The Weight of Ink

By Rachel Kadish

Book Overview

WINNER OF A NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD
A USA TODAY BESTSELLER

"A gifted writer, astonishingly adept at nuance, narration, and the politics of passion."--Toni Morrison

Set in London of the 1660s and of the early twenty-first century, The Weight of Ink is the interwoven tale of two women of remarkable intellect: Ester Velasquez, an emigrant from Amsterdam who is permitted to scribe for a blind rabbi, just before the plague hits the city; and Helen Watt, an ailing historian with a love of Jewish history.

When Helen is summoned by a former student to view a cache of newly discovered seventeenth-century Jewish documents, she enlists the help of Aaron Levy, an American graduate student as impatient as he is charming, and embarks on one last project: to determine the identity of the documents' scribe, the elusive "Aleph."

Electrifying and ambitious, The Weight of Ink is about women separated by centuries--and the choices and sacrifices they must make in order to reconcile the life of the heart and mind.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1328915786
• ISBN13: 9781328915788
• Release Date: May 2018
• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Length: 592 Pages
• Weight: 1.09 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.7" x 5.3" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

562 pages was way too long and it really should be more of a 2.5 star review than a 3 star review.

This book is well written but should have been half it's length. Midway, the half of the book which took place in the 1600s really began to drag. I did finish it but I can't say I would recommend it. You need to be interested in a long god-no god philosophy debate, Spinoza, Jewish history, the plague and reading letters. Half the book was letters - it dragged. And, the historical 'family paternity surprise' - I saw coming for miles and it was ridiculous. The half of the book that took place in 2000-2001 was better and more interesting that the other half. The author really needed a better editor.

Historical fiction during England’s Elizabethan era and contemporary London

Fascinating story that takes place during two eras: 1660’s London & contemporary London. The book weaves Shakespeare, anti-Semitism, the Black Plague with troubled contemporary love affairs and working relationships.