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A razor-sharp, entertaining, and poignant memoir about growing up in the finished world of the ultraorthodox Jewish community. The 3rd of six children in a family group that harks back again to a gloried Hassidic dynasty, Judy Brown grew up with the legacy of hundreds of years of religious coaching and the trust and lore that sustained her people for decades. But her carefully built world starts to crumble when her "crazy" brother, Nachum, results home after having a 12 months in Israel coping with family. Though supposedly "cured", he's still susceptible to retreating into his own head or erupting in wordless rages. The individuals' inability to make him better - or even to give his affliction a name - makes Judy to ask bigger questions: If God could perform wonders for her sainted ancestors, why can't he cure Nachum? And what of the other reports her family treasured? Judy starts off to make a deal with God, swinging from holy tenets to absurdly entertaining conclusions faster when compared to a Talmudic scholar: She continues on an easy to nab desired earrings; she battles with her siblings at the dinner table for the ultimate badge of honor ("Who'll survive another Holocaust?"); and she adamantly defends her family's reputation when, scandalously, her parents are accused of having fallen in love - which is absolutely not what pious people do. For everyone its brutal credibility about this insular community, This ISN'T a Love Account is eventually a story of a family group like so many others, whose fierce love for each other and devotion with their faith pulled them through the darkest time in their lives.
