Shortly after Orthodox Jewish Brooklynite Jacob Fischer puts his young family on a bus to visit relatives, the bus explodes in a stunning act of terrorism. HIs faith shattered, Jacob flees the comforts of his community and disappears. He lands up in a predominantly black town in rural Alabama, where he meets Rosie, the single mother of a young son. Their developing relationship, along with the rekindling of his love of music, precipitate events that will change both their lives. This debut novel is a powerful page-turner that follows a complex man on a journey of salvation after tragedy.
J.J. Gesher is the pen name for co-authors Joyce Gittlin and Janet B. Fattal. Together, Janet and Joyce have won several prestigious screenwriting awards, including the Geller Prize and the Screenwriting Award at the Austin Film Festival. Their first screenwriting collaboration was produced as a Lifetime Television feature.
Joyce Gittlin has written and directed such television shows as Wings, Frasier, and Everybody Loves Raymond and has written more than ten feature films for Disney, Paramount, and 20th Century Fox. She has an MFA from NYU.
Janet B. Fattal has a masters in Comparative Literature from UCLA and has taught literature and writing at the college level. The editor of several memoirs, Janet leads many Los Angeles–area book groups, including for the Skirball Cultural Center, Hadassah, and the Brandeis alumni association. The co-authors both live in Los Angeles.
Industry Reviews
"The book's plot is stunningly original, offering a main character with deep complexities whose opacity seems understandable... a fast-paced, riveting read... a searingly unique and thought-provoking tale."
-The Jerusalem Post
"What happens when you lose everything? This radiant debut gets at the dark beating heart of survival, set against a backdrop of differing geography, beliefs, cultures, and races, in prose as intricate as a jazz fugue. Blazingly original and fiercely smart, A Narrow Bridge shows that who we love is really who we are."
- Caroline Leavitt, New York Times-bestselling author of Cruel Beautiful World and Pictures of You
"I couldn't put this book down, beginning by being drawn in by one of the most compelling first lines I have ever read. This multicultural debut is about two very different people, from very diverse circumstances and backgrounds....Ultimately, this is a beautiful examination of human connection and finding a reason to live again after all hope is gone."
- Terry Gilman, owner of Mysterious Galaxy bookstore and a prominent book-event manager
"A Narrow Bridge is a moving story about the intersection between love and loss and an unsentimental exploration of the role of faith in healing. I held my breath until the very last word of this cinematic, compassionate, and compelling debut."
- Michelle Brafman, author of Bertrand Court and Washing the Dead
"A gripping, heartbreaking, ultimately uplifting story of two broken people and the healing power of love. Beautifully drawn, the writing keeps you riveted page after fast-turning page."
-Jeffrey Richman, six-time Emmy-winning executive producer of Modern Family and Frasier
"An enjoyable, optimistic novel about how people - despite cultural, religious and racial differences - can find comfort in each other's common humanity. It makes for very fine reading."
-San Diego Jewish World
"A beautifully written, imaginative, and poignant testimony to the power of love and the limits of faith."
- Steven Z. Leder, senior rabbi at Wilshire Boulevard Temple in Los Angeles and author of The Extraordinary Nature of Ordinary Things
