The Golem and the Jinni
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker This book was thought-provoking to say the least. As it combines the stuff of folktales from two different cultures into a turn-of-the-century New York City setting, I've had a hard time classifying this book into one genre or another. At times folktale or myth, at times historical fiction and sometimes a philosophical exploration about what it means to be alive. Chava is a Golem - a creature made mostly from clay, and brought to life with an incantation. Commissioned by a selfish man, and created by a faithless one, her origins are unfortunate. When she finds herself newly awakened, masterless and alone in New York, she struggles to discover a way to balance her nature to both serve & destroy, and finds her way to a job at a bakery. Ahmad is a Jinni - a fire being born in the Syrian desert & trapped for centuries by an evil wizard. When he is set free from his prison, he too finds himself in New York without a clear place or