The Yiddish Policemen's Union

A Novel

By: Michael Chabon

Narrated by: Peter Riegert

he New York Times bestseller, now available in paperback—“an excellent, hyperliterate, genre-pantsing detective novel that deserves every inch of its…blockbuster superfame” (New York).

For sixty years Jewish refugees and their descendants have prospered in the Federal District of Sitka, a ""temporary"" safe haven created in the wake of the Holocaust and the shocking 1948 collapse of the fledgling state of Israel. The Jews of the Sitka District have created their own little world in the Alaskan panhandle, a vibrant and complex frontier city that moves to the music of Yiddish. But now the District is set to revert to Alaskan control, and their dream is coming to an end.

Homicide detective Meyer Landsman of the District Police has enough problems without worrying about the upcoming Reversion. His life is a shambles, his marriage a wreck, his career a disaster. And in the cheap hotel where Landsman has washed up, someone has just committed a murder—right under his nose. When he begins to investigate the killing of his neighbor, a former chess prodigy, word comes down from on high that the case is to be dropped immediately, and Landsman finds himself contending with all the powerful forces of faith, obsession, evil, and salvation that are his heritage.

At once a gripping whodunit, a love story, and an exploration of the mysteries of exile and redemption, The Yiddish Policemen's Union is a novel only Michael Chabon could have written.

alt jewish settlement is worth visiting

a unique exploration of jewish traditons in an alternative Alaska.
ffo: detective, jewish history, alt reality

My favorite book of the last decade

From beginning to end, this was my favorite book of the last decade. I've shared it with many friends, and it continues to please.

Blown away

Another great work by Chabon. The story is tight, engaging, and the setting beautifully depicted.

The narrator is perfect for this kind of classic detective story that is more then a detective story.

The setting is fictional but so well developed I had to look up the history to make sure.

I also very much enjoyed the author interview at the end a day I hope Harper continues this trend.

This might be my favorite audio book ever

Chabon creates a fascinating alternative history. Peter Riegert is brilliant in his performance. And all of this in a hard boiled detective story? It’s wonderful

Great listen, weird music intermittently

Every once and a while this annoying music pops up out of nowhere. Great otherwise!