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likeyoustoleit's review
2.0
Disappointingly limited scope for such a large promise. The selling line on the book flap promises a "...survey of Jewish life and culture in the twentieth century, as reflected in seminal texts" and immediately ends that promise by sneaking into the end of the introduction that this is a survey of almost exclusively secular, English-accessible, Ashkenazic texts. The introduction ends stating one goal of the book, which is to "...use literature to illuminate the extreme contrasts of modern Jewish experience..." That's simply not an achievable goal for a book which has already surrendered to only focusing on such an unambitious and non-representitive sample size of the Jewish population, literature, and thought.
The book also would have been more successful in general if it /consciously/ limited its scope (and selling point) to Jewish "secular"* works (where the author appears most knowledgeable and invested,) and was forthright in doing so.
The most interesting chapters were "Red Cavalry," "Satan in Goray," "Bread Givers," and "Only Yesterday."
(* Yes, I also agree that that is an unsatisfying label.)
Rating: 2.5
The book also would have been more successful in general if it /consciously/ limited its scope (and selling point) to Jewish "secular"* works (where the author appears most knowledgeable and invested,) and was forthright in doing so.
The most interesting chapters were "Red Cavalry," "Satan in Goray," "Bread Givers," and "Only Yesterday."
(* Yes, I also agree that that is an unsatisfying label.)
Rating: 2.5
reading_bug's review against another edition
It was for Kol Ami book club, and while it is smart and interesting, I wasn't personally invested and there's so much more I'd rather read (and we had TWO MEETINGS about this book...)
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