The Betrayers

by David Bezmozgis July 15, 2014

David Bezmozgis’ masterful writing skills are on full display in “The Betrayers”. He has a literary tone that is all his own. Periodic jumps between active and passive voice, and the use of varying complexity in his word choices and sentence structures keep the reader on his/her toes, even a bit uneasy. It is almost as if you can imagine the author at work in his literary laboratory, using precision tools to craft each letter, word, sentence and paragraph. No detail is too insignificant. It is not only the lab of a novelist, but also that of a poet and etymologist.

But, it’s not all about language in a Bezmozgis work. There are always stories to tell, politics and religion to debate, moral dilemmas to expose. In this case, the stories take place at the intersection of Russia, Ukraine, Crimea and Israel. These spots have been prominent in the news of late, something that Bezmozgis did not at all anticipate and with which he clearly feels less than comfortable. This is not because he does not know his territory. To the contrary, Bezmozgis has a deep understanding of the political, cultural and religious essence of each of his settings through both research and personal family experience. However, he is not about writing a “flavor of the day” novel. Instead, Bezmozgis is focused on eternal human moral values and how they continue to apply. In this way, the “The Betrayers” narrative is a success.

It’s never easy being a character in a Bezmozgis story. Life is hard and is likely on the verge of getting harder. Often, individuals have shallow, if any roots, and are constantly on the move from place to place, never quite fitting in. Those that have roots feel trapped, unable to escape, not that they necessarily are sure where they want to go or whether they won’t miss what they have once they get there.

At the end of the day, “The Betrayers” provides no easy answers. The wheel of life spins round and round. Is it fate that determines where it stops? Or do even flawed humans have the ability to influence the course of events? As always, we are left with much to ponder.

Thank you Little, Brown and Edelweiss for providing me a DRC of this book.