Swimming Toward the Ocean : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Finding Good Among the Flawed
Review: As the mother of two toddlers and two teenages, I don't always have enough time or energy to read at the end of the day. "Swimming Toward the Ocean" was selected for a 'vacation read' after filtering Amazon book reviews. While my family konked out after days at the beach, I stayed up too late each nite, savoring the characters and style of Glickfeld's first novel. I had a hard time putting this book down; when it ended I was eager to read more of her writing.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but not Great
Review: Carole Glickfeld begins her novel, Swimming Toward the Ocean, with a minor miracle: Devorah, the first-person narrator, narrates the opening scenes from within her mother's womb. The story builds compellingly as the characters develop, but it sags a bit after the midpoint, and the plot is weakened by its reliance on devices, such as a financial windfall that takes us out of realism and into fantasy. Swimming Toward the Ocean is not a long novel, but this reader believes it could have been edited down a bit, as the main characters eventually become predictable and tiresome. But Glickfeld is a gifted and disciplined writer, on the whole, and her debut novel is much better than most that are being published today.

Rating:
Summary: Unforgettable and Utterly Compelling
Review: I have been a fan of Carole Glickfeld's for some time now. When I discovered that Swimming Toward the Ocean was to be published in eight long months, it was all that I could do to prevent myself from calling up the bookstores and demanding that they push up their deadlines. I had already read Carole Glickfeld's first book of short stories, Useful Gifts, and could not wait to read something else by this gifted and talented author.

The day I purchased Carole Glickfeld's novel, I read the first few pages while standing near the checkout counter and from that point on I could not put it down. Carole Glickfeld is so wise. I am so emotionally attached to her characters. I want to meet them on the street. I have questions for them. I love them. My mother also sailed through Swimming Toward the Ocean. On the phone she said, "Oh, Chenia-what a character...and she loved her children so much." We spoke about the intricate lives of Chenia and her family for what could only have been more than an hour, and once I had hung up the phone, my husband asked, "Who were you talking about?" "Chenia," I responded. "Do I know Chenia?" he asked. "No," I answered and pointed to Carole Glickfeld's book. It's a hardback, the type of book one treasures.

Let me tell you a little bit about Chenia, but not too much! Chenia is a Russian immigrant who is pregnant with her third child when the novel opens. Although she is married, Chenia has never experienced a loving relationship with her husband. What follows is a comical, intricate and unique description of Chenia's process of self-discovery, as told through the omniscient eyes of her youngest child. Chenia's unique personality is enhanced by the fact that her English is often spoken in a foreign syntax and peppered with Yiddish words throughout the novel. It is in this colorful manner that we are introduced to Brighton Beach, the Atlantic Ocean, the cloisters of Manhattan, the shoe store salesman, the opera, the underbelly of the Coney Island boardwalk, a factory fire, and the infidelities of a marriage. Chenia's fear of the evil eye, her superior wit and intelligence, her likeable and humane spirit, and her vivid sensuality and passion along with her compelling story make this a must read for men and women alike. I guarantee that you will cancel plans to finish Carole Glickfeld's novel and when you have read from cover to cover, you will mourn the loss of Chenia's world, considering her a dear and important friend.

Rating:
Summary: This book is a work of art!!!
Review: I highly recommend SWIMMING TOWARD THE OCEAN. The author is a master at storytelling and the book is broken up into Parts, rather than chapters and this worked so well. Within each part there were short passages which made it a good read to pick up and set down.

The captivating and descriptive life of the immigrant family represented in this story was so real. I felt like I had actually met Chenia (the main character) and felt her disgust for her husband, Ruben. The story also spans many years which is fun in a book - to see where everyone is years from the beginning of the book. The title was perfect and the cover of the book plays in your mind as you read this book. It was as if the book was a work of art, IMHO.

Rating:
Summary: Spare and moving
Review: Swimming Toward the Ocean is that rare book that combines spare, evocative writing with a story so original that I could not wait each night to curl up with my book to see how Chenia, the main character, was faring. Every woman will identify with this lovely, overwhelmed immigrant, whose struggles with life, love, failures and the challenge of an unwanted child are stunning in their clarity. Carole Glickfeld deserves all the accolades she has been receiving. We have never met a character quite like Chenia, and for that alone, this book should be a must-read.

Rating:
Summary: Feel as if You are Walking With the Characters
Review: The book opens with Devorah narrating from the womb -- not the most common introduction in the world. This beginning should alert the reader that the true story must be seasoned with imagination. Devorah adores her mother, Chenia. Strangely enough, she likes her better when her mother's world seems to be spinning the most out of control; this is the mother that seems real to her. Chenia tries twice to drown herself as her world spins out of control. Everyone in the book has an affair. But somehow, the author brings the chaotic spin of the ups and downs of life into a gentle hum when Chenia stops trying to find satisfaction in men and begins to find satisfaction in her love of art. Chenia has learned that you have to find happiness within yourself without depending on others for that happiness. This book is a page-turner. It's one of those rare books where you feel as if you are walking down the street with the characters. The author can make you love the characters Devorah loves and despise the characters Devorah despises.

Rating:
Summary: A Truly 5 Star Read!
Review: This is absolutely one of the best books I have read in a long time. The book sucked me in from the first page. I was taken into Chenia's life and wasn't let go till the last page. I found it quite unique that her story was told by her daughter Devorah. The last child and the one that Chenia tried so hard to do away with. Chenia felt her life was over and the thought of another child was just too much to bear. Little did she know how this child would take her on a journey that would help to make Chenia's life her own. This is truly a rich and fulfilling novel about life in new jersey and new york in the 1950's.

Rating:
Summary: Swimming Toward Life, Learning, & Love
Review: We meet Chenia, a young Jewish Russian immigrant, living in Brooklyn in the early '50s. And, we learn about Chenia's despair through the eyes of her yet-unborn daughter, Devorah. Chenia, barely making ends meet caring for her husband, Ruben, and two children, is pregnant. Though she tries all the old wives' tales she knows to abort the unborn child, her pregnancy continues and Devorah is born.

This is not a story of sadness and grief. It is the BEST book I have read that captures human longing, learning, and loving through the spirit of the Jewish immigrant story. Most of all, it is a story we can relate to as women. We get to know Chenia as a woman growing to like herself and feel comfortable in her new land.

As readers, we are priviledged to be with Chenia as she emerges from the past, including the ever-present evil-eye, and becomes one with her new reality. Come to know Chenia as she returns time and time again to gaze at the ocean and tong for comfort in the arms of the "man with the fedora hat."

Don't miss this one. You'll feel like you know these people. You won't want to leave them. Carole Glickfeld is an author to watch and welcome into our hearts.

Rating:
Summary: Loved it!
Review: What a wonderful, all-consuming novel! I could barely put it down. I cried when I finished it! The characters, the setting the time, the Yiddish-isms, all resonated deeply within me. I highly recommend this moving and tremendously enjoyable book!!

Rating:
Summary: Good, but not Great
Review: When I started this book, I wasn't sure I was going to like it but I stayed with it and am glad of it.

It is the story of a Russian-Jewish immigrant woman, Chenia, living in New York during the 1950's. The story is told by her youngest daughter.

It is hurmorous yet heartbreaking all at the same time. This woman is a true survivor of her time and her situation. I couldn't put it down and am glad that I continued to read it.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good family story of love and strength and the imperfections we all have in our lives that we live with.