Jewish Literacy Revised Ed: The Most Important Things to Know About the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History

I have really been enjoying this book, so much I decided to also gift it. I know some people mention the edges of the book, how it seems "unfinished" but it is a chosen aesthetic. I have other books that have the same finish on the pages. I actually love that. The book itself, is very easy to read, understand and relate to. It is very structured and organized, giving you the freedom to go back and forth between categories. I would definitely purchase this if you have no knowledge regarding judaism. It is a great place to start.

I just had my Mikvah this week, and this book was the primary book my Rabbi used for my individualized study. I will say, it's exceptionally well-written, I felt a plethora of emotions and context reading it, and it truly was a transformational text for me. As someone who really was raised Catholic and in the really Christian-driven American school system, I realized my basic education on Jewish history was truly lacking, and the history I had was really Anglofied in a way. I found it to be an easy read (although I didn't read 100% of it, as a disclaimer, my Rabbi did pick sections for study, etc.) the chapters I did read were really well constructed and very digestible for a very dense book of material. I will forever keep this book as a reference, and it very much helped me on my Jewish faith journey. Amazing read!

If you're interested in Judaism, or if you're a Jew who simply wants to know more about your history and your faith, I think this is the book for you. Rabbi Telushkin has written a very comprehensive book on the Jewish faith and why we believe what we do. The book is easy to read and very interesting, but while it's not "over your head," it's also not "written down" to the reader. This isn't the book for the serious student of Judaism; he or she will want to delve more deeply into everything presented. This is "the" book for the everyday Jew, or the Jew-to-be, or the non-Jew, who simply wants to understand Judaism better because so many misconceptions can prevail unless one does study at least a little. I've found that re-readings always yield additional enlightenments. I treasure this book, and I read it often. If you're interested in the Jewish way of life or faith, I think you'll like it as much as I do.

Jewish religion, history and culture is an inseparable and fundamentally important part of Western civilization, and it behooves all educated people to have some familiarity with it. Rabbi Telushkin's book was an outstanding starting point for a goy like me. Each entry is well-written, well-documented, just the right size, and presents the various perspectives fairly as best as I could tell. The book can be used as a reference book, but it can also be profitably read cover-to-cover.A small criticism from a Christian and amateur New Testament scholar is that the entries dealing with Jesus, by the author's admission, rely mostly on the scholarship of Hyam Maccoby, whose take on the historical Jesus is at best partial and at worst highly questionable. It is certainly not the view shared by most New Testament scholars, whatever their religion. But it is a small criticism--and anyway New Testament scholarship is such a contested field that no short entry on the historical Jesus could ever satisfy everyone.Overall, this is a wonderful book and it should be part of everyone's library.

So, amazing book on Judaism. Without a doubt.But I have to mention something. The author likes to poke his nose into other religious traditions and insincerely misrepresents them.The author posits Islam as if the religion is monolithic, despite the fact that there is nearly 2 billion adherents in every part of the world. He restated Muslim history and quotes the Quran with incorrect interpretations that no Muslim agrees with. Such as saying that Islam allows husbands to beat their wives. Respectfully, I am reading a book about Judaism from a rabbi because I believe only a Jew can accurately represent Judaism. I, however, also believe that religious knowledge of another religion should not be learned from someone who clearly has hostility towards said religion.Any comments about Christianity or Islam that are taken out of context or out of the meaning that adherents of those religions actually believe in should be ignored. And as a Jew, he should understand this due to the many, MANY people who misquote, for example, the Talmud.

Excellent historical account which I am enjoying.

Rabbi Joseph Telushkin takes the reader on an adventure through Ancient Judaic and modern Jewish history like no other author I have ever read. I will start here by saying I am an avid scholar of all things pertaining to different religions. I have read a great many books about Judaism and never has one painted the entire picture so perfectly as Rabbi Telushkin. Parts of history that have been forgotten or rewritten are revisited and explained in a way that leaves the reader questioning many of the descriptions of historical events we've been led to believe happened on way, but actually happened another. Rabbi Telushkin manages to tell the tales that are often quite emotional with a beautiful sense of humor that would have me crying in one moment and laughing in the next moment. I feel privelaged to have been able to pick this book up and it will stay close to me for a very long time.

The book is very accessible to anyone wanting insight into being Jewish and informative for those of us who were raised Jewish but have drifted away,.