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11th out of 15 books
—
10 voters
Kabbalah: A Love Story
Sometime, somewhere, someone is searching for answers . . .
. . . in a thirteenth-century castle
. . . on a train to a concentration camp
. . . in a New York city apartment
Hidden within the binding of an ancient text that has been passed down through the ages lies the answer to one of the heart’s eternal questions. When the text falls into the hands of Rabbi Kalman Stern, he...more
. . . in a thirteenth-century castle
. . . on a train to a concentration camp
. . . in a New York city apartment
Hidden within the binding of an ancient text that has been passed down through the ages lies the answer to one of the heart’s eternal questions. When the text falls into the hands of Rabbi Kalman Stern, he...more
Hardcover, 208 pages
Published
October 10th 2006
by Morgan Road Books
(first published 2006)
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So far: wonderful. (Rabbi) Lawrence Kushner is an adjunct professor at the Hebrew Union College in NYC and has taught on Jewish spirituality and mysticism for years. The novel is full of quotes from the Zohar with an interesting and mysterious plot alternating between the 13-14th century Europe and modern-day New York. Those who are interested in the Kabbalah (*not* the Madonna version) and Jung's synchronicity theories would enjoy this immensely. Haven't finished it yet so I hope the ending won...more
I loved this book. It's dense and incomprehensible and no, I don't know how to describe it. But reading it is a lot like getting glimpses of the sky between beautiful, dramatic storm clouds.
Romancing the Kabbalah
Rabbi Harold Kushner's 2007 mystical novel is more than a spiritual romance (although it reads quite well as one); it is a celebration of Jewish mysticism and spiritual insight that uses rich metaphor and prose to immerse the reader in an experience rather than just tell a story. Interwoven plots, historical revelations, and profound insight make "Kabbalah, A Love Story" an entertaining introduction to Jewish mysticism. The most profound insight is also one of the simplest-...more
Rabbi Harold Kushner's 2007 mystical novel is more than a spiritual romance (although it reads quite well as one); it is a celebration of Jewish mysticism and spiritual insight that uses rich metaphor and prose to immerse the reader in an experience rather than just tell a story. Interwoven plots, historical revelations, and profound insight make "Kabbalah, A Love Story" an entertaining introduction to Jewish mysticism. The most profound insight is also one of the simplest-...more
Feb 04, 2009
Norma
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone looking for a meaningful book
Recommended to Norma by:
friend
Shelves:
read-2009
Rabbi Lawrence Kushner's, Kabbalah A Love Story is one of those novels that we all hope for every time we pick up a new book. We hope the story line is satisfying and whole. But we also want our characters to be "likable" and perhaps maybe even moves us. This book delivers in all areas and does not fall short.
Having much respect for other religions, I certainly do not feel qualified to discuss ninety-nine percent of the book's content, as I'm keenly aware of my intellectual deficiencies in Juda...more
Having much respect for other religions, I certainly do not feel qualified to discuss ninety-nine percent of the book's content, as I'm keenly aware of my intellectual deficiencies in Juda...more
When I tried to read this the first time, more than a year ago, I thought it was poorly written, boring and not worth my time. After listening to my book club discuss it, I decided to try to read it again. Eventually. It turned out that I enjoyed it. I'm not into mysticism so the whole Kabbalah theme was rather lost on me - the importance of the text just dind't interest me. But the love story did. Rabbi Kalman Stern sees himself as a failure but a confluence of events provides him with a new se...more
Jul 26, 2009
Barbara
added it
We read this for our spirituality discussion group, and discussed in the context of trying to understand The Kabbalah. Engaging book, with simple and profound ideas. Sometimes you'd stop and wonder what you had read. Or how the periods linked, since it tells several tales many hundreds of years apart. My copy is marked up, with questions, comments, etc. And, while I ended thinking I understood much more about Jewish mysticism and about the universal ideas explored by many, I do not think I could...more
A mystical love story that weaves in people from different times and places and spiritual Kabbalistic teachings. A delightful read. Also special because I know the author.
So, I didn't exactly enjoy this one. It was one of those books in which bits of spiritual information were sort of unfolded between the pages of a larger story, involving ancient book intrigue, 13th century Spain, and a love story in modern day Manhattan.
Sounds good right? I guess it was just kind of not-believable--the characters weren't well-developed, and neither was the plot--it was kind of bare. Even the passages on spirituality were sort of clipped. The ideas were kind of interesting, but...more
Sounds good right? I guess it was just kind of not-believable--the characters weren't well-developed, and neither was the plot--it was kind of bare. Even the passages on spirituality were sort of clipped. The ideas were kind of interesting, but...more
Sep 19, 2010
Avraham Anouchi
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Historical novels lovers
Shelves:
historical-novels
A historical and romance novel with a remarkable back and forth time travel from the thirteenth century Castille in Spain to comtemporary Manhattan, Boston and Safad. The author uses the Kabbalah celestial philosophy as a link to the heart of the Astronomy Professor Isabel Benvenisti by the book's hero, Rabbi Kalman Stern.
Rabbi Stern's copy of the Zohar, the central book of the Kabbalah, miraculously provides him with life saving information enabling him to perform the greatest Mitzvah of his li...more
Rabbi Stern's copy of the Zohar, the central book of the Kabbalah, miraculously provides him with life saving information enabling him to perform the greatest Mitzvah of his li...more
This was written by a rabbi and it shows. It is basically an introduction to the Kabbalah, and an elementary one at that. Attached to it is a flimsy love story with such shallow characterization that we couldn't figure out why it ended as it did
Kushner adopted the plot structure of People of The Book, but he doesn't make it work. Combined with the dull writing, this plods.
If he wants the general public to understand Kabbalah, he should write a nonfiction text.
Kushner adopted the plot structure of People of The Book, but he doesn't make it work. Combined with the dull writing, this plods.
If he wants the general public to understand Kabbalah, he should write a nonfiction text.
I'm honestly not sure what I thought of this book. Its themes were VERY repetitive and got quite tiresome. The story jumped around all over the place (yes, I understand that the author was trying to show how 'everything happens at once' but still, it was very 'bitty'). I think it was an unsatisfying read. Or maybe I'm just not deep enough or old enough (I knew I should have waited till I turned 40 to read it!) to get it. I think I'll call Madonna and ask her to explain...
Some books seem, at once, to be so simple and yet deeply profound. This is one of those gems of a novel. Rabbi Kushner is a master storyteller. He is so intentional in his word choices, that the reader realizes that there is another, unspoken story just below the surface of the intertwined tales reflected in the prose. This is the book that I wish all books could be.
Written as fiction, there is much to learn about as Rabbi Kalman Stern tries to decifer a page of ancient text that was hidden in the book binding of a copy of the Zohar, the master text of Kabbalah. In many ways this is a book that could be reread many times to fully benefit from the discussion of the text.
I really hoped to love this book but I found it difficult to really care about the main character. I just didn’t find him engaging. The back and forth nature of this book also made it difficult for me to stay focused. I did find the basic concepts being dealt with to be thought provoking.
Absolutely amazing! This books transcends space|time and integrates the mystical essence of kabbalah with the subtle complexity of love. I absolutely adore the richness and life in these pages. One of my favorites, I continually reread...it had me from the first glance of its page!
Another book suggestion from my spiritual book club -- and a great read. Not being that familiar with Jewish traditions and customs, this book helped me appreciate the tradition of Kabbalah and the nature and importance of storytelling in all of our faith traditions
An interesting story about the ancient Jewish teaching of the Kabbalah interwoven with a modern day love story. I found it especially worth reading as I interviewed the author, Rabbi Lawrence Kushner when I worked at the Denver Catholic Register.
May 01, 2010
Tonielle Moriah
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
jew-connection
This is a great quick read. A little mystery, a little romance, and a lot to think about. For me it was nice to have a protagonist of my age group. More often than not, the main characters are all under 40, but not so in this case.
I didn't get into it right away, because I thought the author was pretending to have a story while teaching kabbalah. But then I saw how the flowering story was interwoven with those principles, and I found myself thoroughly enjoying a warm-hearted tale very reminiscent of When Harry Met Sally.
An interesting novel about a mystical Jewish text that is a little do-do-do-do (think swirls) but was a fascinating book.
Nov 02, 2008
Julie
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
jewish-reading,
quick-reads-fast-moving
I really enjoyed this book. Interesting love story wrapped around Jewish mysticism. Such great thoughts regardless of your religion. Makes you think about the world, god and spirituality in a different way without being preachy. One thought that really stuck with me was if god created stars, moon and sun on the 4th day, then what was meant by god created light on the first day? Until electricity (and fire I suppose) light only came from the sun, moon, stars. So obviously something else was meant...more
This book wasn't bad, but it was confusing in most parts. A fast read but not an easy one. It took me too long to figure out how it was written and separated. I'd probably give this author another chance as long as it was written like this one was. I was left wondering what I was supposed to have gained from readin it.
beautiful and light the book unites the spiritual, the carnal and the neurotic in a story of love
Very enjoyable. Following the history of an ancient text intertwined with two love stories.
I could read, and would like to read this slim book again sometime; as well as looking into reading other books by the author. (Judaism)
Apr 25, 2010
Steve Are
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
any spiritual romantic
Recommended to Steve by:
found at a library booksale
Shelves:
omst
wonderful romance with metaphysical overtones. what the world is. how it came to be. how it works. recommended.
Fun, quick read.
Interesting and thought provoking.
If I could give half stars I would have given this 2 1/2. It was basically good but the Kabbalah had me so confused!
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kabbalah: A Love Story, by Lawrence Kushner | 1 | 4 | Mar 31, 2007 08:41am |
May 01, 2012 10:05am