A review by redhairedashreads
People Love Dead Jews: Reports from a Haunted Present by Dara Horn

5.0

 

CW: antisemitism, genocide, violence, gun violence, gore

I picked this book up because of the title, and I am very glad I did. This was a heavy topic, but a very important and powerful read. First, I am not Jewish but I try to read books on this topic to better understand Jewish history and antisemitism. 

This book focuses on why dead Jews get so much attention, while the hatred aimed at the living Jews is ignored. Horn addresses a wide range of issues such as the failure of education to stop rising antisemitism, Holocaust exhibits, Jewish stereotypes, other attacks through history, and a new project that allows access to Jewish sites that have been destroyed or are currently inaccessible to Jewish people. I was especially interested to learn that Holocaust exhibits aren’t immune from antisemitism within their own staff and discusses incidents that had occurred. 

While listening to this book, my eyes were opened (again) to how terrible the education system is when it comes to teaching the history of antisemitism and the Holocaust. Horn is totally right in stating that we care more about dead Jews than the living, and it makes me very ashamed of my education and this world we live in. 

This book really made me think and gave me a lot of new information about Jewish culture that I hadn’t known. I highly recommend this book even if it is a heavy read, because it is worth it.