The Brothers Ashkenazi (Twentieth-Century Classics)

Rating:
Summary: Magnificent!!!!
Review: Excellent story about the rise and fall of the Ashkenazi family, which covers different historical stages like the Industrial Revolution, rise of Capitalism and Communism, World War I, etc. But above all the novel deals with the issue of the nature of the Jewish identity, and it is here where it really succeeds. Singer enforces the fact that for every hardship endured, the Jewish community always ends up being the scapegoat.

What also struck me is the angry and pessimistic tone that Singer employs throughout the story. Most characters are mean and selfish, inflicting continuous suffering to others. As the preface points out (at least in the Spanish edition), Singer seems to have a premonition concerning the fate of the Jewish community in the years following the novel.

This is a fantastic historical saga, very educational and thought-provoking.

Rating:
Summary: A break from traditional Yiddish literature
Review: I.J. Singer's work is a large-scale novel, with a multitude of characters and plots, the first attempt of a Yiddish writer to break away from the traditional short fiction depicting life in the shtelt. It is the result of exposure to European literature late in the 19th century, and reflects the dilemma of Jewish milieu torn apart from its traditional roots and having to face the rise of capitalism and communism. The main character, Max Ashkenazi is despicable by all means, obsessed by money and power, with a Machiavellian mind, and despite all his success has a sad end in life. Considering the conflicting time in which the novel takes place (first four decades of the 20th century), the main plot reflects the author's pessimistic and skeptic view of the place the Jew might have in modern society: be it amongst the capitalists or the communists, the Jew will always be misplaced and will never loose his stigma as scapegoat in times of trouble. The reader familiar with wthe work of Joshua's younger brother (Isaac Bashevis Singer) will certainly realize that the brothers share little in terms of literary production, each one with his own merits, albeit I.B. Singer surpasses in magnitude and depth.

Rating:
Summary: It is good story, rich in character and broad in reach.
Review: The story begins at the beginning, prior to the nearly simultaneous birth of two brothers. Not quite Cain and Abel, the brothers grow apart and together, mixing people,places,positions. With verve and breadth, it tells how each individual becomes his own choices, with the help and the hindrance of the Jewish community in Poland in the early 20th century. What a story!

Rating:
Summary: It is good story, rich in character and broad in reach.
Review: The story begins at the beginning, prior to the nearly simultaneous birth of two brothers. Not quite Cain and Abel, the brothers grow apart and together, mixing people,places,positions. With verve and breadth, it tells how each individual becomes his own choices, with the help and the hindrance of the Jewish community in Poland in the early 20th century. What a story!