Crevagos were shaped by unfortunate strokes of fate, discrimination, and loss, they still believed in the possibility of happiness and new beginnings.
The book is written in 18 chapters that provide the structure. Each chapter is illustrated with a quote and marked by a date. While it helps to guide the reader, the dates are sometimes confusing, e.g., “1488 Later that Summer Afternoon and Weeks Afterward” (page 75).
The research behind “At Vitoria” is extensive and detailed. The author, Marcia Riman Selz, has incorporated many additional documents, drawings, and illustrations that provide a solid historical background for the reader. The time period that covers the expulsion of the Jews in Spain is not well known today, which is why these materials were included to elaborate on the historical events and serve as support for the reader.
The author presents historical events from multiple points of view and discusses the developments controversially. I admire how the author includes and connects such a variety of different opinions and reactions from all the Crevago Brothers. As a reader, however, it is sometimes difficult to keep track of the many characters, their perspectives, and backgrounds. Marcia Riman Selz has included a family tree that supports the reader and organizes all the different names.
All the diverse lives of the Crevagos deserve their own storyline. The book tries to do justice to all of their backgrounds in the form of various subplots. While this helps ensure that the plot never grows boring and keeps the reader immersed, the subplots seem to only scratch the surface. I think the storyline could aspire to even more depth by bringing some subplots into focus and accompanying those protagonists more closely.
In keeping with the times, the story focuses mainly on the opinions and actions of the male family members. If a female perspective is mentioned, it is only in passing and has no major influence on the plot. Although this was the attitude of the time and should be respected in a historical novel, I was missing a female point of view on the events.
I am absolutely convinced by the historical background and the thorough research that the author has done. You can tell that she has put a lot of time and love into the book by the interesting figures and their stories, as well as all the additional material they have added to the novel. The author even provided discussion questions for reading groups. Nonetheless, I think that the plot could be elevated by deliberately limiting the subplots and thus exploring a few selected protagonists more deeply. The book also contains numerous errors, which is why I rate it 3 out of 5 stars. I recommend the book to everyone who wants to learn more about this historical period and gain insight into the individual fates of some Jewish families.
******
At Vitoria
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: At Vitoria by Marcia Riman Selz
