Isaac Blum’s debut novel, The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen (Philomel Books, Sept. 13), follows Yehuda “Hoodie” Rosen as he navigates the expectations of his Orthodox Jewish community alongside the antisemitism of their new town. Our starred review called it “funny, smart, moving, courageous, and so timely it almost hurts.” The book appears on Kirkus’ list of the best books of 2022, and Blum answered some questions by email.

What was the original idea that started you working on the book?

I started writing the book after a dramatic rise in antisemitic violence. I was particularly horrified and moved by a December 2019 shooting at a kosher grocery store in Jersey City, New Jersey.

But I didn’t start with scenes of violence. The first scene that came into my head was the one that starts the book. A yeshiva student sits in class. He sees a girl walking by, one who’s totally different from everybody he knows. He walks out of the school to go talk to her, starting a worlds-colliding friendship that changes their lives.

The love Hoodie feels for the people in his life is so palpable even as he struggles with the expectations of his community. How did you achieve that nuance?

I’m thrilled to hear that I did achieve that nuance. It’s really hard to judge your own writing. I know what I want to get across—that you can fiercely love your family and community and still feel angry or betrayed; that it’s totally normal to experience those opposite feelings at the same time. But I don’t know if that’s on the page or just in my head until I get feedback from others who can see the book with clearer eyes.

You write with a witty voice that leavens a sometimes-heavy story. Are there specific influences that have shaped your humor?

As a kid I found Daniel Pinkwater and Louis Sachar hilarious. I must have read the Wayside School books a dozen times each. When I was older, I started reading P.G. Wodehouse, which I loved because his novels seemed to exist only to be funny, and that’s gotta be so hard to pull off: being so hysterically funny that you can hold a reader’s interest through humor alone.

Who is the ideal reader for your book?

My self-absorbed answer to this question is that my ideal reader is somebody I’m walking past, because I’ve always wanted to see a complete stranger reading my book. My more serious answer is that I think it’s a great book for a middle or high school student to read in a classroom. I’m biased, but I think it’s entertaining and engaging and also has a lot to offer as a teaching tool.

Were you able to do live events for the book this year? Any memorable highlights?

When I was a kid, I dreamed of having my book at my local bookstore, Children’s Book World in Haverford, Pennsylvania. The owner used to give me advance copies to read, especially over the summer, and it made me feel so special. This September, I got to have an in-person launch event there, and it was a real childhood dream come true. They had a display of my book in the window and everything.

What books published in 2022 were among your favorites?

I adored Rimma Onoseta’s How You Grow Wings, about a pair of Nigerian sisters charting their own paths through the world. I also loved Katherine Locke’s This Rebel Heart, which is smart and magical and highlights a fascinating moment in history I knew nothing about.

Ilana Bensussen Epstein is a writer and filmmaker in Boston.