cover image Kuperman’s Fire

Kuperman’s Fire

John Jacob Clayton, . . Permanent, $28 (0pp) ISBN 978-1-57962-152-0

Clayton (The Man I Never Wanted to Be ) adroitly combines thriller elements with one man’s particular, but resonant, Jewish legacy. Michael Kuperman’s innovative company, Fusion, is on the cusp of a hoped-for merger when he’s informed of something rotten with Chemicorp, a major factor in the deal: the company is making legal-to-produce chemicals specifically for clients with nefarious purposes, and the bad guys will do anything to protect their secrets. The actions of Michael’s maternal grandfather, Jacob Goldstein, guide Michael in thinking about what to do next: before Michael was born, Goldstein saved multiple families from a vicious pogrom in Russia, at great risk to himself. As Michael weighs the risks to his family and debates whether to turn a blind eye, Clayton brings Michael’s family’s Holocaust history, the historical struggles of the Jews and the recent genocides in Rwanda and Bosnia into the mix. His morality tale effectively explores the courage, costs and rewards involved in putting others first. (July)