Title: A Guide for the Perplexed Author: Dara Horn
Published: September 9, 2013
Genre(s): Literary Fiction
Page Count: 342
Rating:
Summary from Goodreads:Software prodigy Josie Ashkenazi has invented an application that records everything its users do. When an Egyptian library invites her to visit as a consultant, her jealous sister Judith persuades her to go. But in Egypt’s postrevolutionary chaos, Josie is abducted—leaving Judith free to take over Josie’s life at home, including her husband and daughter, while Josie’s talent for preserving memories becomes a surprising test of her empathy and her only means of escape.
A century earlier, another traveler arrives in Egypt: Solomon Schechter, a Cambridge professor hunting for a medieval archive hidden in a Cairo synagogue. Both he and Josie are haunted by the work of the medieval philosopher Moses Maimonides, a doctor and rationalist who sought to reconcile faith and science, destiny and free will. But what Schechter finds, as he tracks down the remnants of a thousand-year-old community’s once-vibrant life, will reveal the power and perils of what Josie’s ingenious work brings into being: a world where nothing is ever forgotten.
Dara Horn’s A Guide for the Perplexed is inspired by the Biblical Joseph story, but aside from some plot structure similarities, doesn’t have much the same tone or theme as Joseph’s story from Genesis, most notably concerning the conclusion which was desolate rather than encouraging. However, Horn’s novel stands well on its own minus any comparisons to others’ writing. I found, all in all, that I enjoyed this book.
This is a short book, and it seems shorter because Horn has split the narrative into two. First there is the story of Josephine, the symbolic “Joseph” character, who is kidnapped in modern-day Egypt. Second there’s the story of Solomon Schechter, a Hebraic scholar in the late ninteenth century, who also travels to Egypt. The author switches back and forth between the two characters’ stories, and so the reader is only allowed to spend a brief amount of pages with each. However, I wouldn’t say the brevity of the novel is a bad thing; Horn communicated everything that was necessary for a well-rounded plot, and I didn’t think anything was lacking.
As I mentioned, the overall tone of the book was fairly bleak and/or hopeless, especially when the conclusion was taken into consideration. Among other things, the main focus of the book seems to be the past and how we control it through memory and media archives. Though various points were made about the past, the final place the characters reach seemed to be bitter and mournful more than anything.
Not to say, however, that I didn’t like the atmosphere of A Guide for the Perplexed—I did, as it seemed fitting. Dara Horn did well with the topic and hand and treated it honestly. I was very pleased by the lack of a “happy ending” since I don’t believe it would have fit at all.
Overall, I found A Guide for the Perplexed to be very unique and intriguing. The themes of philosophy, memory, and biblical parallels were combined skillfully. I’ve not read a book like this before, and I think Horn did well altogether.
