Small Worlds

by Allen Hoffman

Book Overview

The first volume in Allen Hoffman's critically acclaimed series, Small Worlds takes place in 1903 and introduces the wondrous rebbe of Krimsk--a small Hasidic settlement in Eastern Europe. Secluded in his study for the past five years, the beloved rebbe suddenly emerges on the eve of Tisha B'Av, the holiday for commemorating the destruction of the holy temple in Jerusalem. His congregants are overjoyed to see him, but their joy is to be short-lived,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0789205823
• ISBN13: 9780789205827
• Release Date: May 1999
• Publisher: Abbeville Press
• Length: 280 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.8" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

a humorous yet philosophical tale ala isaac bashevis singer

I enjoyed this book immensely. The author creates unique and engaging characters and manages to evoke the world of a turn-of-the-century Polish-Jewish shtetl with convincing realism mixed with wild flights of fantasy; i.e. a rabbi who believes he was a frog at the time of Napoleon's invasion of Russia. In addition, the author, Allan Hoffman, presents thought-provoking philosophical issues that his characters grapple with: the lure of socialism vs. the tra- ditions of religion, the ethics of saving the individual vs. preserving the community. The author deftly juggles his many characters in their numerous comic situations and manages to keep all his balls in the air. I look forward to the next installment in this projected series