Gates to the New City: A Treasury of Modern Jewish Tales

By: Schwartz, Howard

Book Overview

Schwartz has collected the stories of one hundred prominent modern Jewish writers. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0876688490
• ISBN13: 9780876688496
• Release Date: November 1989
• Publisher: Jason Aronson
• Length: 815 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 2.4" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Subtle Gifts of the Gates

The true gifts of great storytelling are subtle gifts. Such gifts are not brazen statements of right and wrong, or tired hollywood plot lines, but rather gifts of inspiration, gifts that challenge the heart and spirit. "Gates to the New City" is replete with such gifts. A spectacular collection of stories lies within its covers, often merging modern perspectives with timeless stories and themes. Howard Schwartz's collection is suitable for readers both new to Jewish storytelling and those long familiar with the legacies of Midrash, Agadah and Chassidic stories. Howard Schwartz is a poet and professor at the University of Missouri -St. Louis. He has written several books of fiction and poetry, as well as having edited many marvelous compilations of Jewish lore, including "Gabriel's Palace," "Lillith's Cave," and "Elijah's Violin." This collection of modern tales, however, is distinguished on two levels. The first is that the volume has a series of explanatory passages that explain the multiple layers of Jewish legend; ranging from the earliest elements of the Midrash and rabbinic legends to the powerful masters of Chasidic Judaism. These chapters allow the reader to learn (or relearn) the a great deal about these sources of Jewish literature. The source of the stories is the second way in which "Gates to the New City" shows its remarkable nature. The authors are modern writers, ranging from a former president of the State of Israel to a former principal of Ida Crown Jewish Academy High School in Chicago. These are authors who mix the timeless and the modern with ease. For example, "Forcing the End" retells the story of Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai's escape from a besieged Jerusalem, not in the past, but in a future of Nuclear brinksmanship. "Seven Gates in Six Days" uses the language of the midrash to tell of a passionate debate in God's court that will decide the fate of Jerusalem in the Six Day War. Not all of the collected stories mix themes and times. Many are bold and original stories, albiet a few are less than incredible. However, all are rooted deeply in the rich traditions that nourish Jewish stories. These stories provides fantastic reading for both those familiar with and those new to modern Jewish literature. Merged by superb writing, it is this mix of the new and old that creates the subtle gifts of great storytelling. Howard Schwartz's "Gates to the New City" presents these gifts in abundance.