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Ariel Samson: Freelance Rabbi
Ariel Samson is just your run of the mill anomaly: a 20-something black Orthodox Jewish rabbi looking for love, figuring out life, and floating between at least two worlds.
Luckily, it gets worse.
Finding himself the spiritual leader of a dying synagogue, and accidentally falling into viral internet fame, Ariel is suddenly catapulted into a series of increasingly ridiculous conflicts with belligerent college students, estranged families, corrupt politicians, hippophilic coworkers, vindictive clergymen, and even attempted murder. (And also Christian hegemony, racism, anti-Semitism, toxic Hotepism, and white Jewish privilege. Because today ends in "y.")
But all that's the easy part.
Because whether Ariel knows it or not, he's due for a breakthrough. Several, in fact. And he's about to find out whether or not he's strong enough to re-evaluate everything he thought he knew about himself, and own up to the things he didn't.
Thought leader and provocateur MaNishtana turns his eye to fiction in this imaginative, semi-autobiographical novel, making Ariel Samson, Freelance Rabbi the most dazzling debut of an Orthodox black Jew born on a Saturday at 5:01 pm in a Brooklyn hospital in 1988 that you will ever have the privilege of reading.
2018 Finalist for the National Jewish Book Award's Goldberg Award for Debut Fiction.
Luckily, it gets worse.
Finding himself the spiritual leader of a dying synagogue, and accidentally falling into viral internet fame, Ariel is suddenly catapulted into a series of increasingly ridiculous conflicts with belligerent college students, estranged families, corrupt politicians, hippophilic coworkers, vindictive clergymen, and even attempted murder. (And also Christian hegemony, racism, anti-Semitism, toxic Hotepism, and white Jewish privilege. Because today ends in "y.")
But all that's the easy part.
Because whether Ariel knows it or not, he's due for a breakthrough. Several, in fact. And he's about to find out whether or not he's strong enough to re-evaluate everything he thought he knew about himself, and own up to the things he didn't.
Thought leader and provocateur MaNishtana turns his eye to fiction in this imaginative, semi-autobiographical novel, making Ariel Samson, Freelance Rabbi the most dazzling debut of an Orthodox black Jew born on a Saturday at 5:01 pm in a Brooklyn hospital in 1988 that you will ever have the privilege of reading.
2018 Finalist for the National Jewish Book Award's Goldberg Award for Debut Fiction.
472 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2018
30 people are currently reading
344 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
May 26, 2019
Ariel Samson, Freelance Rabbi is a laugh-out-loud tragicomedy with significant insight into the contemporary American Jewish community.
Ariel Samson is the honoree at the dinner of a (fictional) major Jewish organization. As he enters the gala, people question his presence because they assume he's not even Jewish merely because he is black. When he finds his seat, he discovers that he's been placed at a table with two men who wish him dead. The rest of the novel goes back in time to tell us how Rabbi Samson got to this point and how he will escape this meal unharmed and with dignity intact.
I was a little doubtful at the onset, as drinking and doing pot aren't my usual cup of tea (and appear from the very first scene), but MaNishtana's skillful characterizations, playful way with language, and sparkling humor drew me in. His language is evocative, his social commentary is clear-eyed, and I enjoyed a story that was both deeply disturbing (many of the troubling anti-Semitic and racist events depicted are realistic and all too familiar) and hopeful.
If there are any shortcomings to Ariel Samson, I would say that MaNishtana told us a few things he had already showed us, with a few unnecessary infodumps which weren't strictly speaking necessary for this narrative. Also, a couple themes that appeared would have better been saved for his future oeuvre (which I very much look forward to), creating more space for them to be developed there and leaving a leaner, meaner narrative behind in this book.
But these are piddly things. Ariel Samson: Freelance Rabbi deserved the award and acclaim it earned last year because it is very much a book necessary for today's Jewish community and a great literary achievement besides. I can't wait to read MaNishtana's next novel!
Ariel Samson is the honoree at the dinner of a (fictional) major Jewish organization. As he enters the gala, people question his presence because they assume he's not even Jewish merely because he is black. When he finds his seat, he discovers that he's been placed at a table with two men who wish him dead. The rest of the novel goes back in time to tell us how Rabbi Samson got to this point and how he will escape this meal unharmed and with dignity intact.
I was a little doubtful at the onset, as drinking and doing pot aren't my usual cup of tea (and appear from the very first scene), but MaNishtana's skillful characterizations, playful way with language, and sparkling humor drew me in. His language is evocative, his social commentary is clear-eyed, and I enjoyed a story that was both deeply disturbing (many of the troubling anti-Semitic and racist events depicted are realistic and all too familiar) and hopeful.
If there are any shortcomings to Ariel Samson, I would say that MaNishtana told us a few things he had already showed us, with a few unnecessary infodumps which weren't strictly speaking necessary for this narrative. Also, a couple themes that appeared would have better been saved for his future oeuvre (which I very much look forward to), creating more space for them to be developed there and leaving a leaner, meaner narrative behind in this book.
But these are piddly things. Ariel Samson: Freelance Rabbi deserved the award and acclaim it earned last year because it is very much a book necessary for today's Jewish community and a great literary achievement besides. I can't wait to read MaNishtana's next novel!
January 31, 2019
This book, which marketing copy describes as an "imaginative, semi-autobiographical novel...the most dazzling debut of an Orthodox black Jew born on a Sunday at 2:24AM in a Brooklyn hospital in 1982 that you will ever have the privilege of reading," has been waiting for me on my Kindle for months. Its recent finalist honor for a National Jewish Book Award made me move it ahead in the queue, and I'm so glad that I did.
Anyone who's ever sought a "new" voice or story in Jewish literature will find it here. Yes, there are moments that may make many readers uncomfortable (it's not always pleasant to look in the communal mirror). But throughout, there is so much that is instructive—I'm having a chat with some friends in a private group about one theological point in this novel that I knew nothing about prior to reading—and so much that is entertaining.
My only significant "gripe" is that I found myself distracted by some of the narrative choices and stylistic techniques here—especially the intermittent use of a first-person narrator. Still, the story transcends such frustrations. I look forward to the author's next book.
Anyone who's ever sought a "new" voice or story in Jewish literature will find it here. Yes, there are moments that may make many readers uncomfortable (it's not always pleasant to look in the communal mirror). But throughout, there is so much that is instructive—I'm having a chat with some friends in a private group about one theological point in this novel that I knew nothing about prior to reading—and so much that is entertaining.
My only significant "gripe" is that I found myself distracted by some of the narrative choices and stylistic techniques here—especially the intermittent use of a first-person narrator. Still, the story transcends such frustrations. I look forward to the author's next book.
April 25, 2019
Amazing
This book speaks to the reader right where they live - to those of us Othered in Jewish spaces, telling us we will ensure and thrive, and to the Jewish people who choose to Other us, telling them to quit their shit. This novel packs so many emotional punches, and is by turns heartrending and hilarious. My one disappointment is that there's no summary/translation of conversations that take place entirely in Yiddish, including a very plot relevant one right at the end of the book. And yes, I tried googling. Google translate sucks at Yiddish. But other than trying to guess what's being said in the Yiddish conversations, I loved everything else about this book.
This book speaks to the reader right where they live - to those of us Othered in Jewish spaces, telling us we will ensure and thrive, and to the Jewish people who choose to Other us, telling them to quit their shit. This novel packs so many emotional punches, and is by turns heartrending and hilarious. My one disappointment is that there's no summary/translation of conversations that take place entirely in Yiddish, including a very plot relevant one right at the end of the book. And yes, I tried googling. Google translate sucks at Yiddish. But other than trying to guess what's being said in the Yiddish conversations, I loved everything else about this book.
February 21, 2019
I actually first read this book while it was being written (perks of being friends with the author), so I didn't get the whole book at once; I got it chapter by chapter. And let me tell you, the wait between those chapters was almost as painful as those years-long pauses between Harry Potter books. That's some intense sh*t, but this book is intense sh*t. You'll spend half the time laughing over witty biting writing -- and honestly, I'm still laughing over the main character's name (NOPE, NOT SPOILING THE JOKE FOR YOU). The other half the time you'll sit there soberly contemplating racism in the Jewish community and US at large. Read it. Dooooooo it. You won't regret it.
February 16, 2020
Fascinating look at race and religion and relationships in a way you never looked at them before. This was written about AND by an African-American Orthodox Jewish Rabbi. Yeah, read that again. No, I did not know this existed, and certainly not in the non-converted form, but the character (and author) come from a line of black Orthodox Jews, and, boy, did I learn a lot. MaNishtana writes wittily and clearly about the issues facing someone in his position, from the racism he experiences from fellow Jews, to how hard it is to fit in anywhere to what he's looking for in a wife as well as food, family, weed, politics, synagogue politics (much worse), and friends.
MaNishtana clearly has many points to make, and he is not always artful at making them. At times it feels like he has a speech to give so he throws it in the mouth of whatever character is speaking at the time. Many characters sound the same; quick, glib, lots of words. At other times I felt weary of his anger, and, yes, I know as a white person that sounds insensitive, but I found that he was able to make the same points without always yelling.
The panoply of characters is so enjoyable and kept things interesting. The book definitely jumps the shark at the end with a wacko last chapter or three. Plus, there was buckets of distracting typos in the last third of the book. Overall, it could have used a good editor. But I loved the premise, how much it made me think, the hilarious writing, the different perspectives and the education I received. I would recommend it, even with the caveats.
MaNishtana clearly has many points to make, and he is not always artful at making them. At times it feels like he has a speech to give so he throws it in the mouth of whatever character is speaking at the time. Many characters sound the same; quick, glib, lots of words. At other times I felt weary of his anger, and, yes, I know as a white person that sounds insensitive, but I found that he was able to make the same points without always yelling.
The panoply of characters is so enjoyable and kept things interesting. The book definitely jumps the shark at the end with a wacko last chapter or three. Plus, there was buckets of distracting typos in the last third of the book. Overall, it could have used a good editor. But I loved the premise, how much it made me think, the hilarious writing, the different perspectives and the education I received. I would recommend it, even with the caveats.
November 13, 2018
I was skeptical when I started reading, but I quickly got sucked into the story, which manages to be educational, thought-provoking, moving and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time. I would say that some of the plot twists and coincidences are a little too neat, but... the Jewish world is small enough that such coincidences and chance (re)encounters do happen in real life. Highly recommended.
August 13, 2020
Highly recommend!
May 21, 2019
In this semi autobiographical novel, MaNishtana touches upon many important themes, particularly about micro (and major) aggression in the Jewish community against some of our own. But the writing and the tone weakened it.
We're following Ariel Samson, a Black Orthodox, newly-minted rabbi, roughly for a year before he accepts a prestigious tri-state award. The 400-plus page story is clunky and somewhat random, taking us to various encounters at work, amongst friends and family, and in the larger community. Sometimes he comes across African Americans and other Blacks who judge him for his obvious Judaism, but more often this bigotry comes from white Jews. It reads like an honest portrayal of how exhausting and bewildering it is to live day to day among people who feel entitled to challenge your own identity.
But these interactions are framed more philosophically than as an interaction between breathing people. We are privy to long screeds of Ariel's inner monologue. Very few relationships seem to go any deeper than a clash of identity politics. At one point the narrative tells us that an interracial couple, after battling out their microaggressions, starts to see each other as individuals again, but we the readers never see that. Ariel is estranged from his twin sister, but he finds her randomly in a bar, where they conveniently iron out their issues after talking at each other.
We are privy to various info dumps about Ariel's areas of interest, from Orthodoxy to Black culture to geek culture. And we are also privy to a random first person narrator, who has access to Ariel's inner thoughts but also offers his own cynical snark as a film across the narrative. It got to be rather condescending to annoying.
These issues deserve a wider audience, but I'm not sure a novel is the right medium, at least for this writing style. That being said, I was intrigued to learn more about how Black Jews identify, and how a segment of Orthodox Jews have divorced themselves from the conservative politics that have seeped into several parts of the movement.
And I did feel something more personal about the book, which took me until after reading it to parse out. Ariel's relationship to Judaism is, in part, so much different than mine because he primarily sees it as a force of religious/spiritual guidance. He gets his cultural identity more from Black (and some geeky) outlets. I mean, I'm a geek myself; everyone's identity is more complicated than checking off just one or two boxes. But cultural, Ashkenazi/Eastern European Judaism is definitely one of mine. It's good to have the reminder that the overall Jewish community is much more diverse than that. I'll always be proud of my culture, but Jews are universally transcendent. Plus, the religious parts of this book reminded me that I can strive for connection with Judaism as well as Jews.
It's enlightening to struggle with one's beliefs. But to return to the main theme of this novel, prejudice is damning and reductive. It hurts the community, as well as individuals, to not be open to a diversity of Jews and Jewish expression.
We're following Ariel Samson, a Black Orthodox, newly-minted rabbi, roughly for a year before he accepts a prestigious tri-state award. The 400-plus page story is clunky and somewhat random, taking us to various encounters at work, amongst friends and family, and in the larger community. Sometimes he comes across African Americans and other Blacks who judge him for his obvious Judaism, but more often this bigotry comes from white Jews. It reads like an honest portrayal of how exhausting and bewildering it is to live day to day among people who feel entitled to challenge your own identity.
But these interactions are framed more philosophically than as an interaction between breathing people. We are privy to long screeds of Ariel's inner monologue. Very few relationships seem to go any deeper than a clash of identity politics. At one point the narrative tells us that an interracial couple, after battling out their microaggressions, starts to see each other as individuals again, but we the readers never see that. Ariel is estranged from his twin sister, but he finds her randomly in a bar, where they conveniently iron out their issues after talking at each other.
We are privy to various info dumps about Ariel's areas of interest, from Orthodoxy to Black culture to geek culture. And we are also privy to a random first person narrator, who has access to Ariel's inner thoughts but also offers his own cynical snark as a film across the narrative. It got to be rather condescending to annoying.
These issues deserve a wider audience, but I'm not sure a novel is the right medium, at least for this writing style. That being said, I was intrigued to learn more about how Black Jews identify, and how a segment of Orthodox Jews have divorced themselves from the conservative politics that have seeped into several parts of the movement.
And I did feel something more personal about the book, which took me until after reading it to parse out. Ariel's relationship to Judaism is, in part, so much different than mine because he primarily sees it as a force of religious/spiritual guidance. He gets his cultural identity more from Black (and some geeky) outlets. I mean, I'm a geek myself; everyone's identity is more complicated than checking off just one or two boxes. But cultural, Ashkenazi/Eastern European Judaism is definitely one of mine. It's good to have the reminder that the overall Jewish community is much more diverse than that. I'll always be proud of my culture, but Jews are universally transcendent. Plus, the religious parts of this book reminded me that I can strive for connection with Judaism as well as Jews.
It's enlightening to struggle with one's beliefs. But to return to the main theme of this novel, prejudice is damning and reductive. It hurts the community, as well as individuals, to not be open to a diversity of Jews and Jewish expression.
August 31, 2019
This book was aggravating. The story was interesting. However, it switched between the 1st and 3rd person narrator which is annoying for me personally. Also, while there is a glossary at the beginning and I am Jewish and know some Hebrew and Yiddish, there were many words that I had no idea what they meant and even contextually couldn’t figure it out. Also, there is a huge section in Yiddish at the end that plays very heavily into the story that there is no way to translate. Lastly, the actual font of the book is so small that I would recommend reading it on an e-reader if available.
October 26, 2018
One of the few books that I continued reading during the week when I couldn't finish it on Saturday. Some parts are so disheartening; others had me cheering out loud.
April 26, 2019
I haven't ever read a book like this before. This is not literature, but I can imagine people writing essays on it. It is fun and funny (two distinct things), and surprising. There are legit plot twists, and there were very few points where I could guess what was going to happen next. And there were plenty of surprising insights into human nature. There are just all these sections that I have highlighted, because they are just so true about human nature, at least human nature in the context of our culture. I identified so much with the author's world view when he wasn't trying to make a big deal about his world view. His insight into how we feel, as humans in East Coast America, is just so spot on.
Chunks of the book read like polemics on intersectionalism and identity politics in America, but in a way that will make you laugh. In many ways, I think that it is an important document for future scholars to understand the texture of a certain swath of America (that is, indeed, larger than the black Orthodox Jewish section of Brooklyn). The book also (intentionally?) highlights some of the problems with the modern emphasis on intersectionality, in that the lectures can get in the way of the people.
The narrator makes it very clear that his identity is as a black, observant Orthodox Jew. And yet every character really feels alive to me, except the three other black, observant Orthodox Jews his age. (The section from his young mother's POV is really moving). Jamaal, Tamar, and Colin just sing--they feel so very real. In fact, I wanted more on Colin and Ari's friendship, which is kind of funny, considering that Colin is terrible.
The book feels a little Mary Sue-ish to me. This is the book that he wanted to read, so he wrote it. Yes, it sometimes feels a little amateurish (does so much of the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Yiddish have to go untranslated? He couldn't have more footnotes or an index? Did he really have multiple rants on how the Ashkenazi are so insular, and expect everyone to know Hebrew, only to have three untranslated Kindle pages in Hebrew?). But it turns out that this is the book that I wanted to read, too.
Chunks of the book read like polemics on intersectionalism and identity politics in America, but in a way that will make you laugh. In many ways, I think that it is an important document for future scholars to understand the texture of a certain swath of America (that is, indeed, larger than the black Orthodox Jewish section of Brooklyn). The book also (intentionally?) highlights some of the problems with the modern emphasis on intersectionality, in that the lectures can get in the way of the people.
The narrator makes it very clear that his identity is as a black, observant Orthodox Jew. And yet every character really feels alive to me, except the three other black, observant Orthodox Jews his age. (The section from his young mother's POV is really moving). Jamaal, Tamar, and Colin just sing--they feel so very real. In fact, I wanted more on Colin and Ari's friendship, which is kind of funny, considering that Colin is terrible.
The book feels a little Mary Sue-ish to me. This is the book that he wanted to read, so he wrote it. Yes, it sometimes feels a little amateurish (does so much of the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Yiddish have to go untranslated? He couldn't have more footnotes or an index? Did he really have multiple rants on how the Ashkenazi are so insular, and expect everyone to know Hebrew, only to have three untranslated Kindle pages in Hebrew?). But it turns out that this is the book that I wanted to read, too.
March 3, 2019
This book was ridiculously good. Some observations follow:
MaNishtana’s execution of narrative voice is just pitch perfect. It is exactly what this story needs because it also performs the tightrope walk between identities that the main character does. How does it sound to balance blackness, Jewishness, adulthood in Brooklyn in 2016? Exactly like this.
This book is also a balance of identification and recognition of difference. Reading about rabbis unwanted for their identity, it’s hard not to have it resonate because, well, Maharat. But women in Orthodox Judaism and black Jews in Jewish spaces have radically different experiences. They might rhyme, but that doesn’t mean one isn’t a sonnet and the other isn’t epic verse. Although identifying with the English major, major geek, socially awkward, now rabbi at the heart of this book isn’t, you know, a STRETCH for me.
Rosenstern and Guildencrantz, OMG. I love this book already. Reading this book in New York DEFINITELY made me appreciate some of the “this really happened” elements.
I really want to put this book in conversation with Amy Levy’s Reuben Sachs, not just because I read them basically back to back, but because they’re both books by insiders writing about this Jewish community in a way that is willing to call out its hypocrisy, its obsessions with its golden calves, its failures in the way it speaks to one another.
But they’re also very different books written at very different times in the history of the novel (although, arguably, less different than they might be) and with very different arcs. And one is a comedy and one is a tragedy. And who the outsiders are and are not also shifts. But I’d love to do this nonetheless.
Anyway, it’s been a heck of a weekend for good books.
MaNishtana’s execution of narrative voice is just pitch perfect. It is exactly what this story needs because it also performs the tightrope walk between identities that the main character does. How does it sound to balance blackness, Jewishness, adulthood in Brooklyn in 2016? Exactly like this.
This book is also a balance of identification and recognition of difference. Reading about rabbis unwanted for their identity, it’s hard not to have it resonate because, well, Maharat. But women in Orthodox Judaism and black Jews in Jewish spaces have radically different experiences. They might rhyme, but that doesn’t mean one isn’t a sonnet and the other isn’t epic verse. Although identifying with the English major, major geek, socially awkward, now rabbi at the heart of this book isn’t, you know, a STRETCH for me.
Rosenstern and Guildencrantz, OMG. I love this book already. Reading this book in New York DEFINITELY made me appreciate some of the “this really happened” elements.
I really want to put this book in conversation with Amy Levy’s Reuben Sachs, not just because I read them basically back to back, but because they’re both books by insiders writing about this Jewish community in a way that is willing to call out its hypocrisy, its obsessions with its golden calves, its failures in the way it speaks to one another.
But they’re also very different books written at very different times in the history of the novel (although, arguably, less different than they might be) and with very different arcs. And one is a comedy and one is a tragedy. And who the outsiders are and are not also shifts. But I’d love to do this nonetheless.
Anyway, it’s been a heck of a weekend for good books.
March 8, 2019
Incisive, hilarious, and moving book. It eloquently puts you in the mind of a Black Orthodox Jewish man, and should be required reading for White Jews before Bar or Bat Mitzvahs or rabbinical confirmations - it holds a mirror up and demands we account for ourselves. It breaks down subtleties like virtue signaling and how White people often center our feelings even when trying to be anti-racist. And for Jews of any race, it can bring us closer to our faith. Especially for me coming from the Conservative and Reform traditions, it's interesting to learn many new Hebrew and Yiddish terms, and see how observance can bring richness into one's life. (Though, as the book shows, there's a spectrum of observance and lifestyles among Orthodox Jews.) Also, the family and friend histories woven through the story are beautiful and poignant.
Some stylistic choices may not be to every reader's taste, especially older readers. Both the narrator and the characters often use a goofy colloquial style. It might also be hard to see where the story is going for the first half or so, but it ties together very elegantly in the latter half. There are some typos - the editing may not be as thorough as in large publishing houses. But don't hold that against the book - it's brilliant art, in a slightly rougher form than you may be used to, from an author sandwiched between the Gen X and Millennial generation who's defying conventions and storytelling on his own terms. The last page came sooner than I expected, and I was left impatiently wanting more. My only personal complaint: the font in the paper copy is SO DAMN SMALL!!!
Some stylistic choices may not be to every reader's taste, especially older readers. Both the narrator and the characters often use a goofy colloquial style. It might also be hard to see where the story is going for the first half or so, but it ties together very elegantly in the latter half. There are some typos - the editing may not be as thorough as in large publishing houses. But don't hold that against the book - it's brilliant art, in a slightly rougher form than you may be used to, from an author sandwiched between the Gen X and Millennial generation who's defying conventions and storytelling on his own terms. The last page came sooner than I expected, and I was left impatiently wanting more. My only personal complaint: the font in the paper copy is SO DAMN SMALL!!!
August 18, 2024
It’s a book about identity and about being Jewish and Black in America. And about being Orthodox and being a writer. And about family and romantic relationships. It’s funny and interesting and informative.
It’s long.
The author seems to explore every aspect of how being all those things affect how Ariel moves through the world through the actions of the character and through introspection. So it’s a lot. But it maintained my interest and enjoyment throughout.
That the book is described as “semi-biographical is interesting. It makes me want to meet Manishtana some day. He also (or the narrator anyway) inserts himself into the story. This bothered some reviewers. I thought it just added to the quirky nature of the book.
There are two characters, Rosenstern and Guildencrantz whose mashes are only a twist on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern from Hamlet (and also from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead). I have no idea if the reader is supposed to find any significance in this or if the author is just being goofy. Goofy seems most likely.
The book is from a very small press. The book I got is about 5 x 8 but the pages have margins of an inch around the sides and top and about 2.5 inches at the bottom. So the print is small and hard to read.
It is also edited very poorly. There are many misspelled words and missing words.
I don’t downgrade the book for these problems but I hope there are further corrected editions.
It’s long.
The author seems to explore every aspect of how being all those things affect how Ariel moves through the world through the actions of the character and through introspection. So it’s a lot. But it maintained my interest and enjoyment throughout.
That the book is described as “semi-biographical is interesting. It makes me want to meet Manishtana some day. He also (or the narrator anyway) inserts himself into the story. This bothered some reviewers. I thought it just added to the quirky nature of the book.
There are two characters, Rosenstern and Guildencrantz whose mashes are only a twist on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern from Hamlet (and also from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead). I have no idea if the reader is supposed to find any significance in this or if the author is just being goofy. Goofy seems most likely.
The book is from a very small press. The book I got is about 5 x 8 but the pages have margins of an inch around the sides and top and about 2.5 inches at the bottom. So the print is small and hard to read.
It is also edited very poorly. There are many misspelled words and missing words.
I don’t downgrade the book for these problems but I hope there are further corrected editions.
January 1, 2020
Absolutely fantastic read.
Ariel Samson is an Orthodox black rabbi struggling with the prejudices of both worlds to fit in.
Constantly rejected in Jewish spaces for being black & questioned in black spaces for being Jewish.
The book gives the reader insights into these struggles in ways that touch upon what's currently happening in our country with the rise in antisemitism and the continued dangers of POC just trying to live their lives in a racist country.
Then there's the family dramas. Siblings who've not talked in years, parents & children not agreeing on basics of how to live a life, etc.
Or the attempted murder.
Which might imply this book has a heavy serious mood.
It does.
But also, one of the funniest books I've read in a long time.
Quick with the geeky references, interactions with friends and mood altering plants, and a friendship everyone was rooting to turn into romance.
The only thing that makes the book less than perfect is the long convos in Yiddish that I had no clue what was being said.
Google translate didn't help.
Luckily, the story still made sense without knowing what was being said.
Ariel Samson is an Orthodox black rabbi struggling with the prejudices of both worlds to fit in.
Constantly rejected in Jewish spaces for being black & questioned in black spaces for being Jewish.
The book gives the reader insights into these struggles in ways that touch upon what's currently happening in our country with the rise in antisemitism and the continued dangers of POC just trying to live their lives in a racist country.
Then there's the family dramas. Siblings who've not talked in years, parents & children not agreeing on basics of how to live a life, etc.
Or the attempted murder.
Which might imply this book has a heavy serious mood.
It does.
But also, one of the funniest books I've read in a long time.
Quick with the geeky references, interactions with friends and mood altering plants, and a friendship everyone was rooting to turn into romance.
The only thing that makes the book less than perfect is the long convos in Yiddish that I had no clue what was being said.
Google translate didn't help.
Luckily, the story still made sense without knowing what was being said.
November 18, 2020
As a white Ashkenazi Jew who grew up Conservative in Pittsburgh, leans Reconstructionist, tutors kids at a Reform temple, and belongs to a non-affiliated shul in Massachusetts, I don't know which culture was stranger to me in this book: African American Jews or New York Orthodox Jews. My hope is that a generation from now, both of them will be familiar enough to people like me that this book will be unnecessary. (And a lot of the pop culture references will need a glossary by then!)
I liked the narrator's voice and sense of humor, and both of them kept me going through this excessively long book in tiny typeface. I like the characters' voices too: they were more distinctive than the characters themselves. Rabbi Ariel was a real smorgasbord of different experiences and character traits. There's no logical reason why he should be a Star Wars geek, a pothead, a writer, a rabbi, and a virgin. He just was. Well, that's human: we just are.
I learned a little Torah, too, so what could be bad? 3.5 stars, rounded up.
I liked the narrator's voice and sense of humor, and both of them kept me going through this excessively long book in tiny typeface. I like the characters' voices too: they were more distinctive than the characters themselves. Rabbi Ariel was a real smorgasbord of different experiences and character traits. There's no logical reason why he should be a Star Wars geek, a pothead, a writer, a rabbi, and a virgin. He just was. Well, that's human: we just are.
I learned a little Torah, too, so what could be bad? 3.5 stars, rounded up.
February 21, 2021
Reading "Ariel Samson Freelance Rabbi" by MaNishtana was one of those experiences where moments of the book resonated so deeply, I cried and others were so far over my head (orthodox observance/hebrew/living as a black (and Black Jewish) person in America/etc) I felt blown out to sea. But at no point did I feel as if this book wasn't written for me to read. It challenged me and validated me in equal measure.
There are aspects of the writing style that pulled me out of the narrative occasionally but it was a consistent choice so that is simply a personal preference on my part.
Ariel (and all the other characters) were so real, flawed, and raw I couldn't help but feel deeply for them at the end of the book and I'm a bit sad to say goodbye.
There are aspects of the writing style that pulled me out of the narrative occasionally but it was a consistent choice so that is simply a personal preference on my part.
Ariel (and all the other characters) were so real, flawed, and raw I couldn't help but feel deeply for them at the end of the book and I'm a bit sad to say goodbye.
May 1, 2022
A smart, funny, and also deeply angry book. While this is published as a novel,.it has a highly biographical feel to it. I appreciated the opportunity to see through another person's eyes,.and agree that there's much that could be improved for some segments of the Jewish community. I found one of the author's main arguments to be disingenuous..I also could have done without heavy amount of swearing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
dnf
February 11, 2022This may be a DNF for now, not a DNF for good, but I'm not clicking with the narration style - the switches back and forth between first and third frustrate me, and I don't generally enjoy first-person narratives. Which is disappointing, because I've heard a lot of really good things about this book and I feel quite strongly that it is one that needs to exist. But maybe it's not for me.
September 7, 2019
Finally!
Someone has captured the mixed up, crazy feelings POCs live with as matter of course. I need to make this required reading. Thank you! Thank you!
Someone has captured the mixed up, crazy feelings POCs live with as matter of course. I need to make this required reading. Thank you! Thank you!
December 16, 2019
I really would give this 3 1/2 stars. The story is good but it's also didactic. It often felt more like a lecture than a story.
July 5, 2020
Hilarious, smart, and a great view into a different Jewish perspective. It confronts important and hard to discuss topics with freshness and clarity.
July 29, 2020
A fascinating and very timely book.
June 29, 2021
More comments to come. My favorite thing I've read in a very long time
July 18, 2024
A very witty comic novel which also manages to consider numerous contemporary issues facing young, Black, Orthodox, American Jews (and also Black Jews, Orthodox Jews, young Jews, etc. etc.). Engaging, insightful and challenging.
October 6, 2020
Funny, clever, sweet, heartbreaking and entertaining. Freelance Rabbi opened my eyes to the diversity within Orthodox Judaism and racism in the Jewish community. Although the book is set in New York City, I, a Mexican Jew, could identify the micro and macro-racism that Ariel Samson goes through in the book within my own community. MaNishtana made me question my ideas about Judaism and ashkenocentrism, helped me deconstruct them and expanded my view about the experience of Jews that don’t look “prototypical”.
Beyond the racial aspect, which is present in every part of the book, I think the story itself it’s pretty good: I felt that I was reading a sitcom!
P.D. I absolutely loved the plot about Kosher and Mehadrin corruption and politics. I’ve been saying that for years.
Beyond the racial aspect, which is present in every part of the book, I think the story itself it’s pretty good: I felt that I was reading a sitcom!
P.D. I absolutely loved the plot about Kosher and Mehadrin corruption and politics. I’ve been saying that for years.
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