From Library Journal
Jewish life in Islamic lands has always fascinated Patai (The Jewish Alchemists, LJ 6/1/94). In this massive, specialized study, he focuses on the Jews of the Iranian city of Meshhed, who were forcibly converted in 1839. They lived an underground life: outwardly, they conformed to Islamic ways, but inwardly they kept a Jewish identity. They were known as "Jadid al-Islam," or "New of Islam." Patai's work is the product of the oral accounts he obtained. He supplements the book with tales of travelers who witnessed the servile and often degraded conditions of these Jews only from the outside, knowing nothing of their incredible but secretive lives. No detail is too small for Patai; he even describes Jewish children's games. This work is best suited for academic and public libraries with very strong Jewish studies collections. Public libraries should consider a few basic introductions to the topic, such as Bernard Lewis's Jews of Arab Lands in Modern Times (LJ 2/1/91).?Paul M. Kaplan, Lake Villa Dist. Lib., Ill.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
