In this remarkably wide-ranging anthology, Ilan Stavans has collected the work of more than fifty notable Jewish writers from around the globe, weaving these diverse viewpoints and voices into a rich portrait of Jewish literary tradition. The Oxford Book of Jewish Stories takes us from the mid-1800s right up to the present, encompassing the full spectrum of Jewish writing around the world. The variety of tales captured here is stunning. Readers will find stories such as "A Yom Kippur Scandal" by Sholem Aleichem, the father of Yiddish literature; "Before the Law" by Franz Kafka; "Looking for Mr. Green" by Saul Bellow; "The Spinoza of Market Street" by Isaac Bashevis Singer; and "Midrash on Happiness" by Grace Paley. Stavans has included many pieces by Americans, including such markedly different writers as Cynthia Ozick, Bernard Malamud, Moacyr Seliar, Stanley Elkin, Delmore Schwartz, Dan Jacobson, Francine Prose, Allegra Goodman, and Philip Roth. And here too are pieces from around the globe, by writers no less varied: Isaac Babel, Italo Svevo, Primo Levi, Elias Canetti, Amos Oz, and Danilo Kis. What emerges in the end is proof of an observation by Ba'al Makshoves--that the Jews may have many languages and a dozen echoes in foreign tongues, but only one literature. And it is one of the finest in the world.
The many marvelous tales that fill The Oxford Book of Jewish Stories affirm that a shared identity can exist without sterile uniformity--and that writers can engage their religious and cultural heritage without losing touch with those rich, complex ambiguities that inhabit the heart.
Reviews
Booklist
An extraordinary collection of stories by 52 Jewish writers.
Hannah Merker
The beauty of this collection is found in its far-reaching Diaspora -- the underlying inherent connection of Jews everywhere and at any time. . . . This is a rich readable gathering. -- ForeWord Magazine
Library Journal
A long-awaited comprehensive collection of Jewish short stories is now available. Culled from the works of over 50 of the best international Jewish writers, dating from the mid-1800s to the present, the work enhances the literary tradition it represents. The writers range from international giants like Sholem Aleichem, Franz Kafka, Isaac Babel, and I.B. Singer to Holocaust survivors Primo Levi and Elie Wiesel to great American writers like Grace Paley, Cynthia Ozick, Philip Roth, Bernard Malamud, and Saul Bellow; younger writers like Francine Prose, Jonathan Rosen, Melvin Jules Bukiet, and Allegra Goodman and the Israelis Aharon Appelfeld and Amos Oz. are also included. The introduction by Stavens, an Amherst scholar who has written extensively on Hispanic and Jewish themes, traces the richness of the Jewish literary oeuvre all over the world. Highly recommended for all libraries.--Molly Abramowitz, Silver Spring, MD
Kirkus Reviews
A generous collection of 52 stories from Europe, Africa, and the Americas that spans two centuries. Included are not only the world's best-known Jewish writers (e.g., Aleichem, Babel, Bellow, Ozick, Oz, Singer, et al.), but also a few most of us wouldn't have thought of (Ludwig Lewisohn, Nadine Gordimer) and several neglected masters (the pseudonymous "Der Nister," Brazilian Moacyr Scliar), along with newer writers (Steve Stern, Rebecca Goldstein, and the really rather phenomenal Allegra Goodman). Only a few stories (such as those by Italo Svevo, Delmore Schwartz, and Bernard Malamud) are certifiable warhorses, and the volume deserves high marks for Stavans's incisive introduction and informative headnotes, and for its preserving in such attractive and convenient form gems like Israel Zangwill's "Tug of Loe," Natalia Ginzburg's "House at the Sea," and Alcina Lubitch Domeq's brief, searing "Bottles.'