The Yiddish Policemen's Union

#100
Title: The Yiddish Policemen's Union
Author: Michael Chabon
Publisher: HarperCollins
Year: 2007
Genre: fiction, alternate history
414 pages  

This seemed like a good book for #100. Chabon gives us an alternate history in which the Jewish nation, more or less, has wound up in Sitka, Alaska rather than the Middle East. It starts slow, which I apparently enjoyed more than some reviewers. I found the opening psychological and developmental sections more compelling than the later, faster-paced action. Chabon manages an enjoyable and never-normalizing blend of Yiddishkeit and the noir detective novel. The end seemed deflated, with a confused climax and a concerning loss of momentum. I did not find it to be an adequate payoff for the buildup. For this reason, I'd recommend The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay instead.