Jews in America: A Cartoon History

by David Gantz

This over-sized volume is a graphic history that uses the comic book format—an artistic expression as American as jazz—to depict five centuries of Jewish life in this country. With its blend of humor, history, and old-fashioned sentimentality, David Gantz, an artist who has spent a lifetime using paper and ink to present social commentary and issues with a wry wit, illustrates the prominence of Jews in American history from the time Columbus first set foot in the New World. Jews in America will appeal to readers from ages 12 to 120.

Genres: Jewish, History, Judaism, Graphic Novels

160 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2001

Reviews

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

i usually really like JPS books, this one i didn't finish.
Its coffee table book sized, not something light enough while laying in bed, i imagine it weighs as much as the Complete Bone and is more awkward. For graphic fiction, that doesn't work for me, maybe its designed for the large-print reader.
The book is a lecture, the author often appears and tells whats happening in the text and photos, he gets in the way of the book.
But the main reason i don't love the book is, in the first dozen pages, the author says the Christian Church spoke against the voyage of Columbus because the world was flat, an incorrect statement, the church knew/believed Earth to be round. an error like that makes me question the rest of the information in the book. (however the next page shows the author's wonderful humor, Columbus lands on Haiti and gives it a name. This is the first example of chutzpah in the Americas)
i did learn from this book (v. said to read the anti-semitism of Jack London and Walt Whitman).

[Chad]

JEWISH history in cartoons is a great media

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Illustrated histories are a great way for readers to access dense material. In today's graphic novel market, there is an abundance of historical non fiction material. Daniel Gantz contributes to this subgenre with Jews in America (The Jewish Publication Society, 2006). Gantz covers a staggering amount of history in under 200 pages-- he traces Jews in diaspora starting in 1189 until Kofi Annan's 2005 speech about modern anti-semitism. Though focused primarily on Jews living in America Gantz adds commentary about America's relationship with Jews outside the United States, primarily in Europe and Israel. Gantz illustrates in dark sepia; his style mirrors political cartoonists like Thomas Nast. Though told in "cartoon," Gantz's history is not watered down. He uses a complex vocabulary and does not shy away from controversial topics. It is important to note that Gantz does not provide an entirely unbiased explanation of current events. Gantz does a good job of creating a book about Jewish history not entirely shrouded in the horror of the Holocaust, which many library collections for young people lack. Still, this volume would be best for more mature readers.

[Bear · Rating 3 out of 5]

An impressive recollection.