And the Word Was

by Bruce Bauman

Book Overview

When the tragic death of his son compels Dr. Neil Downs to flee New York City for India, he takes a job as the resident physician at the American Embassy, where he is introduced to the paradoxes of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1590512243
• ISBN13: 9781590512241
• Release Date: April 2006
• Publisher: Other Press (NY)
• Length: 350 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.2" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A book that grapples with the big, unanswerable questions

I like books that grapple with the big, unanswerable questions. Bruce Bauman's And the Word Was (Other Press) asks this: "How much must you love god to accept Auschwitz? Or whatever happened to you? To accept that god exists after that?" Neil Downs, an ER doctor living in NYC loses his only child in a Columbine-like school shooting. Unable to save his son in his own ER, he waits hours for his wife to arrive, learning then that she had spent the day with another man. In a tailspin against which his Judaism seems useless, he flees to India, not to set off on a spiritual quest so much as to become lost in a place as different and far way as he can imagine. Downs seeks out one person there: his favorite author, the controversial Levi Furstenblum. A Holocaust survivor who lost his wife and child in Auschwitz, Furstenblum later penned (among other works quoted within this novel) the chilling and satirical novella, "Chamber of Commerce" --a story about Hitler's winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Downs hopes to learn from the cranky and reclusive Furstenblum how to persevere in what seems to be a cruel, meaningless world. Instead, his mentor teaches him a powerful lesson about the anguish of victims mirroring the hate of their oppressors. Downs faces a number of other challenges as the story progresses: a dogged media, a lawsuit filed against him by the parents of one of the gun-wielding students, an affair with an activist named Holika, and a surprising revelation from his grieving wife whom he'd hoped to stop loving. The triumph of this book is its ultimate hopefulness without any pat answers. Downs' spirituality remains elusive but life continues to engage him, and he has not lost his ability to love. He's retained enough, at least, to manage the pain and uncertainty of life.

deeply satisfying

I have rarely read a novel that has stayed with me for so long afterwards. And the Word Was is richly textured, engrossing, and deeply satisfying. Bauman draws realistic three-dimensional characters as he tells intertwining stories wrapped around a compelling central plot. He convincingly conveys the morass of Neil Downs' feelings as Downs wades through life shattered by grief, mistrust, and misunderstanding. Within the context of the story, Bauman links Downs' personal tragedy with the Holocaust and the archetypal story of Abraham and Isaac, raising the philosophical and spiritual stakes to their highest level. To read a book of such depth while still finding surprising plot twists is a rare treat. Bauman generates sympathy for Downs and a passionate interest in seeing where Downs' personal search for healing and his philosophical quest for meaning will lead him. Simply, it is the best novel I have read in a long time.

Riveting and layered

This is an absorbing tale that picks you up like a tornado and drops you down into the main character's very contemporary life. His deep feelings for his wife and son are movingly portrayed. I like that the author doesn't shrink from truth even when it punctures the received sanctimony. I also enjoyed this book's layers - political, philosophical, and emotional - and the biting satire. I'm going to suggest this novel to my book group because there's so much in it that I'd like to talk about.

Breathtaking and Amazing!

This compelling, tightly written novel chronicles Dr. Neil Downs as he copes with the shocking death of his son and the betrayal of his wife. Set with eloquent and honest beauty in Delhi, India, this novel is well paced and deeply challenges the reader's assumptions on the nature of God and the meaning of life. It is a brilliant book that quite simply deserves a space on everyone's bookshelf.

And the Word Was...Engaging

Neil Downs' escape from and search for answers brilliantly emblematizes the human condition. His character moves through layers of paradox: beauty and bitterness, nurture and apathy, spirituality and emptiness. It's storytelling at its finest. There's something in this novel for everyone: philosophy, history, love, loss, politics, art, sensuality; even a hint of baseball for those of us who still revere the sport. A sad and sophisticated meditation with moments of hope, "where the least articulate mumbler to the most able versifier is in possession of the same interminable ache." It's a smart, smart book.