3.5 Stars

I feel remorseful giving this novel a rating of 3.5 stars but I also want to be honest.

What I loved and valued about this novel is that I learned something new. This book focused on Jewish history and not only what they endured during the war but also after it. Even though this novel only grasps a sliver of what happened, it is an understatement to fathom what they went through.

Yes, it was deeply educating but I found the story plateaued. I didn't get attached to the characters, I didn't feel hooked and the Jewish references were overwhelming. It was nice there was a glossary at the end but not all the words used in the book were there. At some points in the story I was just constantly flipping back and forth and I reached a point when I just stopped looking for the translation. The power of this topic and message should of had me addicted to this novel. It has the potential to move someone to tears.

I would never say don't read this book but I gave it the rating I did because a book (to me) needs to be well rounded in characters, dialogue, themes, message, story line etc.

The Coat is an extremely well written book. It is about Seth, who at his bar mitzvah is shown a coat he is to inherit from his grandfather. It is the coat of a Nazi officer. Seth asks repeatedly how he got the coat and why he kept it, but gets no real answer. Seth grows up and becomes a writer, and the coat comes into his possession at the age of 23. He continually wonders why his grandfather would have kept that Nazi coat, however he holds onto it out of respect for his grandfather's wishes. The book is then split. Some chapters detail Seth's life and experiences, and some chapters tell stories Seth has written, each featuring his grandparents and other relatives, and each story describes a different way in which the coat may have been acquired.

This novel is a work of art. The sufferings of Holocaust victims, even after the war, are so well told and woven together that they become alive and the reader can really begin to understand the experience. The individual stories within the story are all great ideas of different ways the coat could have been acquired.. The struggle of Seth to come to terms with his beliefs, his traditions, and his family culture is also well written. When Seth does indeed realize why his grandfather kept the coat and passed it down, the reader has an "AHA" moment along with him.

I also appreciated the glossary of terms in the back of the book.

The only thing I didn't like was Seth's girlfriend, who I felt was quite abusive. However, that did not take away from this five-star novel.

I got The Coat by April Grunspan, free from NetGalley for a fair and honest review

The Coat tells the story of Seth who on his Barmitzvah , is shown a world war II, Nazi officers long leather coat, by his father and Granddad and he is told that is coat will be his. Seth can not work out why is Granddad who along with his Grandma survived the Holocaust in Poland moved to help start Israel and then moved to America and now wants to give it to him.

The coat is kept in his parents house until they downsize when Seth takes the coat with him to college. Where Seth who calls him self an atheist Jew, begins to think about the coat and how it effects his Jewishness and what this coat, means to a person who is the second generation from the survivors of the Holocaust, to this end he writes short stories on how the coat could have come in to his Granddads possession.

April Grunspan wrote this book, in a way which means it was split into 2 sections the first was the story of Seth’s life and how being an atheist Jew affects this. Like the time when he goes to a Halloween party and somebody is wearing a Hitler costume. The story that follows is about how the coat could have become his granddads in a story connected to this.

The book is only around 160 pages but the story and the way that it was written meant it was one of the most thought provoking books I have read, although it is based around the holocaust and what it means to be the second generation from those directly affected buy it. The book is a universal story on how, an object that represents the evil that men can do to his fellow men, may be used by the suffers for good.

This book goes to join my all time favourite books I have ever read, it is emotional, thought provoking, and wonderful read. It is a book that should be read by everyone, a book that should be taught in schools. I normally say at the end of my reviews that this should be on your TBR or even high up on it, but April Grunspan has written such a good book that The Coat should be the next book you read, or even one that you stop the current book you are reading to read.

A beautiful and thoughtfully crafted novel, full of sensitivity and emotion that gets in to the readers conscious, showing how reading and writing truly can heal.