Product Description

Norman Solomon's succinct book is an ideal introduction to Judaism as a religion and way of life. In addition to answering questions such as Who are Jews? and How did Judaism Develop?, this Very Short Introduction outlines the basics of practical Judaism-its festivals, prayers, customs, and various sects. Modern concerns and debates of the Jewish people are also addressed, such as the impact of the Holocaust, the establishment of the State of Israel, the status of women, and medical and commercial ethics.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21399 in Books
• Published on: 2000-02-24
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

About the Author
Dr Norman Solomon is a freelance writer and journalist, and a regular contributor to the Jewish Chronicle. He is a Fellow in Modern Jewish Thought at the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies. His previous publications include Judaism and World Religion and he contributed to The Oxford Companion to the Jewish Religion.

Customer Reviews

Handy, concise guide to the most important basics of Judaism
The "very short introduction" series is useful in that the most important facts and aspects of a topic are presented to you clearly and concisely - no need to flick through pages and pages, no need to look in the index or anything. The book itself is divided in chapters such as Festivals, Why Judaism and Christianity split etc. Norman Solomon has successfuly selected the most intriguing bits of Judaism to present to us in this 150 page book.

Not only does the book provide the facts about the religion like festivals, worship etc, but also contemporary issues like Zionism and the conflicts of modern Israel and Palestine, a topic that should interest many. It is hard to find a book that deals with this subject that is not greatly biased; Solomon on the other hand makes it very clear in the introduction that he aims to present the facts of Judaism as Jews would, i.e. not from a Christian perspective, not using Christian language.

I definitely recommend this book if you are interested in the religion. However, if you want to delve really deep into the sects in the religion (which is briefly but well dealt with in this book) and other topics, buy a big thick book on Judaism rather than this "very short introduction".

Patchy in Places
I love these Very Short Introductions to, they are invariably spot on in finding a way into what can be some tricky issues or ideas. This one however, did not live up to expectation. It did help me out in giving me a reasonable grounding in understanding the basics of Judaism, but I felt that the author had a bit of an axe to grind about what he perceived other people thought of as 'the jews'. this is totally understandable given the long history of persecution that the Jewish people have endured from practically all other quarters of the earth, but I felt it was a little inappropriate here. These books are short and have to fit a great deal into their few pages. I would have appreciated a little more about the nuts and bolts of what is a complex set of religious beliefs and a little less, dare I say it, axe grinding. Having said that, the end section in particular, showing ways to interpret Jewish Law was fascinating, I was only disappointed that not all of the book lived up to this level of interest and information.

Solomon's good judgment
It must be a daunting prospect for a scholar, having to condense a vast store of knowledge into one of these little books, deciding what to include and what must go, but Solomon judges this well. He emphasizes the diversity and continuing evolution of Judaism, correcting common misconceptions about how ancient or orthodox certain aspects of Judaism are. He also lays special stress on the importance of the Holocaust and of the existence of a modern state of Israel in shaping contemporary Jewish thought.

There are plenty of basic facts - descriptions of festivals, etc - included here, as you would expect. It also raises a great many issues and cites a number of authors, making this an excellent place to begin a more detailed study, if you wished.

Solomon writes well, with a light, sometimes even humorous touch, where appropriate. He was a lecturer at Oxford when this book was first published in 1996, but is now retired, I believe. A revised edition wouldn't go amiss. Perhaps he is too busy working on his Penguin Classics Talmud, which is due out soon and should be worth reading. He is not to be confused with the American activist of the same name, although Amazon does exactly that, so that if you click on either author, you get a list of books by both of them. Take it from me, they are very different!