The Immortal: A Tale Of The Wandering Jew, Joseph’s Odyssey

by Sy Polsky

FROM THE TRAGEDY OF 9-11 COMES A COMPELLING TALE OF 2,000 YEARS OF JEWISH HISTORY. A Jewish physician, Joseph, deserts his comrades in their final battle against Rome. Mortally wounded, a necromancer... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0976445913
• ISBN13: 9780976445913
• Release Date: October 2005
• Publisher: Hudson Books
• Length: 804 Pages
• Weight: 2.76 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 2.0" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

Sex, Violence and Jewish History! A real page turner!

I read "The Immortal" by Sy Polsky this week. It's a can't-put-it-down page turner. The book details the life of Joseph, a fictional Jewish physician/warrior at Beitar on the 8th of Av, the day before the final defeat of the Bar-Kochba rebellion by the Roman empire. Abandoning his comrades at arms, he deserts the city only to find himself attacked by Romans. Hanging between life and death, a mythical kabbalist offers Joseph the option of immortality -- with a catch. He must accompany the Jewish people into exile and in addition to bearing witness to the 9th of Av tragedies which would afflict the Jewish people for generations, the same day would mark personal calamities in his private life as well. This 800 page book of historical fiction is a fascinating journey through Jewish life in the Middle East, Arabia, Spain, France, England, Germany and many parts of Europe from 135 c.e. at the fall of Beitar in Israel through the 1600's in the Netherlands. Joseph's travels take him through the ancient library of Alexandria, to the Parthian empire and the city of Nehardea where the Talmud was authored. Joseph meets and debates with the Amoraim; Shmuel, Rava, Rabba, Rav Ashi and Rabina. It's far from easy for Joseph the Jew -- he doesn't age externally and survives terrible tragedies while witnessing the murder and abuse of his family, generation after generation. He goes off and on "the path" of religious Judaism throughout the entire book. The historical stories are accurate and colorful,. The book painfully recounts how many times the world has tried to eliminate the Jewish people. One amazing story that stood out in my mind was Joseph's leading one town's Jewish uprising during the Crusades -- one of the only Jewish revolts (if not the only one) recorded in the historical period of the Crusades. While there was no "Joseph" leading the actual revolt, it's historical fact that in 1349 the Jews in Regensburg revolted. This is not a book for younger readers as there is quite a bit of violence and sex. The Immortal is only the first book of a trilogy, and I was rather disappointed that I'll have to wait for parts 2 and 3 to be published. If you want a book to rekindle your fascination with Jewish history this one is it. Just don't plan on getting anything else done while you're reading it.

Essential Jewish History!

If you've ever tried to work your way through serious tomes about Jewish history and couldn't make heads or tails of what the Romans, Byzantines, Mamluks, Franks, Flemish and Arabs, then "The Immortal" is for you. Joseph, the book's hero, is a sort of "wandering Jew" who moves from exile to exile, and through his experiences we get a fascinating, first hand picture of what the Jews have experienced throughout the centuries - for good and for bad. Joseph has a lot of personal baggage too, and it's fascinating to see how anti-Semitic riots in Babylon, France and England, or the Golden Age in Spain, or even Christopher Columbus' journey affect him personally! This is the ideal history book for people who hate history - the personal story of a man who has seen it all. I don't know if Mr. Polsky is a historian (although he's got all the historical events in the book right) but he sure knows how to tell a story!