A Mix of History and Deep Cut Religious Analyses
3 stars
I read this book because I wanted to learn more about the pre-1700s Jewish diaspora, and while there's some of that here (a great second chapter being the standout, as well as another interesting chapter on Sephardic and Ashkenazic messianism in the Middle Ages) much of the rest are deep cut analyses of Jewish religious thought. Having a son who's reading the primary source texts right now was immensely helpful, but if you don't have familiarity with the Torah and Jewish religious sects you'll probably be lost. It was too inside-baseball for me, but if you're interested in these topics those chapters will be good jumping off points
I read this book because I wanted to learn more about the pre-1700s Jewish diaspora, and while there's some of that here (a great second chapter being the standout, as well as another interesting chapter on Sephardic and Ashkenazic messianism in the Middle Ages) much of the rest are deep cut analyses of Jewish religious thought. Having a son who's reading the primary source texts right now was immensely helpful, but if you don't have familiarity with the Torah and Jewish religious sects you'll probably be lost. It was too inside-baseball for me, but if you're interested in these topics those chapters will be good jumping off points