Summer Lightning by Roberta Silman
Name of Book: Summer Lightning Author: Roberta Silman
ISBN: 979-8-9859260-0-2
Publisher: Campden Hill Books
Type of book: 1927-1966, art, Judaism, family, siblings, races, responsibility, travel, old vs new, sentimentality vs practicality, love stories, explorations, abortions, families, control, real world vs fantasy, interracial relatiionship between Jewish woman/Black male
Year it was published: 2022
Summary:
In this sweeping, multi-generational novel Roberta Silman explores the meaning of Alexander Herzen’s observation: Art, and the summer lightning of individual happiness: these are the only real goods we have. After a casual encounter at Lindbergh’s flight from Roosevelt Field in 1927, Belle and Isaac find each other again, and thus begins the story of this engaging family as it tries to try to find its place in tumultuous mid-Twentieth century America.
Set in Europe, then Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Long Island, as well as England and the Berkshires, Summer Lightning is as intricate as a Beethoven Sonata. Although the bonds between parents and children and siblings are strong, there is also a yearning for something more. So, we watch Belle and Isaac and their daughters, Sophy and Vivie, veer into unexpected paths as they negotiate the perils of the Depression, the Second World War, McCarthyism, and the burgeoning fight for Civil Rights. Living “against the grain” these vivid characters take risks as they strengthen their ties to the turmoil in Europe, to the quirky Manhattan art scene of Larry Rivers and Frank O’Hara and their “gang,” and to the Black community. As their story unfolds, they experience profound happiness and are also tested in ways they could never have imagined. Their triumphs are a testament to the resilience of the human spirit; what makes them so memorable and compelling is that they never forget who they are and where they came from.
As one reader described it: An old-fashioned novel whose characters readers will remember long after the last chapter. Readers don't lack for stories of chaos and calamity, so the current, much abraded world needs this type of tale more than ever.
Praise for Summer Lightning: “The pivotal events of history shape us in ways we never imagined. Nowhere is this better demonstrated than in Summer Lightning, a story of a family. The characters are so well drawn they come alive on the page and grab you, refusing to let go. I found this wonderful book hard to put down.” ―IRA BERKOWITZ, SHAMUS AWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE JACKSON STEEG MYSTERY SERIES
“This heartfelt novel tells the story of a Jewish family carried on the tides of twentieth century history, from the fraught prewar years to the captivating New York art scene of the ’50s and ’60s. Like Doctorow’s Ragtime, the historical sweep of Summer Lightning is dazzling and immersive.” --AMY GOTTLIEB, AUTHOR OF THE BEAUTIFUL POSSIBLE
Characters:
Main characters include Belle, formerly Beila who is American-Jewish and is blonde haired and blue eyed. She was born in America and I have impression that she chose practicality over sentimentality and she is extremely supportive of her husband and daughters. Isaac is Belle's husband, a foreign-born Jew who came over to USA in 1920s. He is intelligent and often sees himself as a provider for his various family members. Sophy is the oldest daughter who is gifted in literarture and vocabulary and often feels overlooked by her family because of her younger sister. She is dark haired and eyed as well as short. Vivie is the talented and beautiful younger sister with red hair and brown eyes who seems to be a drifter but is also gifted and talented. There are minor characters like Carrie, a Black woman who has played a maternal role model for the daughters as well as Vivie's true love and some family members.
Theme:
Life isn't as smooth but has bumps
Plot:
The story is in third person narrative from Belle's, Sophy's and Vivie's points of view. In some parts the narrative moves in slow motion, while in other parts fast motion is used which means that quite often a lot of things are covered at the end that weren't where they should have been. While there is exploration of 1950s American art as well as tug and pull between practicality and sentimentality in people and the artists, I feel that the art wasn't as integrated as I had hoped.
Characters:
Main characters include Belle, formerly Beila who is American-Jewish and is blonde haired and blue eyed. She was born in America and I have impression that she chose practicality over sentimentality and she is extremely supportive of her husband and daughters. Isaac is Belle's husband, a foreign-born Jew who came over to USA in 1920s. He is intelligent and often sees himself as a provider for his various family members. Sophy is the oldest daughter who is gifted in literarture and vocabulary and often feels overlooked by her family because of her younger sister. She is dark haired and eyed as well as short. Vivie is the talented and beautiful younger sister with red hair and brown eyes who seems to be a drifter but is also gifted and talented. There are minor characters like Carrie, a Black woman who has played a maternal role model for the daughters as well as Vivie's true love and some family members.
Theme:
Life isn't as smooth but has bumps
Plot:
The story is in third person narrative from Belle's, Sophy's and Vivie's points of view. In some parts the narrative moves in slow motion, while in other parts fast motion is used which means that quite often a lot of things are covered at the end that weren't where they should have been. While there is exploration of 1950s American art as well as tug and pull between practicality and sentimentality in people and the artists, I feel that the art wasn't as integrated as I had hoped.
Author Information:
(From goodreads)
(From goodreads)
N/A
Opinion:
I have previously read the author's previous novel, Secrets & Shadows which I remember a little too well, and I definitely have a feeling that Summer Lightning is also destined to stay on my mind, even years and years down the road. When reading literary novels, it's pretty important to recognize the thoughts behind the stories, and mine include the tug between the old and new (I have to say that beginning of the story reminded me quite a bit of old Jewish sagas,) and the pacing is quite similar to a lightning bolt, parts where the story creeps along to when it moves quickly. I think like others I am hoping for a part two and find out what happens to the family from 1966 until 2000s or later. I definitely wasn't sure what art and artists had to do with the family, unless it was unfulfilled dreams?
This was given for review
4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
Opinion:
I have previously read the author's previous novel, Secrets & Shadows which I remember a little too well, and I definitely have a feeling that Summer Lightning is also destined to stay on my mind, even years and years down the road. When reading literary novels, it's pretty important to recognize the thoughts behind the stories, and mine include the tug between the old and new (I have to say that beginning of the story reminded me quite a bit of old Jewish sagas,) and the pacing is quite similar to a lightning bolt, parts where the story creeps along to when it moves quickly. I think like others I am hoping for a part two and find out what happens to the family from 1966 until 2000s or later. I definitely wasn't sure what art and artists had to do with the family, unless it was unfulfilled dreams?
This was given for review
4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
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