Reviews

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In her ambitious, and painstakingly researched, debut novel, Ms. Moss takes the reader on a compelling journey into 1830s New England, in which repressive Calvinism runs headlong into a Transcendentalist quest to find an elusive utopia right here on Earth…. (A) precocious and bold first novel…”

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Compelling, powerful, lit by art and language, this novel of ideas embodies in the struggles of a passionate family a great intellectual and spiritual conflict. And what a family this is! Moss’s brilliantly realized characters will stay with me for a long time.”

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You’ve never quite read a book like Barbara Klein Moss’s The Language of Paradise before. Entirely original in its conception and execution, it is a masterfully written, deftly detailed novel about early American intellectual, spiritual, and practical life…and what might lie beyond it.”

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This is an entrancing, deeply troubling and daring story of the human spirit bound to earth, dispossessed of Paradise, and longing to return. It is so compelling I actually dreamed it at night. Highly recommended.”

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The Language of Paradise quickly carves its own stunningly unique niche in the realm of historical fiction. The indelibly drawn characters think with their hearts, love with their minds as they navigate their faith and their passions. Moss’s debut novel is unconventional in all the right ways.”

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(starred review) A linguistic tour de force whose deft exploration of language, intellect, family, love, nature, and art will delight discerning readers everywhere, especially fans of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Henry James.”

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Barbara Klein Moss inhabits the hearts and minds of her characters with such empathy that it’s hard not to feel that she witnessed their complicated lives first hand. I am full of admiration for the way in which The Language of Paradise brings to life the struggles of faith and family. An utterly absorbing novel.”

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The novel’s world never collapses under the weight of the substantial research that informs it; it is vibrant and, especially in the second half, engrossing. Throughout, Moss’s language is precise and controlled, effectively describing the inner lives of Gideon and, in particular, Sophy, whose initial childlike innocence makes way for something much stronger and harder earned.”

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As with all great literature, the themes here have universal appeal: the quest for personal paradise … and how this can drive people mad; the projection of qualities onto others; and the disillusionment that can result therein. But there is levity here, too, as Sophy transcends her experiences and grows into a wise, powerful woman.”

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(4 ¹⁄₂ stars) The author’s faithful rendering of language and custom creates a sense of the stifling paternal mentality that defines women’s behavior as Sophy is forced to break with a lifetime of concession and obedience to save her family from an unnatural fate born of the conceits of men.”

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(A) profoundly beautiful and surprising book. Passion becomes all the more thrilling in its conscious restraint, while the glory of this world – and the next – glimmers in the everyday surroundings…Moss has created a complex and very real society, pulsing with ambition and moments of grace, as well as with dreams both humble and grand…(A) book that takes us into a dream state while leaving us with a hard look at what it takes to make our way through the here and now.”

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With Little Edens, Barbara Klein Moss seems to have come into the world full-blown. These stories, beautifully balanced and assured, are filled with wisdom, humor, sadness, and love. The concluding novella is magnificent. The sturdy, elegant structure, the building eroticism and the way that weaves so seamlessly into the mysticism — well, it is utterly memorable.”

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Moss’s readings of heart and mind are impressive enough; but where she excels is at the workbench. The right word, the flawless sentence, the echoing simile — Moss can write.”