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From the rabble to the rabbis, Singer brilliantly evokes a tiny village and its citizenry in The Slave. He draws aside the curtain of space and time to reveal rich textures and unforgettable personalities. No sooner have you tasted the groats and potatoes than you witness the struggles that underlie each of his novels. Singer called his characters "victims of their own personalities and fates"; they are characterized by a strong sense of fatalism and alternating urges to fight or surrender to destiny, or God's will.
Singer's work reflects decades of deep yearning to comprehend and serve God, and the rational, selfish backlash that can arise in modern man when God remains mute. His stories are deeply personalized, revolving around one man's experiences and elevating what would otherwise be merely interesting philosophical prose to impassioned, wrenching, beautifully crafted masterpieces. The author definitely doesn't shy away from examining all of a person's thoughts and being, from the lofty to the crass, under the same harsh light. Desire clashes with duty, destiny wrestles against freewill, and logic spars with spirituality. For some readers, his constructs are too strong, too affecting: some Orthodox Jews consider his work so tainted that they won't touch it. Others call it a mockery of Jewish culture, or take umbrage at his depictions of women as hapless idiots, selfish sirens, or screeching nags. But are the conflicts within Singer's characters really so grotesque and profane, or are they simply what make them human? --Jhana Bach
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
three complete novels,
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This review is from: Isaac Basheivus Singer: Three Complete Novels (R) (Hardcover)
great book- Singer is a superb storyteller. If you are Jewish and and are interested in Jewish history and tradition, this is the book for you. It is also a beautiful love story. While this book is fiction, it the story line feels real enough to be true.
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