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New York: The Five Books of Moses #2
The Sacrificial Circumcision of the Bronx
Nersesian is this generation s Mark Twain and the East River is his Mississippi. Jennifer Belle, author of High Maintenance Nersesian is a first-rate observer of his native New York. Publishers Weekly "The unquestioned authority of Moses is difficult to fully grasp today -- this unimaginable, outsized character whose outrageous deeds seem the stuff of novels. And that is how Nersesian is tackling him, by blending fact with fiction. Historical events and persons are interwoven with a fascinating apocalyptic story and literary license, at last revealing the tumultuous life and legacy of Robert Moses. Faced with such a daunting subject matter and multi-volume work, Nersesian s narrative is masterful."Brooklyn Eagle The Sacrificial Circumcision of the Bronx is the highly anticipated follow-up to The Swing Voter of Staten Islandthe first two installments in Arthur Nersesian s series of novels offering an alternate history of New The Five Books of Moses. Robert Moses was responsible for creating contemporary New York s infrastructure, but he did so at the cost of destroying neighborhoods. In this novel, Robert has looted his brother Paul s share of the Moses family fortune, repeatedly blocked his attempts at gaining public office, thwarted his career in the private sector, and set in motion events that decimate Paul s home life. Paul Moses deep-seated rage metamorphoses into an act of terrorism committed against his brother and against a city that he once cherished. Although it can be read as a stand-alone novel about Robert and Paul Moses, The Sacrificial Circumcision of the Bronx is also a memory play that follows Uli Sarkisianthe hero of The Swing Voter of Staten Islanden route to solving a massive historical crime, while desperately struggling to escape from becoming another one of its victims. Arthur Nersesian is the author of eight novels, including the smash hit The Fuck-Up (more than 100,000 copies sold), dogrun, Suicide Casanova (Akashic Books), and, most recently, The Swing Voter of Staten Island, the first volume in The Five Books of Moses series. He lives in New York City."
- GenresFiction
300 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2008
3 people are currently reading
157 people want to read
About the author
Arthur Nersesian
35 books378 followersArthur Nersesian is the author of eight novels, including The Fuck-Up (Akashic, 1997 & MTV Books/Simon & Schuster, 1999), Chinese Takeout (HarperCollins), Manhattan Loverboy (Akashic), Suicide Casanova (Akashic), dogrun (MTV Books/Simon & Schuster), and Unlubricated (HarperCollins). He is also the author of East Village Tetralogy, a collection of four plays. He lives in New York City.
From arthurnersesian.com:
www.arthurnersesian.com/
"Arthur Nersesian is a real New York writer. His novels are a celebration
of marginal characters living in the East Village and trying to survive.
Nersesian's books include The Fuck-Up, The East Village Tetralogy, and now just published by a small press based in New York, Manhattan Loverboy. Nersesian has been a fixture in the writing scene for many years. He was an editor for The Portable Lower East Side, which was an important magazine during the 1980s and early 90s.
When The Fuck-Up came out in 1997, MTV Books picked it up and reprinted it in a new edition for hipsters everywhere. Soon Nersesian was no longer known only to a cabal of young bohemians on Avenue A. His work has been championed by The Village Voice and Time Out."
From arthurnersesian.com:
www.arthurnersesian.com/
"Arthur Nersesian is a real New York writer. His novels are a celebration
of marginal characters living in the East Village and trying to survive.
Nersesian's books include The Fuck-Up, The East Village Tetralogy, and now just published by a small press based in New York, Manhattan Loverboy. Nersesian has been a fixture in the writing scene for many years. He was an editor for The Portable Lower East Side, which was an important magazine during the 1980s and early 90s.
When The Fuck-Up came out in 1997, MTV Books picked it up and reprinted it in a new edition for hipsters everywhere. Soon Nersesian was no longer known only to a cabal of young bohemians on Avenue A. His work has been championed by The Village Voice and Time Out."
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 8, 2018
Fraternal Revenge
If you hate the man who created, over a period of four decades, the transportation chaos and suburban sprawl of New York City, namely Robert Moses, as much as I do (see Robert Caro's The Power Broker for details), read this book for some literary affirmation and a sense of revenge. This is the second of Nersesian's intended 'Five Books of Moses'.
Moses is the dedicated civil servant who, among many other atrocities, made the South Bronx uninhabitable by running the Cross Bronx Expressway through the middle of it in the 1960's. Unelected and unaccountable except to himself, he 'circumcised' the borough against its will and created arguably the densest traffic jam in America.
Few know that Robert had an older brother, Paul, who had also graduated Yale (as an electrical engineer). For reasons that only a Sigmund Freud might understand, Robert, through his positions of political power, ensured that Paul was unemployable in NYC. Through his family power, given him through his mother's pointedly vengeful will, he denied Paul an inheritance that would have allowed him to save his own business. Paul died in utter poverty aged 80 in a New York slum.
Paul Moses is appropriately the protagonist of The Sacrificial Circumcision of the Bronx. He offends the family by falling for a Mexican shiksa (named Rothschild!). Upon returning to the US, Paul takes up residence in the Bronx along the intended route of his brother's road. As in his actual life, things do not turn out well for Paul. There is little else to do than become more bitter and twisted as his brother moves from success to success.
Robert Moses was an all-round bastard. He deserves a little literary vilification. One can only hope brother Paul is resting easier in his grave.
If you hate the man who created, over a period of four decades, the transportation chaos and suburban sprawl of New York City, namely Robert Moses, as much as I do (see Robert Caro's The Power Broker for details), read this book for some literary affirmation and a sense of revenge. This is the second of Nersesian's intended 'Five Books of Moses'.
Moses is the dedicated civil servant who, among many other atrocities, made the South Bronx uninhabitable by running the Cross Bronx Expressway through the middle of it in the 1960's. Unelected and unaccountable except to himself, he 'circumcised' the borough against its will and created arguably the densest traffic jam in America.
Few know that Robert had an older brother, Paul, who had also graduated Yale (as an electrical engineer). For reasons that only a Sigmund Freud might understand, Robert, through his positions of political power, ensured that Paul was unemployable in NYC. Through his family power, given him through his mother's pointedly vengeful will, he denied Paul an inheritance that would have allowed him to save his own business. Paul died in utter poverty aged 80 in a New York slum.
Paul Moses is appropriately the protagonist of The Sacrificial Circumcision of the Bronx. He offends the family by falling for a Mexican shiksa (named Rothschild!). Upon returning to the US, Paul takes up residence in the Bronx along the intended route of his brother's road. As in his actual life, things do not turn out well for Paul. There is little else to do than become more bitter and twisted as his brother moves from success to success.
Robert Moses was an all-round bastard. He deserves a little literary vilification. One can only hope brother Paul is resting easier in his grave.
May 1, 2016
Nersesian struck pure gold (again). The protagonist's struggle is so tangible that you feel the pain intrinsically..
I'm also somewhat addicted to his character portrayals because they're very relatable and I often identify with the main character!
This particular book had an esoteric nature and an element of mysterious, calculated dystopia that makes for an intriguing read down to the last page!! Read it!
I'm also somewhat addicted to his character portrayals because they're very relatable and I often identify with the main character!
This particular book had an esoteric nature and an element of mysterious, calculated dystopia that makes for an intriguing read down to the last page!! Read it!
January 24, 2009
I'm pretty sure that I only continued reading it because it was written by Arthur Nersesian. Sadly not one of his better works.
March 12, 2010
Not the same read as his past works. Still strange like his other's,just more twists I uess you would say. Don't make this your first Nersesian book...
August 7, 2012
Very good. Moses was a dirty bugger.
July 15, 2022
I like this. It's weird and leaves a lot unexplained, unlike the previous book in the series which had super clunky exposition. Some of it is extremely moving and poignant.
August 25, 2012
Hun? I don't get it.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews