This was very much a case of, it was DEFINITELY me and not the book. I was expecting a coming of age, light-hearted and funny read about a young Hasidic girl, who enjoys watching porn.

Instead it was more about Razil’s struggles within her family & community. It felt like a Debbie downer for me, which isn’t what I was looking for.

I’m sure others will enjoy this, but it just wasn’t for me.

Thank you for the copy of this book. My honest opinion follows.

This was a great book to read. Raizl is both innocent and curious and she's a great heroine to root for.

Raizl has a porn addiction. She sees a therapist to get help with this but doesn't really have any friends or family she can discuss it with. And she is at the age where a marriage will be arranged for her soon. At home Raizl must hide not only her porn addiction but also the computer she uses to access adult videos.

This book is funny and interesting. There is a lot of Yiddish throughout but it's not hard to follow along even if you don't know any Yiddish. There's a handy glossary at the end to translate any unknown words.

I would definitely recommend this book. It's a great coming-of-age story with a look into one Hassidic family. It definitely has adult content and isn't for young readers.

I’ve been seeing this book all over Jewish Instagram accounts, and since it sounded really intriguing, I added it to my TBR instantly. When I was approved for an ARC, it was one of the books I was most looking forward to reading. However, it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting.

For people who aren’t as familiar with Judaism, let me explain. Much like other religions, there are different sects within Judaism. There are reform Jews and conservative Jews, and these are the Jewish people you most likely come into contact with and never even realize that they’re Jewish. Then there are the orthodox Jews, who are visibly Jewish. They wear modest clothing—long skirts, shirts with long sleeves and high necks, and wigs for the women, men with beards and yarmulkes in suits and black jackets, often in wide brimmed felt hats. Orthodox Jews are further broken down into individual groups, and Hasidic are among the ultra-orthodox, where the men wear payos (the long, curled sidelocks), and they typically don’t interact with people outside their own communities, and commonly speak Yiddish as a first language, English as a second or third. This is the type of community that is being written about.

My own family falls in between conservative and orthodox. I’ve always grown up keeping kosher, hearing Yiddish spoken fluently in the home, attending orthodox services, but not adhering to all of the orthodox practices. So while my own exposure to ultra-orthodox life is minimal, I was hoping for some positive Jewish representation within this community, since it’s sadly lacking in books and shows. This wasn’t what I got here.

I was sold on the stunning and attention-grabbing cover, with the strategically placed hamentaschen, the ubiquitous Purim treat. But I guess I can’t always judge a book by it’s cover. There were some things that I did enjoy, but the negative aspects of this story definitely outweighed the positives for me in this case.

One of the best parts of this book was Raizl’s inner struggle between her faith and religion and her own burgeoning desires. As she’s given access to an entire world’s worth of information through her forbidden computer, she also discovers the dark side of this knowledge, through an addiction that she quickly develops to pornography. In her community, she doesn’t have anyone that she can talk to and ask questions, and she’s limited in who she can turn to, and winds up discussing this with her therapist. But much of the work is left to Raizl herself, and I loved watching her wrestle with her desire and her faith.

I did love seeing all the Yiddish on the page. Since I grew up hearing it, so much of it was familiar to me. While the dialect is slightly different from the one I’m familiar with, it’s close enough that I didn’t have to refer to the glossary to understand, and there’s a lot that’s easy to pick up simply from context. But so few books use Yiddish to this extent, that it felt comforting to see.

However, the author didn’t bring to light any of the positive aspects of the lifestyle that Raizl has been brought up in. In a community that is so insulated, everyone is interconnected, everyone knows everyone else, everyone works together to make things happen and function smoothly. There is one scene in the book where they discuss how someone needs a baby monitor, and that no one has to buy anything new, since there are always hand-me-downs. This would be a great example of how the community comes together to support each other, but instead, all we see is that the people are cold and unfeeling towards each other. There doesn’t seem to be any love or even feeling amongst the members of Raizl’s family, and all of the relationships seem superficial. Even the ones that Raizl develops outside of her community never seem to go beyond the surface, and the characters other than Raizl always felt flat. Even the therapist didn’t seem to do anything, and it’s a poor imitation of what actually happens in therapy.

The story is uncomfortable, awkward, and at times, heartbreakingly sad. Raizl is a really smart girl who is trapped in a situation, and from the start of the book right until the end, it felt like a claustrophobic read. While it’s billed as unputdownable, I actually found it to be the opposite. I would put it down often, finding any excuse not to continue reading, even going as far as to do my least favorite chores to find an excuse to put off reading the next chapter, despite wanting to finish it as fast as possible so that I could move on to the next book. Ultimately, I finished it because I didn’t want to give up on the story, hoping that the ending would provide a satisfactory resolution, but when the last chapter finished, I was confused and actually expected there to be another chapter. It simply felt unfinished. And it definitely gave me icky vibes about reading something so overwhelmingly negative about a community that is already portrayed so negatively in the few situations where they are portrayed in books or shows (think Unorthodox on Netflix), while I’m sure the majority of people within this community could easily rattle off a laundry list of things that they love about being in their community and why they wouldn’t want to change their life.

This was definitely a book that I can't imagine finding anywhere else!

I did find some of the terminology to be complicated in the beginning as I don't speak Yiddish, however it would normally be explained a few pages later. Because of this, I found it a bit hard to get into, but overall I can really respect where the author was trying to take this sort of storyline.

Raizl is a young, Hasidic woman living in Brooklyn with her family. She expects an arranged marriage and follows strict behaviors emphasized by her religion and father. She already is a bit of an anomaly in that she is attending college for accounting and has a part-time job which helps support her family. But she understands what is expected of her in her community. Even so- she has a secret. She is addicted to pornography. Because of her job and her university work she has a laptop (not normally allowed) and becomes more and more engrossed in watching videos, which affects her schoolwork and relationships. On the other hand, it brings about an exploration of her sexuality and questioning of rules in her culture.

Berliner has written a intriguing debut novel- one that combines the two themes of strict religious communities and sexuality that are not portrayed together a lot. It is quite provocative- the sex acts are described quite frankly (though with a lot of yiddish definitions of anatomical parts), but I so enjoyed reading about Raizl's unexpected journey.

On a side note, the cover for this book is inspired and truly perfection.

Thank you to Atria Books via NetGalley for the advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.

I knew this was going to be an interesting read but I finished it yesterday and am still trying to sort out how I felt about it. I enjoyed reading about Raizl’s journey and struggles but felt the ending was too much of a cliffhanger and would have liked to see more of where the story went. I also felt lost at some parts - maybe I was reading too fast but I felt like I missed things at times. Overall I enjoyed it and would read more by this author!

I was so excited to receive an arc of Shmutz since it was a highly anticipated read for me and I couldn’t wait to be an OwnVoices reviewer for the book. Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. I had a very hard time staying interested in the story and I didn’t feel comfortable to continue reading with the way the Orthodox community was being portrayed.

This book was definitely different from any book that I have ever read! Raizl is a young Hasidic woman, which includes covering her body with beige stockings and a long skirt, lots of prayers, no touching the opposite sex, and things that women can't do - like go to college or own a computer!

But our Raizl is different. (Or is she?) She is in the sense that she is in her first year of college and cannot keep her eyes off her computer. Especially late at night and under the covers when everyone else is sleeping. But she is also deeply rooted in her traditional and religious values.

I like that the book was peppered with Jewish words (and to my surprise even had a glossary at the end!) traditions and foods. Getting to know Raizl was a lot of fun and I could totally relate to her struggles with wanting to know more about the world outside of her world.

Honestly, I am a little disappointed in some of Raizl's choices. I was hoping that her brief (yet surprisingly positive!) encounters at school and outside of her community would have had a different effect on her. However, I do understand and wish my friend Raizl the best!

This is a funny coming of age book that will make you fall in love with Raizl and realize that no matter how different people are, they are still very much the same.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for a copy of this book.

In Shmutz we follow Raizl, a young woman steeped in her Jewish heritage with pressures from her family to get married and live by the Torah while also facing the reality of living in the modern world surrounded by things banned by her culture, like the internet. While pure in body, the main character faces the guilt and shame of having been exposed to something oh so taboo like pornography, but also liking it and not having anyone to turn to with those feelings except a therapist that she grows to despise. Told with humour and empathy, this story is well-paced and humorous. Raizl is endearing and hopeful, as a reader you can’t help but root for her through her porn addiction.

This was so much fun to read, not at all what I expected and a huge win for me. Definite binge over a weekend.

Covers can be deceiving. I expected from it and the basic description to be in for a comedy. I've been sitting with my thoughts and feelings since finishing the book for how to encapsulate them in this review. Bottom line, this is not a light-hearted journey of shmutz folded in a hamentaschen, as promised by the cover.

The story is told from the first-person point of view, so we readers are very trapped in the narrow worldview of the protagonist. Consequently, her porn addiction is anything but fun. In its compulsive self-destructiveness, the addiction is disturbing, painful, violent, and ultimately self-sabotaging, and we experience every corner of it. Yet when 'real life' intervenes, the author doesn't give us the same level of psychological processing we get with the character's encounters with the digital. I felt robbed. If I've gone down a dark hole with the narrator, then stay there when it counts.

Instead the author takes the easy way out. Perhaps this ending is redemptive, but it's logic isn't easy, or believable. It is fairy-tale-ish, so that might suit some readers. I'm left unsettled and disgruntled--and not in a way that I think was intentional.

Some of the writing is lovely. The story with its setting is certainly distinctive. Perhaps you can assess whether you will find it compelling or distasteful, or perhaps a mash-up of both.

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

An unusual and enthralling coming-of-age story about a young Hasidic woman in Brooklyn. Our protagonist, Raizl, finds herself addicted to online pornography as she grapples with her university studies, her part-time work as an accountant, her beliefs, and quest to learn more about herself. She worries that her secret addiction will derail her ability to get married.

Shmutz is an unpredictable, captivating, and thought-provoking read. It made me laugh, it made me sad, and it made me uncomfortable at times. The author skillfully balances several topics including self-identity, sexuality, faith, religion, familial duty, etc., and creates a complex and lovable character in Raizl. Raizl was utterly charming and I was rooting for her to find her happiness. I have not read anything like this before and recommend it to anyone looking for a unique take on the coming-of-age genre.

Thank you very much to Atria Books for the opportunity to read an ARC via NetGalley. This is my voluntary and unbiased review.

Great cover drew me into the book the story.A story of A chasidish ultra orthodox young woman.She is of the age to find a match a chausin..She is hooked on porn a shocking habit for the highly orthodox world she lives in.I enjoyed the story the authors writing I laughed loud at times was really entertained.Looking forward to the authors next novel.

A wonderful and delightfully strange book vivid with references, desire, and humor. I had imagined reading this in one setting, though in the end, it took me much longer. There are a lot of references which I had to look up. I particularly love the cover here––it is just like the content of the writing: witty, historic, and more meaningful than you think it is at first glance. Whip-smart and eccentric. I am looking forward to more titles by this author.

This book has to be one of the most original stories I've read in a very long time. The cover, of course, is amazing--the suggestive hamantaschen!? Brilliant. All I had to do was see this cover and I knew I'd enjoy this book. The author does a great job of balancing the main character's complex relationship with her religion, her sense of self, and her individuation. I found this book laugh out loud funny and heart-wrenchingly sad at times. Though the cover suggests it, readers should know going in that this book is quite sexually graphic. If you can't handle that, this book is probably not for you, but I will say that it didn't feel like those scenes occurred without reason. The experience of porn through the eyes of a young Hasidic woman was really eye-opening, and was a really interesting way for the author to divulge information about the main character's perspective. I loved this one!

Not my favorite, but we will purchase it. Heads up the glossary at the end of the book will help you enjoy it much more. Thank you for the ARC.

This was a really interesting book and I enjoyed reading it! Also that cover is so good and totally drew me in.

The cover of this book caught my eye, and I still think it is an excellent cover for the story inside. I am Jewish and was raised Jewish, but any Jew knows how different being Hasidic is from modern Judaism. Berliner does an excellent job of bringing you into the mind of a young, sheltered, Hasidic woman struggling to discover herself under the oppressive eye of her parents, boss, therapist, and God. I only wish the story ended with more of the future of the MC outlined, but that’s personal preference and not at all the fault of the author. I would recommend this book to anyone curious about strict upbringings in women in the modern age and how it can affect their minds.

The cover alone drew me in, but when I read the description of a woman in her Hasidic community working through her addiction to porn, I was sold as intrigued.

Let me be clear — if you're one who is uncomfortable with graphic sexual imagery, this is not the book for you. However, it's fascinating to read about the porn Raizl is watching from her point of view — the choice to make it analytical worked really well. I also loved the Yiddish that was interspersed in the prose — it fleshed the novel out more and even if I didn't fully get the exact meaning (glossary at the end and I didn't even think to check on my e-book), you got enough of the meaning to get along.

The plot itself was less dynamic than I expected. While it was interesting, I kept wanting more. It's more introspective, which is fine, but not fully what I was expecting, I suppose. Reading Raizl work through her sexuality, her religion, and even role as a woman in an Hasidic community was handled with care — you can tell that Berliner was thoughtful in her words.

I think part of my reservation for the book is that I never fell in love with any of the characters. Not in the romantic/overly attached sense, but I didn't even feel like I got that attached. And it's not about likability, but just instead the investment I felt towards them. I was intrigued and wanted to finish but the characters didn't grip be as intensely as I would have hoped.

Overall, I enjoyed this book but didn't love it. I do think it's a really important and interesting new book, I just wanted to attach to the characters more and feel a little bit more of a fleshed out plot.

3/5 stars.

First of all, the cover! I loved the usage of the hamantaschen in relation to what this book is about. It is a thought provoking book that made me sad and laugh at same time. The conflict of respecting her religion and her self discovery, it did get uncomfortable to read some parts but I appreciated the vulnerability. The storytelling was very unique, funny, serious and entertaining, I read through this book quickly. Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for a honest feedback.