Book Review: The Orchard by David Hopen

 GOODREADS SUMMARY

Ari Eden’s life has always been governed by strict rules. In ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn, his days are dedicated to intense study and religious rituals, and adolescence feels profoundly lonely. So when his family announces that they are moving to a glitzy Miami suburb, Ari seizes his unexpected chance for reinvention.

Enrolling in an opulent Jewish academy, Ari is stunned by his peers’ dizzying wealth, ambition, and shameless pursuit of life’s pleasures. When the academy’s golden boy, Noah, takes Ari under his wing, Ari finds himself entangled in the school’s most exclusive and wayward group. These friends are magnetic and defiant—especially Evan, the brooding genius of the bunch, still living in the shadow of his mother’s death.

Influenced by their charismatic rabbi, the group begins testing their religion in unconventional ways. Soon Ari and his friends are pushing moral boundaries and careening toward a perilous future—one in which the traditions of their faith are repurposed to mysterious, tragic ends.

TEE'S THOUGHTS

The Pardes, which means Orchard in Hebrew is the subject of a Jewish aggadah ( legend ). The legend is about four 1st century rabbis, who entered the pardes- Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, another rabbi, and Rabbi Akiva. One looked and died, one looked and went mad, one looked and apostatized, and one entered in peace and departed in peace.

I love Dark Academia, there is just something about pretentious wealthy students that verge on moral greyness as they try and figure out life. I knew I would enjoy The Orchard, but I did not realize I would love it like I did. It is a coming-of-age story, but with so much more to it. It is Donna Tartt meets Chiam Potok. It is the Secret History for Jewish people and it is fantastic.

Aryeh, or Ari Eden is an Ultra-Orthodox Jew from Brooklyn, his father takes a new job and moves his family to Miami Flordia. The move takes them from the safeness and the confines of Borough Park, which is home to the Ultra-Orthodox to Zion Park, a modern orthodox community where Aryeh attends a prestige Yeshiva high school.

It is safe to say that Aryeh changes and you slowly see the changes happening. He begins by hiding his tzitzits, taking off his kippah, kissing a girl, and even eating none Kosher food. As a Jew, not only did I read and notice these changes, I also felt their loss, knowing how important each of the different mitzvahs are in a strict Jewish environment. I myself am Kosher, and I have so many people who do not understand my reasoning behind it " God is really not going to care if you eat a piece of bacon.." I hear that a lot and I know they are probably right, he does have bigger things to worry about, but it is my accountability that is important to me, it keeps me on track. I have never chosen to give it up, but I can imagine that you would feel like you were giving up part of yourself, even if it were your choice.

I like Aryeh right from the beginning, even during the many times I did not understand his reasoning for doing everything. I understood he was growing into his own person, and away from the Ultra religion he was brought up in. Like all teenagers, he was on a quest to discover himself, and because of his strict upbringing, he had more to discover than most kids his age- fast cars, girls, drinking, drugs, all the things that were not available to him in his Brooklyn neighborhood. He did struggle. He struggled with the new shiny things in front of him that went against his morals, and Hopen does a fantastic job of helping you understand and feel his struggles. 

The only real problem I had with Aryeh was his treatment of Kayla when it came to Sophia. I liked Kayla, she was seriously the most grounded person in Aryeh's circle of friends, but she was not popular with his new friends and he tended to shrug her off unless he needed her. 

As for the rest of Aryeh's friends, they were not likable. At all. Spoilt teenagers who had life handed to them on a silver platter and it showed in their reckless actions and personalities.

I do wonder if some of the complex religious teachings will confuse a non- Jewish reader, there are a lot of Hebrew phrases and stories that can be difficult to understand. There is a lot going on in this story, but please do not let this guide you away from this book. 

The Orchard was a very powerful book, it was also very emotional and thought-provoking. The writing did not feel like a debut novel, it was well written with complex characters full of flaws and the author was not afraid to put them in difficult situations to make them question their belief in God and religion. Aryeh questioned his faith, whether to live in it or conform to a more modern world, he did it slowly, struggling emotionally with it, like it would be if you were going through the same situation.

I know it is March, and it is early in the year to be calling for your favorite book of the 2022, but this one is going to have a hard time being beat, The Orchard was stunning, it was everything I want in a great story, and I highly recommend it.