A History of Judaism

Listener Reviews

1. 3.0(1)

   Important but unexciting

   It is full of important knowledge and supplies a greatly needed introduction to the history of Jewish thought. Yet there is too much dry info here and too little of interesting interpretation and ideas. And the performance is distant and not human enough

   Paula Lovell · November 10, 2022

2. 3.0(1)

   Somewhat Disappointing

   This book represents a monumental, though flawed effort by a fine Jewish historian. While is luxuriously addresses the whole of Jewish History, it is flawed by the prejudices and limitations of the author. While those of a liberal bent may find it satisfying, there are huge gaps that may be a result of the author’s limitations. For example, the author tends to rely on secondary or translated sources. As a consequence, he fails to even mention some of the largest Hasidic groups, instead focusing on those that have been written about in English. While his approach might better with straight history, when he tries to write a history of the Jewish religion, his prejudices and limitations diminish the book’s value. While this may be best for someone not fully familiar with Jewish history, or who is not Jewish, it is a decent, though flawed look at its subject. That said, I learned many things that I did not know. While this book contains much information, and is generally well-written, it falls short of achieving its purported goal of being a complete history of Judaism. The narrator had many problems pronouncing Hebrew words, which also lessened the enjoyment of the recording.

   Donald Craig · March 24, 2021

3. 3.0(1)

   Not easy to follow.

   Not chronological, not easy to follow, overly academic in its wording. The author seems extremely knowledgable and the book is probably great for more advanced students of history, but this is not for the average reader like myself. 3 stars because it seems unbiased and full of good information and insights, but minus 2 stars for being so hard to follow.

   Shaina Wright · March 13, 2019