“Now it came to her, how to describe the country in one word: resilient. Despite wars and destruction, the people here continually moved forward, rebuilding and innovating. Resilience might also be the quality needed for a lasting marriage, the ability to sort through problems and come out stronger.” ~ from The Book of Jeremiah
In life and writing, no character lives in isolation. Every action and reaction moves us forward in one way or another, strengthening ties or breaking bonds. It is only in looking back where we may fully understand the course of our journey, the impact we have on others, the impact they have on us.
From the title, The Book of Jeremiah (Press 53, 2019), you might assume Julie Zuckerman’s debut novel is solely the story of one man. But this novel in stories opens with “A Strong Hand and an Outstretched Arm,” as told from Jeremiah’s mother’s point of view, and sets the tone for all that follows: a journey through past and present, revealing all that makes the man.
Anna Solomon (The Little Bride) says, “These stories shimmer with tenderness and truth.” Ilana Kurshan (If All the Seas Were Ink) calls Zuckerman’s novel “a sensitive and nuanced portrayal of some of life’s most painful and private moments.” The book’s cover speaks to the power of Zuckerman’s novel: this is a multi-generational story in which everyone is connected, by blood and experience, in history and in culture, through cause and effect.
I’m honored to host Julie Zuckerman today to talk more about her novel. ENTER the book giveaway for a chance to win a copy of The Book of Jeremiah (courtesy of Caitlin Hamilton Marketing & Publicity and Press 53).
Christi Craig (CC): You have a great collection of short stories and essays published, and The Book of Jeremiah is your first longer work. What did you love most about moving from short to long, and did you find certain themes carried over into your novel?
Julie Zuckerman (JZ): My idea was to write each chapter as a particular moment in Jeremiah’s life, every story meant to stand on its own and contribute to the larger arc – the best of both worlds! “Each life an entire universe” is something Jeremiah contemplates in one of the chapters, when he’s thinking about soldiers who have died in America’s various wars, and that’s a bit like what I tried to do here, to capture the entire universe that is his life.
Several themes emerged as I wrote: loss and forgiveness, sorrow and hope, the search for one’s place in the world. Certain questions also recur in the various chapters: Can you ever truly know another person? I wasn’t consciously writing towards these themes and questions, but I suppose it’s natural that if you look at the course of one person’s life, there are central motifs that repeat themselves.
CC: In “A note from the Author,” you write that this book grew from the final story in the novel, “MixMaster.” From there you “worked…to unravel Jeremiah’s life.” What was the biggest challenge, or most surprising moment (or both) in uncovering this character, along with his family?
JZ: “MixMaster” takes place when Jeremiah is 82, so I was writing backwards in time, having a pretty good idea of who he was as a senior, but less clear on who he was as a young man, as a child. One of the pivotal moments in Jeremiah’s life occurs when he is 19; I won’t reveal what it is here, but it was fun writing about the youthful Jeremiah. He’s a bit of a wild child, a prankster as a youth, so it surprised me to see some of the tricks he had up his sleeve.
CC: On your website, you feature Fun Stuff, including recipes for dishes mentioned in the book, paired with quotes from the book. What a great mix of media to enhance the readers’ experience of your novel. Which is your favorite recipe to make and share?
JZ: Thanks! I had a good time making that page, and I may add more recipes as I go along.
In terms of recipes I like to make and share, it’s a three-way tie between homemade granola, chocolate chip peanut butter cookies (from the Mrs. Fields “I Love Chocolate! Cookbook” – a variation of the recipe is here), and cinnamon babka. Special shout-out to Paula Shoyer, aka The Kosher Baker, for teaching my daughter how to make babka at summer camp and then sending the kids home with recipe books. One of her other babka recipes is available here.
Here’s the homemade granola recipe, which I received from a family friend:
6 cups rolled oats 2 cups whole almonds or mixed nuts
(not salted or roasted) ¾ cup hazelnuts ½ cup flax seeds ½ cup sunflower seeds ½ cup pumpkin seeds ¼ cup brown sugar 3 tsp ground allspice 2 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp ground ginger ¾ cup olive oil 4 TBSP honey 2 cups pitted dates, chopped 1 cup dried unsweetened cranberries
Mix the first ten ingredients in a large bowl. Heat olive oil and honey in a saucepan over low heat, then pour it over the granola mixture and stir well. Spread mixture over 1-2 baking sheets, bake at 300 for 15 minutes, stirring once or twice. Stir in the dried fruit and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes. Cool and store in an airtight container. Delicious with yogurt and fresh fruit, or any way you like to eat granola!
CC: What are you reading these days?
JZ: I’ve been alternating reading short story collections, particularly from small presses like Press 53 – they are all excellent! – and novels, with a few memoirs here and there. A few that I’ve read lately and would highly recommend are “Heirlooms” by Rachel Hall, “Ways to Disappear” by Idra Novey, “The Art of Leaving” by Ayelet Tsabari, “Shelf-Life of Happiness” by Virginia Pye, “They Could Live With Themselves” by Jodi Paloni, “What the Zhang Boys Knew” by Cliff Garstang, “The Parting Gift” by Evan Fallenberg and “A Good Hard Look” by Ann Napolitano.
CC: May is Short Story Month. With that in mind, along with the knowledge that your novel grew from a short story, is there a collection of stories you would recommend for readers or a short story author you love most?
JZ: In addition to the above, I’d recommend anything by Edith Pearlman (author of “Binocular Vision,” “Honeydew” and several other volumes). Is it too much to say that I’d like to be her when I grow up?
Julie Zuckerman’s fiction and nonfiction have appeared in a variety of publications, including The SFWP Quarterly, The MacGuffin, Salt Hill, Sixfold, Crab Orchard Review, Ellipsis, The Coil, and others. THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH, her debut novel-in-stories, was the runner-up in the 2018 Press 53 Award for Short Fiction Award. A native of Connecticut, she resides in Modiin, Israel, with her husband and four children. Learn more at https://www.juliezuckerman.com/.
