Seasons of Destiny by Howard Glassroth

A visceral portrait of oppression and resilience across generations, Seasons of Destiny by Howard Glassroth is a stark reminder that resistance in the face of hate is the only path to freedom.

After a shocking act of Cossack violence and a painful betrayal nearly destroy their inn, David and Blin, two Polish Jews, pass the family business onto their son, Usher. A few miles north, a desperate father tries to save his rebellious son, only to plant a target on his family’s fortunes. As years pass, the children of these families are drawn to Warsaw, where the simmering threat of World War I replicates the same fears and injustices their parents once suffered.

The immense power of this novel lies in its richly drawn characters and the underlying currents of cultural tension, which is handled with stirring pathos and sensitivity. That said, the prose would benefit from more patient passages of description to build this historical world; the rapid pace of the storytelling makes for a page-turning read, but years pass in a matter of pages, and major turning points and revelations are commonly revealed in the quick flow of a scene or dialogic exchange.

Overall, however, this is an affecting work of historical fiction, and an important one. Glassroth has crafted an evocative family drama that feels as relevant now as it would have a century ago, exploring the turmoil and intergenerational trauma of prejudice that still reverberates today.