Drek!: The Real Yiddish Your Bubbe Never Taught You [Paperback]

Yetta Emmes (Author), Kim Wilson Brandt (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1998

One doesn't have to be Jewish to recognize the words that have made their way into every fold of popular language: Chutzpah, Mensch, Tokhes, Mishmash, Nudge, Shtick, Schmaltzy, Schlep, Icky, and so on. Then there are phrases whose meaning and syntax are borrowed from Yiddish: "bite your tongue", "drop dead", "enough already", and "excuse the expression". This hilarious, concise guide includes chapters on the Basic Descriptions of People (the good, the bad, the ugly, and the goofy), the Fine Art of Cursing, Juicy Words and Phrases, Exclamations and Exasperations, and the Fine Art of Blessing.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Plume (December 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452278996
• ISBN-13: 978-0452278998
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #120,984 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #5 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Yiddish
  • #8 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Languages > Instruction > Yiddish
  • #28 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Slang & Idioms

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learning Yiddish - You Need This Book!, July 4, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Drek!: The Real Yiddish Your Bubbe Never Taught You (Paperback)

As one learns a langauge, knowing what "not to say" can be as important as knowing what you can say. In addition to the "colourful" Yiddish it will show you, this book includes many perfectly acceptable words and phrases for many occasions or places in the life of a Jew. It includes a brief synopsis of Yiddish grammar as its final chapter. Its author's transliteration scheme is a bit unusual, but given this book's strengths, that's a minor flaw.

152 of 170 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vat every Yiddisa Jew knows and everyone else should know!!, October 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Drek!: The Real Yiddish Your Bubbe Never Taught You (Paperback)

Yiddish to those who don't know, is a language derived from German (although if you ask three Jews for their opinion as to the origin of Yiddish, you'll get four opinions back at you darling!!). To the Jew who grows up in a Yiddisah "Stub" or house, learns many good expressions, and so many not so good ones! Drek takes a wonderful, factual approach to this dying language via the humorous road!

This book dares to expose to the secrets, words, and expressions that only a Yiddisah-cupe would know!

I recommend this book to anyone; Jew or non-who wants to have a great laugh, return to their childhood roots or just to pick up some very bad words indeed!

My Wife, Helene and I laughed out loud and are going to buy a crate full of "Drek" for our friends and family!

My only complaint is now I may not be able to talk behind people's backs so easily - they have the Drek! Who knows for sure!

Gay-cach-and-yam to all, and to all a goodnight!!

50 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Humorous Analogy, January 1, 2001

By 

"mimirf" (Plano, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Drek!: The Real Yiddish Your Bubbe Never Taught You (Paperback)

Book is broken down into chapters by language category. Humorous and informative introduction followed by chapter by chapter historical introductions and then content. Fairly good attempt at pronunciation help and spelling, however, some prior experience with words in speaking environment is still necessary to truly capture the pronunciation. Overall, short but sound book.