The Weight of Ink

De: Rachel Kadish

Narrado por: Hannah Curtis, Josh Bloomberg

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.

Living through the great London plague

I liked the history of the problems still faced by women longing to be heard.I appreciated the details of the London plague and the parallels to our recent pandemic.

A beautiful work!

I loved it all. Fabulous writing. I want to read more by her but doubt her other writings could be superior to this one.

The story

It’s long but worth it. I love stories about strong, brave women who go against conventions and be who they are meant to be.

17th-Century Jewish London Brought to Life

From a series of secret documents uncovered under a stair well, Rachel Kadish beautifully weaves together characters, centuries and the history of London's Jewish community in Restoration London.

Intriguing insights into 17th century Jewish plight in London

And insights into the effects of the plague on an already unraveling community.
And a 17th century female philosopher’s writings using aliases, and making it to modern historians.

I was disappointed with the last scene. I don’t understand where it fits. BUT it didn’t take away from the rest of the story.

Complicated dual timeline story

The author beautifully describes characters, places and events. The book drags on and becomes tedious in part due to descriptive passages.