When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw: and Other Stories (Paperback)

by Isaac Bashevis Singer (Author), Margot Zemach (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Eight stories, some inspired by traditional Jewish tales, feature such characters as Shlemiel, Todie, Rabbi Leib and Menaseh. PW called this "a rich collection that will be enjoyed by both young and old."
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"Eight stories, some of them based on traditional Jewish tales, by one of the greatest storytellers of our time. The length, the style, and the humor make them a happy source for storytelling; individual readers will have the added pleasure of the Zemach illustrations, distinctive in their own right." --Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
-- Review

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) (September 1, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374483655
• ISBN-13: 978-0374483654
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #830,925 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #9 in	Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( Z ) > Zemach, Margot
  #12 in	Books > Literature & Fiction > Foreign Language Fiction > More Languages > Yiddish

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Candlelight magic, February 22, 2002

By	Fiona (Aotearoa/ New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw and Other Stories (Hardcover)

Isaac Bashevis Singer provides an intoxicating brew whether it is for adults or for children. When my kids wonder why I might spend so much time unravelling print, I can reach for this book and share with them some of the delights of the realms of the imagination. Books such as this remind us that there is little that television can add to our lives and it really won't matter how good the computer graphics get because Singer lets us laugh and wonder with magic that words alone can conjure. A great treat, and one worth sharing and committing to memory for long journeys.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars When I was a child..., December 7, 2000

By	"aunthannah" (Forest Hills, New York United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw and Other Stories (Hardcover)

there were things I was supposed to know. That the sky is blue, that my family loved me, and that reading would expand my world. I was sickly, so I read. I read a lot. I read about the little girl who lived with her grandfather and tended goats. I read about the hobbit who found a ring. I read about the land of OZ. And I also read stories like the ones a grandfather would tell. I didn't have a living grandfather. But Issac Singer told me stories just like Papa Harry would have. That is the magic of this book. The stories are sometimes silly, sometimes mystical, but all just like the ones a grandma or grandpa would tell. And I am a better person for it.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderfully witty and well-written book, October 29, 1998

By	Michel Chaouli ([e-mail]) (Cambridge, Mass.) - See all my reviews

This book is dazzling, regardless of whether you like Jewish stories or not. The stories appear to be entirely artless yet they are carefully and brilliantly crafted. My son, who is eight, was as enchanted by them as I was. Highly recommended.