Growing Up Jewish

by Jay David (Editor)

Twenty- five Jews relive their childhoods in the Old World, the New World, and the Promised Land. Their experiences, spanning four centuries, present the history of a people in an intensely personal way. Among those represented are a fourteen-year-old Lithuanian father, a mayor of Dublin, and an English poetess. All of them have one thing in common - a strong Jewish identity. Their tradition stretches across time and ignores national boundaries. It is the force that unites these compelling reflections on the pain and joy of... GROWING UP JEWISH.

289 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 1, 1996

Reviews

[Delia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty good anthology! There are various perspectives and each gives you a different glimpse of what it was like to be Jewish in different parts of the world at different times. I will admit that some accounts were very tedious to get through, but a few of them were really enjoyable and entertaining. While I don't think I'll be rereading this anthology in its entirety ever again, I will revisit certain stories in the future.

[Robyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

A disappointment. I think the only reason why I gave this more than 1 star is that a couple of the stories were actually interesting/moving. But aside from those couple; I actually found a lot of the material to be lackluster and dull.

Not what I was expecting at all. I think I wanted more 'insight' from the authors about their feelings or maybe even a coming of age story or two that wasn't so predictable. We Jews are stereotyped so much, I don't think many of these stories do us any favors.

[Oriyah N · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some stories were ok, some were fabulous...most were somewhere in between...but more than remarkable writing, it was just a snapshot in time, like I was listening to the reminiscing of my parent's contemporaries.

[Richard Kravitz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don't remember any of the stories. Still have the book.