In this acclaimed fiction debut, "a rich, often ironic homage to Yiddish culture and language" (Publishers Weekly), Peter Manseau weaves 100 years of Jewish history, the sad fate of an ancient language, and a love story shaped by destiny into a truly great American novel. In a five-story walkup in Baltimore, nonagenarian Itsik Malpesh--the last Yiddish poet in America--spends his days lamenting the death of his language and dreaming...