... lovely ... Brilliantly translated ... an intensely clever literary construction that never compromises readability. The title evokes the idea of a series of reflections that, like a mirror to history, offer clues to Blum’s identity and the circumstances that brought him to Israel. The water of the canals becomes a conduit to the past, or at least to the world of the imagination ... More elegant than the mystery itself is Elon’s technique, as her novel seems both to anticipate and then merge with the novel Blum is writing about his family’s wartime ordeals.
Narratively, Elon runs the risk of diminished interest in Blum's sections, as reading about a writer at work is less dramatic than the powerful action of Sonia’s scenes. There is also the fact that Blu learns a major fact of his origin at the beginning of the book that isn’t revealed to readers until the end – a withholding that seems overly determined. However, House on Endless Waters is a deeply immersive achievement that brings to life stories that must never be forgotten.
Readers will find Elon’s lyrical prose haunting as she moves between past and present, constructing a heartbreaking, moving tale that brings understanding and acceptance. This beautiful novel is an excellent choice for book groups interested in both literary and historical fiction.
Paying thoughtful homage to the Jews of Amsterdam, trapped in the Nazis' inexorable vise of persecution, Israeli writer Elon has composed a story of love, loss, and yearning, expressed through the creation of a novel within a novel ... the novel is given weight by its focus on Yoel’s psychology and the mood of a beautiful capital flowing with symbolic dark water. Lyrically phrased and often powerfully visual, the novel has a slow pace, unlike other, perhaps more conventional war stories. However, this deeply felt tale offers a rewarding meditation on survival and on digesting the emotional burdens freely or unknowingly carried ... Blurring the edges between history and fiction, this achingly mournful work impresses with its grave empathy.
