Why the Baal Shem Tov Laughed: Fifty-two Stories about Our Great Chasidic Rabbis (v. 3) [Hardcover]

Sterna Citron (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0876683502 | ISBN-13: 978-0876683507 | Publication Date: November 1, 2000

Jewish tradition is rich in stories, many of which center around the lives and work of the great chasidic rabbis, known as rebbes. As a child, Sterna Citron, who descends from distinguished rabbinic families, was surrounded by these stories. Each night at bedtime, her father, the late Rabbi Eli Chaim Carlebach, a member of one of the most outstanding rabbinic families of Germany, would tell her stories. Fifty-two of these stories, many of which appear here for the first time in English, are now collected in Why the Baal Shem Tov Laughed: Fifty-two Stories about Our Great Chasidic Rabbis.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sterna Citron comes from distinguished families on both her paternal and maternal sides. Her late father, Rabbi Eli Chaim Carlebach, was a scholar, writer, and publisher. The Carlebach family was one of the most outstanding rabbinic families of Germany. Her maternal grandfather, Rabbi Shneur Zalman Schneerson, was descended from the founder of Chabad Chasidism, the Baal HaTanya, and from Reb Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev. He was the cousin of the present Lubavitcher rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. Citron is a teacher at Bais Yaakov High School for Girls in Los Angeles, California, as well as the editor of The Jewish Reader, a magazine for children.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Jason Aronson, Inc. (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0876683502
• ISBN-13: 978-0876683507
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,901,887 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars To laugh with the Baal Shem Tov . . ., July 25, 2001

By 

jocheved miriam (seattle) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Why the Baal Shem Tov Laughed: Fifty-two Stories about Our Great Chasidic Rabbis (v. 3) (Hardcover)

Why did the Ball Shem Tov laugh? Out of sheer delight in the way G-d had chosen to make His point: In the village of Koznitz, a tragedy has occurred. Reb Shabsai has earned no money whatever this week, and hence there is nothing with which to buy candles or even food for the Sabbath. Dispirited, he goes to the shul to welcome the Sabbath anyway. At home, his wife decides she could at least clean the house -- there may be no food, but the Sabbath Queen could hardly be welcomed in a dirty house! And what happens? While cleaning, she finds a packet of jewelry and money she had hidden away and then lost many years prior. The Sabbath was welcomed that week with both fish and chicken, and everyone shares the joy, including the Baal Shem Tov, who joins the laughter three separate times with Reb Shabsai and his wife. Once again, G-d has provided whatever His people needed.

This first of the 52 stories is typical of the others -- take simple people, in impoverished shtetl conditions, add sizeable doses of great faith, seasoned with joy, and what do you get? Moral lessons for today, well told in 2-3 page stories, together with a biographical note on the storyteller himself -- one of the Chassidic Rebbes who were the original followers of the Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov (1698-1760). The stories are perhaps intended for children -- one a week, perhaps? But Mrs. Citron has done her research -- most of these stories were new to me, even though I've been a fan of Chassidic stories for many years. Some of them will bring tears to your eyes -- we think WE have problems!

The book would have benefited from the inclusion of more information about the Rebbes whose favorite tales she retells -- maybe even some incident from their own persecuted lives and troubled times. Giving us their geneology -- who is whose son, grandson, father-in-law, etc -- is probably of limited interest to a general readership.

Nonetheless, this is a delightful book -- great Bar-Bat Mitzvah gift, too!