The Journeys of David Toback

by Carole Malkin

A true life account of a Jew's life and travels in nineteenth-century Russia, his immigration to the United States, and his experiences starting a new life

216 pages, Paperback

First published September 13, 1987

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this maybe 30 years ago (?) and rediscovered on my book shelves. Mostly I’ve read about the experience of Jewish immigrants’ experiences living in the US. Never so extensively of the experience growing up and eventually making the decision to migrate. Fascinating and well written.

[Todd Kruse · Rating 3 out of 5]

This memoir of a Jew moving around villages in Russia who eventually finds his way to the USA read like travel writing. I would have rated it with 4 stars versus 3 but the family and village traditions (handicaps to human development I would call them) grew very annoying as time after time these handicaps dictated David's options in life.

David's insights on poverty, peasant/small village life, Jewish culture, and the anti-semitism of Czarist Russia reminded me to thank God that I was blessed by being born in the USA. I could never imagine being separated from my wife and children for 1 or 2 years like David was as his pursued residency in the USA while earning enough money to pay for his family's travel costs to join him in the USA. Heartbreaking, informative, and entertaining at the same time - I recommend this book.

My thanks to the staff at the Marriott Grand Chateau in Las Vegas who let me choose a book from their library during my stay.