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bradley_jf's review against another edition
4.0
Pretty good overview. It touches on almost anything one could think to ask about.
j00j's review
3.0
Useful, readable as a whole or individual entries as needed, and comprehensive. But a more conservative take than I prefer in a number of cases, and as others have noted, there's a thread of Islamophobia throughout.
julis's review
challenging
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
5.0
Now THIS I loved. I borrowed it from the library, which was a bad idea, because I very much need to own it. Rabbi Telushkin went in with the idea of creating a book that would bring those without a traditional Jewish upbringing up to speed on Jewish culture and terminology and he came very, very close to accomplishing that goal. I adore it. It’s to his credit that it wasn’t until ¾ of the way through the book that I put together he is an Orthodox rabbi, although Amazon reviews disagree (maybe it’s because I have a lot of frum friends??), and I do generally think you should know the Orthodox view anyway, if for no other reason than to be able to refute it.
A good book I will be investing in…someday.
lirazel's review
4.0
5/5 for thoroughness and accessibility. I docked a star because sometimes Telushkin's bias comes through. He actually does a quite admirable job of presenting a range of Jewish beliefs on most topics in a fair and balanced way (if this were a Christian book, I'd describe it as ecumenical, but I don't know what the Hebrew/Jewish equivalent to that word is), especially considering that he's Orthodox, but there are definitely a few moments, many related to how he talks about the Arab world, that made me uncomfortable.
Still, I think this is a truly excellent resource and would recommend it to anyone who's trying to increase their Jewish fluency--just keep your eyes open for those moments he might go too far. I listened to the whole audiobook from start to finish, but I think this would also be very useful as a reference book.
Still, I think this is a truly excellent resource and would recommend it to anyone who's trying to increase their Jewish fluency--just keep your eyes open for those moments he might go too far. I listened to the whole audiobook from start to finish, but I think this would also be very useful as a reference book.
butchriarchy's review
3.0
I think this was a nice introduction to Judaism. Not very in-depth, of course, but it has further piqued my interest. A major downside was the author's Zionist views and insistence that anti-Zionist Jewish people are "self-hating."
panichistory's review
3.0
I was really into this at the beginning but it became quite a slog towards the end. It's good as a reference book but less so to read cover to cover.
Also I feel like Telushkin's personal opinions creep in a bit more than I'd like.
Also I feel like Telushkin's personal opinions creep in a bit more than I'd like.
noahwalker's review
4.0
An excellent and comprehensive guidebook to the various aspects of Jewish life, culture, and history. Telushkin's writing is accessible and the book itself is formatted to be used as a reference, so this is a good book to keep on hand to refer back to as the occassion arises.
As other reviewers have noted, the author has allowed his personal feelings to weigh on how he presents the Muslim and Arab world, and I would take his words with a grain of salt here. I made it a point to verify politically motivated statements against other, more neutral sources -- some stack up, some don't. If you're reading this book, I presume you're ready to do some heavy reading, so adding more research to the list shouldn't be that tall of an order. You'll find plenty of it within these pages -- each chapter ends with a bibliography on the subject.
As other reviewers have noted, the author has allowed his personal feelings to weigh on how he presents the Muslim and Arab world, and I would take his words with a grain of salt here. I made it a point to verify politically motivated statements against other, more neutral sources -- some stack up, some don't. If you're reading this book, I presume you're ready to do some heavy reading, so adding more research to the list shouldn't be that tall of an order. You'll find plenty of it within these pages -- each chapter ends with a bibliography on the subject.
alizam's review
Not star-rating this because this is new territory I'm wading into. This book was very informative, but I'm not fond of the author's usage of the n-word, or his shades of anti-gay sentiment, or his vague subtextual hostility towards feminism in general.
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