The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness: A True Story [Hardcover]

Joel Ben Izzy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 21, 2003

"Once upon a time" are magic words that cast a spell whether we're young or old. A good tale has a way of holding us captive. To Joel ben Izzy, a professional storyteller for twenty years, stories are not only a way of life but also a way to heal. In this altogether original book, ben Izzy takes us on a journey inside the world of stories and the lessons they teach us through their timeless wisdom.

He begins by telling us the tale of the "The Beggar King," in which King Solomon loses his kingdom and is left to wander the land as a beggar. Then, ben Izzy's own tale unfolds--much like a fable--when he unexpectedly loses his voice, the very thing he needs most. No longer able to tell stories, he loses his livelihood along with his hope, until he meets his old mentor, Lenny. Through fables, folktales, and riddles, the wise but cantankerous Lenny teaches him how to see his fate in terms of a larger story and shows him the gifts that can only come from loss.

Each chapter of ben Izzy's journey begins with a tale he's collected from around the world--from "The Lost Horse" (China) to "The Secret of Happiness" (Turkey). And each one touches on universal themes--from the quest for truth to how to cope with life's disappointments. He challenges us to find the meaning in our own life stories.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

First-time author ben Izzy's vocation as a professional storyteller may fill his life with heady myth and poetry, but as he acknowledges early on in this slim but memorable recollection of personal tragedy, "the absence of magic" in his childhood is the very thing "that sent me looking for it." He found it in the unlikeliest and most cruelly ironic way. After undergoing surgery to remove thyroid cancer, ben Izzy lost his voice-the instrument of not only his art, but also his livelihood. Telling himself that a return to the routine of performance would spark a recovery, ben Izzy accepted an offer to perform at a bar mitzvah, but only "whispers and gasps" emerged. Retreating into self-pity, anger, hopelessness and sullen solitude, the author searched, like the protagonists in the stories he used to tell, for a spiritual explanation of the loss. He reconnected with his estranged, cantankerous mentor, who offered support by telling dizzyingly enigmatic stories hinting at the idea that ben Izzy had been given a magical gift by losing his voice. When a doctor suggested he might be able to help ben Izzy speak again in a risky procedure, ben Izzy's wife told him she liked him better without it, an incident the author does not satisfyingly explain. But ben Izzy successfully translates the best elements of oral storytelling to the page; his memoir shines with brisk suspense as well as his unerring, precise eye for including only the elements of his hard-won wisdom that matter the most.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

In his debut effort, professional storyteller Ben Izzy shares personal experiences that have caused him to search for life's true meaning in the stories he has spent two decades telling. The book starts with the fable of the beggar king, in which King Solomon loses his kingdom and is left to wander the land as a beggar, and from there Ben Izzy's own tale unfolds. A renowned storyteller, the author was at the top of his game when throat cancer robbed him of his voice. As a consequence, he lost his livelihood and became severely depressed until he met up with his old mentor Lenny, a cantankerous and often drunk old storyteller who helped him to stop dwelling on his misery and to see his fate in terms of life's bigger picture. The book ends with the conclusion of the story of the beggar king, in which King Solomon's journey is realized as an illusion, and with Ben Izzy making sense of the cards fate has dealt him. Kathleen Hughes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Algonquin Books (November 21, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565122909
• ISBN-13: 978-1565122901
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #461,273 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary Book, November 4, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness: A True Story (Hardcover)

EXTRAORDINARY, A ONE-IN-A-MILLION EXCEPTIONAL BOOK, A MUST READ, PACKED WITH WISDOM. You will not want to put this book down. Joel Ben Izzy is a professional storyteller who, because of a mindboggling twist of fate, loses his voice and is no longer able to perform. Months and months pass and there is no sign that his voice will return. How does a person let go and redefine one's hopes and dreams? Ben Izzy utilizes the tales he was once able to tell and applies their lessons to his own life. But perhaps the greatest benefactors of his experience are the readers who take to heart what he learned about the "secret of happiness."

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This Little Book is a MUST READ., September 11, 2004

By 

J. Clark - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness: A True Story (Hardcover)

I got this book as a gift. I sat down in my favorite chair on a warm afternoon and started reading and reading and reading. This thing is so damn addictive I couldn't stop! I ended up reading the whole thing in one sitting and it felt like I was only reading for an hour. That was a couple of months ago. I've started reading it again this week and it's just as fun the second time around. There are many little life lessons weaved throughout that made me ponder my own existence but with a great sense of humor about it all. This is LAUGH OUT LOUD funny. What a great little gem of a book. I've bought copies for several of my friends and they've all had the same experience I did. I couldn't give it a higher rating. This is a MUST READ for anyone who thinks about life and who loves to laugh about life's little twists.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Exceptional Read, October 27, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness: A True Story (Hardcover)

I've read this book over and over, and each reading reveals deeper meaning, more humor, more sadness, and more wisdom. Joel ben Izzy's stories (which I've enjoyed for many years) are a wonder, but the way he weaves the stories he tells with the story of his life is unique and powerful. This is, by far, the best book I've read in years. I will give it for holiday gifts to friends and family, to my corporate clients, and to just about everyone else I can think of. Most important, I will keep reading it. This is the sort of book to treasure every time life throws you a curve, every time something goes wrong, and every time something goes right.