Ep 10. I Dream of Jinni
Tune in this week to learn about the magical beings known as jinn (genies). Discover origins, mythology and historical significance through the lens of Helene Wecker’s debut novel, The Golem and the Jinni.
“Historical Fiction with a heavy dose of fantasy…”
Chava is a golem, a creature made of clay, brought to life by a disgraced rabbi who dabbles in dark Kabbalistic magic, created to be the wife of a man who dies at sea on the voyage from Poland. Chava is unmoored and adrift as the ship arrives in New York harbor in 1899.
Ahmad is a jinni, a being of fire born in the ancient Syrian desert, trapped in an old copper flask, and released in New York City, though still not entirely free.
Ahmad and Chava become unlikely friends and soul mates with a mystical connection. Marvelous and compulsively readable, Helene Wecker's debut novel The Golem and the Jinni weaves strands of Yiddish and Middle Eastern literature, historical fiction and magical fable, into a wonderfully inventive and unforgettable tale.
Check it out on GoodReads
Jinn
In Middle Eastern and Muslim mythology, a jinni (or a genie) is a supernatural spirit made of smokeless flame. In an Islamic context, the term jinn is used for both a collective designation for any supernatural creature and also to refer to a specific type of supernatural creature. Therefore, jinn are often mentioned together with demons. Both demons and jinn feature in folklore and are held responsible for misfortune, possession and diseases. Wikipedia