Chaim Potok--American Author Challenge January 2019

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Chaim Potok--American Author Challenge January 2019

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1laytonwoman3rd
Edited: Jan 11, 2019, 8:34 am



Herman Harold Potok was born in 1929 to Polish parents with ties to Hasidic traditions, and was raised in an Orthodox Jewish home. He was given the Hebrew name Chaim, and received an Orthodox education. As a teenager, he read Brideshead Revisited, and was transported to another world, one inhabited by upper-class British Catholics. He began writing fiction himself, optimistically submitting a story to The Atlantic Monthly at the age of 17. He received a B.A. in English literature from Yeshiva University, where he was first published in its literary journal. Following graduation, he went on to the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, from which he was ordained as a Conservative rabbi. He did graduate studies in English, Philosophy and Theology at various times in his life. In 1955 he enlisted in the US Army, serving as a chaplain in South Korea for 2 years, again becoming fascinated with another religion, as well as with another world—one in which there were no Jews, and no trace of anti-Semitism. He served on the faculty of several Jewish universities, edited two Jewish publications, and worked with young people in Conservative summer camps and youth organizations. For 7 years he and his family lived in Israel.

Potok’s first novel, The Chosen, is also probably his best known work. It was published in 1967 to much critical and popular acclaim. It is the story of two boys, one from the Hasidic community and one from a slightly more worldly Conservative Jewish family. Their friendship developed despite the challenges brought about by the differences in their life-styles, and Potok used this device brilliantly to explore those differences for a wider, non-Jewish audience. It was the first book dealing with Orthodox Judaism in this way to be published in the United States. Most of Potok’s subsequent fiction is also concerned with the conflict between religious and secular interests.

In addition to his novels, Potok wrote plays, stories for children, scholarly articles and two non-fiction works Wanderings: Chaim Potok’s History of the Jews and Old Men at Midnight. He also painted in a style reminiscent of Chagall, and created a real-life version of the fictional Brooklyn Crucifixion painting described in his novel, My Name is Asher Lev.



Chaim Potok died in 2002 of brain cancer. His correspondence, lectures, sermons and other papers are in the collection of the University of Pennsylvania, where he taught graduate seminars for several years before his death.

The General Discussion Thread for the 2019 AAC is here.

2jessibud2
Dec 26, 2018, 5:47 pm

I have read at least 3, possibly more, titles by Potok. I should probably reread them, though, because I read them eons ago and have little recollection apart from the knowledge that I loved his writing. However, since I have more books than years left to read, I rarely reread. So, I will read a volume I have in my house right now called The Gift of Asher Lev. I am also fairly certain I have a copy of Davita's Harp somewhere in this house but for the moment, I have not been able to locate it.
Thanks again for setting this all up Linda.

3laytonwoman3rd
Dec 26, 2018, 5:53 pm

>2 jessibud2: I read several of his novels long ago too, Shelley. But I'm not sure I ever got to The Gift of Asher Lev. I am going to re-read The Chosen, because I remember being so impressed and moved by it the first time, but do not remember a lot about the story.

4Caroline_McElwee
Dec 26, 2018, 6:23 pm

I'll be reading My Name is Asher Lev for January. It will be my first Potok.

5lauralkeet
Dec 26, 2018, 7:54 pm

>4 Caroline_McElwee: I plan to read that as well. I read The Chosen ages ago, possibly in my teens. At some point more recently, a number of LTers were reading My Name is Asher Lev, and praised it highly.

6msf59
Dec 27, 2018, 8:30 am

Sadly, I have not read Potok, but this looks like the perfect opportunity to do so. I want to finally read The Chosen, but I have My Name is Asher Lev on shelf, so I will start with that one. I hope to get to The Chosen later in the year.

7fuzzi
Dec 27, 2018, 9:36 am

>6 msf59: I love Potok, but The Chosen is probably my favorite.

8klobrien2
Dec 28, 2018, 12:19 pm

The Chosen was one of my favorite books when I was a teen (a long time ago!) I think I need to read it again, as an adult. And I'm hoping to fit in a few more Potoks in January. Looking forward to it!

Karen O.

9Matke
Dec 30, 2018, 9:51 am

I’ve read five of Potok’s books:
The Chosen, The Promise (a sequel to The Chosen), My Name Is Asher Lev, The Gift of Asher Lev, and In the Beginning. All are heart-breakingly beautiful. I’m not sure if I’ll do a reread or try a new one.

10jessibud2
Dec 30, 2018, 10:07 am

>9 Matke: There is also Davita's Harp, I believe. I have it but have not yet read it.

11lycomayflower
Dec 30, 2018, 10:42 am

I read The Chosen some time ago and absolutely loved it. I enjoyed the sequel, though not quite as much. Tried My Name Is Asher Lev about ten years back and just couldn't get into it. I'm waffling between a reread of The Chosen and reading Davita's Harp, which I've never tried and have on hand. Leaning slightly toward the one that will be new to me, I think.

12laytonwoman3rd
Dec 30, 2018, 11:00 am

What a grand mix we have of people who already love Potok, and people who have never read him at all. For those with several of his novels under their belts already, I can recommend the collection of short fiction, Old Men at Midnight in which Davita Chandal reappears and is the common denominator, as well as the excellent non-fiction piece of Russian history, The Gates of November.

13fuzzi
Dec 30, 2018, 12:07 pm

>12 laytonwoman3rd: thank you! I am going to check our library system for those.

14alcottacre
Dec 30, 2018, 5:17 pm

I have read almost all of his fiction (The Chosen is my favorite), so I am going to try nonfiction for the challenge and read The Gates of November (at least, I think it is nonfiction!)

15SandDune
Dec 30, 2018, 6:26 pm

I have ordered a copy of The Chosen and I should have it by the weekend. Surprisingly, it wasn’t available on kindle or audiobook. I haven’t come across Chaim Potok before, but it sounds interesting.

16laytonwoman3rd
Edited: Dec 30, 2018, 8:38 pm

>13 fuzzi: I hope you can get one or the other.

>14 alcottacre: I'm pretty sure it's non-fiction, Stasia, although I see some people have tagged it fiction. Some of the people in it are listed as co-authors, and I understand it is based on Potok's interviews with them in Russia.

>15 SandDune: Good. I really think you'll enjoy it.

17fuzzi
Edited: Dec 30, 2018, 9:40 pm

>16 laytonwoman3rd: I have a reserve in for Old Men at Midnight!

18alcottacre
Dec 31, 2018, 9:36 pm

>17 fuzzi: Old Men at Midnight was just 'ok' for me. I will be interested to see what you think of it.

From The Gates of November: "The atmosphere in the room was disquieting; it seemed to quiver with barely suppressed apprehension. Someone once said that the only true question we ought to ask one another is: 'What are you going through?' Probably in the course of this evening the question would be answered without ever being asked. It was a desperate way for people like these to sustain life and hope: through strangers dropping in from the sky."

I do so love the way that Potok writes! He paints such a vivid picture in my head.

19jessibud2
Dec 31, 2018, 10:29 pm

>18 alcottacre: - Hmm, interesting to hear this. I am still looking for my copy (that I know is somewhere in this house!) of Davita's Harp but instead I found Old Men at Midnight and have decided to read this one instead of the one I originally planned to read, (The Gift of Asher Lev), mainly because Old Men is paperback and The Gift is a heavier hard back and I am travelling on Thursday and don't want to lug a hardcover on the train and home again.

20streamsong
Jan 1, 2019, 2:03 pm

I'm another who has not read Potok. I have a copy of My Name is Asher Lev on my shelves, so I'll be joining in with those reading it.

I'm having a strong burst of my usual January resolution - to read more of the books already sitting on my shelf (and maybe not purchase quite so many .....)

21fuzzi
Edited: Jan 1, 2019, 5:09 pm

>20 streamsong: hahahahaha!!!!!!!!!

(I'm that way, too)

I loved Asher Lev when I read it a few years ago. My mother was a big Potok fan but I'd not gotten around to checking out his works until then.

If I recall (without peeking), I gave Asher Lev either 4 1/2 or 5 stars.

EDIT: I peeked, I gave it 5 stars back in 2014.

22EBT1002
Jan 1, 2019, 6:51 pm

I read My Name is Asher Lev in 2017 and gave it five stars. I highly recommend it.

23nittnut
Jan 1, 2019, 7:05 pm

I love Chaim Potok. The Chosen is my favorite of all that I've read. I have had Old Men At Midnight on my TBR pile for ages. I am going to read that one.

24brenzi
Jan 1, 2019, 8:30 pm

I’ve never read anything by Potok but I’m planning to read The Chosen which has been on my shelf for about ten years.

25laytonwoman3rd
Jan 1, 2019, 9:24 pm

I'm nearing the end of The Chosen. Although I know I read it and was impressed with it decades ago, I find I remember very few details, just the overall sense of friendship overcoming differences. I am once more very impressed with the story, and marveling a bit at what I must have made of it in my early 20's, when I had a much narrower grasp of the historical and philosophical issues embedded in it.

26kac522
Jan 1, 2019, 10:52 pm

I have not read Potok before, so I plan to start with The Chosen, and maybe My Name is Asher Lev.

27Caroline_McElwee
Jan 2, 2019, 7:47 am

I started My Name is Asher Lev this morning, and fell quickly into its rhythms. I ordered a copy of The Chosen too, so I may actually manage 2 books for this month's challenge!

28alcottacre
Jan 2, 2019, 7:50 am

>19 jessibud2: I do not blame you! I would not want to be lugging around heavy hardbacks while I am traveling either.

29lauralkeet
Edited: Jan 3, 2019, 9:22 am

I requested My Name is Asher Lev as a library Kindle loan yesterday; it was checked out at the time so I thought it might take a week or more. But no, I got it later in the day. Okay, so, I guess that's what I'm reading now. 😀

I started reading last night and am quite intrigued. A few years ago, quite by accident, my husband and I found ourselves walking through a Hasidic neighborhood in Brooklyn. It was our first visit to Brooklyn and we were actually a little lost. Now we know the area a bit better, and this book makes me want to know more about Brooklyn's Jewish community(ies). I'm off to do some Googling ...

30lauralkeet
Edited: Jan 3, 2019, 2:02 pm

My Name is Asher Lev is set in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and Asher's family is described as "Ladover." I found a source describing Ladover Hasidism as a fictional sect, bearing the most resemblance to the Lubavitch Hasiddim, "one of the most open and worldly of the Hasidic groups." The Lubavitch hasidic movement was based in Crown Heights.

I found more context about the Lubavitch Hasidim and Crown Heights in this primer on Brooklyn's Jewish Communities:

Crown Heights
While the Crown Heights area north of Eastern Parkway is known for its bars and restaurants, the area south is home to a large Jewish community. Middle class Jews started moving to the neighborhood in the 1940s through the ’60s. The area became home to a number of large synagogues including the Bobov and Chovevei Torah, as well as prominent Yeshiva elementary schools.

The historic building at 770 Eastern Parkway was established as the central location for the Chabad sect during the 40s, and Crown Heights still has a large Hasidic Jewish population. The Chabad movement is known for its outreach activities, spreading the word to Jews of all denominations through everything from one-on-one street interactions to the roaming truck with loudspeakers affectionately known as the Mitzvah Tank.

Today 770 Eastern Parkway serves as the central headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement, considered to be an iconic site in Judaism. The movement’s last Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, is considered by some members of the movement to be the long-awaited Jewish Messiah (or Moshiach), though this is a very controversial idea. Accordingly, there are replicas of his Crown Heights home in Jerusalem, Los Angeles, Australia, Italy, Brazil, and Argentina.

The Jewish Children’s Museum is also located in the neighborhood, the largest Jewish-themed children’s museum in the United States.

I assume the "outreach activities" are the reason Asher's father travels so much for the Rebbe?

31RBeffa
Jan 3, 2019, 2:38 pm

>25 laytonwoman3rd: I started reading the first few pages of The Chosen yesterday and all of a sudden old synapses clicked. Robby Benson. I read the book and saw the film in the early 80's. I don't really remember the story but as soon as i started reading it was all completely familiar. I suppose I wasn't overwhelmed with it back then because i certainly don't remember it as a favorite. I may or may not get back to it at the end of the month to re-read. I don't have an urge to, but I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying it.

32streamsong
Jan 3, 2019, 2:56 pm

>30 lauralkeet: Very interesting! Thank you!

33Caroline_McElwee
Jan 3, 2019, 3:31 pm

>30 lauralkeet: fascinating Laura, thank you.

34weird_O
Jan 4, 2019, 10:53 am

I am about 2/3 through The Chosen. I got the copy at a library sale (where else?!). I also have My Name Is Asher Lev, also a library sale find, and I just might read it too.

35thornton37814
Jan 4, 2019, 11:15 am

I picked up a copy of The Chosen for 50 cents at a used bookstore. I'll be reading it.

36jnwelch
Jan 4, 2019, 1:42 pm

I loved The Chosen and My Name is Asher Lev, and this month I plan to read his The Promise.

37jessibud2
Jan 4, 2019, 3:18 pm

I started Old Men at Midnight last night and so far, so good. One of the main characters is Davita and the *harp* is already manifesting as a major *thing* for her so I will assume she is the same character as the one is his Davita's Harp, which of course, I will now have to find and read. Maybe I should have found a copy before reading this one but since I am not at home at the moment, I will just finish this one and find Davita later.

38laytonwoman3rd
Jan 4, 2019, 4:09 pm

>37 jessibud2: Davita is definitely the same character in both books, Shelley. I don't know that it matters a lot not to have read Davita's Harp first...I read it so long before reading Old Men at Midnight that I didn't even make the connection at first. I think the latter can stand alone.

39jessibud2
Jan 4, 2019, 4:34 pm

>38 laytonwoman3rd: - Thanks, Linda. That's good to know.

40LovingLit
Jan 4, 2019, 10:12 pm

Chaim Potok is the author who made me love books. I picked up a copy of My Name is Asher Lev at a second hand bookshop when I lived in Australia (there were many copies of it, it must have been prescribed reading for a school), and I think it's fait to say it changed my life. It remains my favourite book of all time.

:)

41msf59
Jan 5, 2019, 7:21 am





^Very little reading yesterday but I did manage to start My Name is Asher Lev. I have a feeling this is going to be a good one. My very first Potok.

>30 lauralkeet: Interesting info, Laura. thanks for sharing.

42laytonwoman3rd
Jan 5, 2019, 10:39 am

>40 LovingLit: I think every one of us has a story like that....I love hearing them.

43jessibud2
Edited: Jan 6, 2019, 5:23 pm

I finished Old Men at Midnight. In fact, it is really 3 novellas, linked by one common character who appears in each, at different ages. I liked the first and the third sections well enough, did not like the second at all. The bulk of Potok's writing, in this book at least (I read most of his others too many years ago to remember them in this way) seems to be more tangent than straight storyline. An interesting construct but it sometimes felt awkward. I wish the first novella had been longer, and more developed. I felt left hanging when it was over, expecting the second section to pick up the story but it didn't. I think this reinforces for me precisely why I generally do not enjoy short stories.

Oh well... win some, lose some.

I must say, though, that I think I will find my hidden copy (somewhere in my house) of Davita's Harp as it is her character that appears in each of the 3 sections of the one I just finished and Davita's Harp, as far as I know, is a full length novel.

edited to add in a line I underlined; couldn't help myself:

"In my world we sized people up by the books they read and the libraries in their homes."

Hehe, Potok could have been an LTer!

44thornton37814
Jan 6, 2019, 8:37 pm

I loved The Chosen so much I gave it 5 stars!

45alcottacre
Jan 7, 2019, 6:14 pm

I am halfway through The Gates of November and really enjoying one of Potok's forays into nonfiction. I suspect though, that unless you are interested in Russian history post-revolution, the book might not catch you up as it has me. The writing, as expected from Potok, is excellent and the story is well-told.

46msf59
Jan 9, 2019, 6:29 pm



-Guernica, Pablo Picasso 1937

^This painting is featured prominently in My Name Asher Lev. I am not sure what is exactly happening in this painting but I still find it intriguing. I am well into the second half of the novel and truly loving it. I am so glad I finally pulled this one down off the shelf:

"Those mornings, the beach was my synagogue and the waves and the gulls were audience to my prayers. I stood on the beach and felt wind-blown sprays of ocean on my face, and I prayed. And sometimes the words seemed more appropriate to this beach than to the synagogue on my street."

47Caroline_McElwee
Jan 9, 2019, 6:55 pm

>45 alcottacre: That landed on my mat today Stasia, though probably won't be read this month.

>46 msf59: Darryl read about this painting last year, and I think has seen it, he might be able to give you some info that will help you understand it Mark.

I'm on the last ten pages of My Name is Asher Lev and will finish it before bed. A brilliant read. I've ordered the sequel: The Gift of Asher Lev. In the meantime I may read The Chosen in the second half of the month.

48msf59
Jan 9, 2019, 7:19 pm

>47 Caroline_McElwee: Thanks for the Darryl tip, Caroline. I did not realize there was a sequel to Asher Lev! Hooray!!

49Caroline_McElwee
Jan 9, 2019, 7:53 pm

My Name is Asher Lev (Chaim Potok) (09/01/19) *****



A wonderful novel on so many levels. The writing is fine and vivid. You can feel what it is like living in that family, in that community. Every character has depth.

I learnt about Judaism, art and art criticism. I learnt about the problems art can create in such an environment. I understood better the power some art can have.

Even some of the finest art historians can struggle to describe for you the image they can see, but I saw all Asher Lev's paintings, even though he rarely offered up the colours.

This 320 pages are epic.

I am looking forward to the sequel The Gift of Asher Lev landing on the mat.

50laytonwoman3rd
Jan 9, 2019, 8:26 pm

>46 msf59:, >49 Caroline_McElwee: Don't forget to visit Potok's own painting, Brooklyn Crucifixion, in >1 laytonwoman3rd: above.

51lauralkeet
Jan 10, 2019, 7:39 am

I also recently finished My Name is Asher Lev, and agree with Caroline's sentiments (>49 Caroline_McElwee:). It was an amazing book. The climax is intense and emotional, and Potok takes his time building up to it. I kept hoping there would be a way to avoid the inevitable. It was really powerful.

>50 laytonwoman3rd: thanks for the reminder, Linda. That's a very good representation of what he describes in the book.

>46 msf59: Mark, Guernica is one of Picasso's most famous works. I had the opportunity to see it last year when visiting Madrid. It's huge, with much to explore, and you can't help but feel its impact. I found this source with more background on the painting. Here's a snippet from the opening paragraphs:
Probably Picasso's most famous work, Guernica is certainly the his most powerful political statement, painted as an immediate reaction to the Nazi's devastating casual bombing practice on the Basque town of Guernica during Spanish Civil War.

Guernica shows the tragedies of war and the suffering it inflicts upon individuals, particularly innocent civilians.

52alcottacre
Jan 10, 2019, 7:44 am

>47 Caroline_McElwee: I hope you like it when you get to it, Caroline.

The Gates of November is a terrific nonfiction book by Potok. The story is told about a father and son, who are fundamentally different. There is no favoritism shown by Potok as he writes first of the father and his experiences, mainly post-revolution, and the son, who becomes the opposite - fighting for the right to leave Communist Russia and emigrate to Israel. I found the book well worth the read and gave it 4.5 stars.

53laytonwoman3rd
Jan 10, 2019, 9:11 am

>49 Caroline_McElwee:, >51 lauralkeet: I am clearly going to have to revisit My Name is Asher Lev; I know I read it years ago, but I don't remember being as impressed as you two have been with it. That tells me that I may not have been "ready" for it at the time, and it deserves more of my attention. Thank you for your excellent reviews.

>52 alcottacre: I thought The Gates of November was very powerful, Stasia. And I loved this quote from Potok's epilogue: "Can we learn something from these chronicles about iron righteousness and rigid doctrine, about the stony heart, the sealed mind, the capricious use of law, and the tragedies that often result when theories are not adjusted to realities?"

54lauralkeet
Jan 10, 2019, 9:52 am

>53 laytonwoman3rd: I think I might be in the same place with The Chosen. I read it either in my teens or in college, and I'm sure it would make a different impression now.

55laytonwoman3rd
Jan 10, 2019, 10:09 am

>31 RBeffa: You know, I don't think I ever saw the movie. I wonder if it did justice to the book. Anyone else remember it?

56RBeffa
Jan 10, 2019, 10:27 am

>55 laytonwoman3rd: I recall I liked the movie a lot. I believe I read the book after the film (I have a few penciled notes in my paperback that suggest that). I haven't gotten back to the book yet but I still have a lot of month to go! Potok's books are sure getting a lot of praise here.

57fuzzi
Jan 10, 2019, 11:05 am

58klobrien2
Jan 10, 2019, 7:12 pm

I'm just finishing The Chosen and I found it just as compelling and well-written as I did when I was a teenager (long ago and far away). I've just requested the movie version because I remember it as being a great visualization of the book. I'm reading Old Men at Midnight during the rest of the month.

Chaim Potok for the January AAC seems a solid "win" for me!

Karen O.

59jessibud2
Jan 10, 2019, 8:17 pm

>58 klobrien2: - I will be interested to hear your impressions of Old Men at Midnight, Kathy. You may be the only other person besides myself who has chosen that one for this month. My review is somewhere up there in this thread.

60PaulCranswick
Jan 11, 2019, 2:17 am

Like Mark and Caroline and others my AAC will be My Name is Asher Lev which I am starting today.

>1 laytonwoman3rd:

By the way, Linda, your introduction of the author was informative and an excellent way of setting up the month's challenge.

61laytonwoman3rd
Jan 11, 2019, 8:35 am

Thank you, Paul.

62nittnut
Jan 11, 2019, 8:33 pm

While waiting for a copy of Old Men at Midnight to arrive at my library, I picked up The Chosen again and I'm hooked. Maybe I will read both.

63alcottacre
Jan 11, 2019, 11:12 pm

>53 laytonwoman3rd: I agree about the epilogue, Linda. Potok certainly makes some good points in it. The part where he discusses America was, I thought, very telling especially given the current political climate.

64fuzzi
Jan 13, 2019, 7:44 am

>59 jessibud2: I also have Old Men at Midnight for my read in January, but due to personal reasons I am deep in a comfort reread right now.

65Caroline_McElwee
Edited: Jan 18, 2019, 9:09 am

The Gift of Asher Lev (Chaim Potok) (17/01/19) ****1/2



Another fine novel by Chaim Potok, a continuation of Asher Lev's story, as he strides into manhood. The novel retained the tone of the first, introducing new characters as well as continuing with the ones we have already met.

There are so many things to be pondered in these novels, and I don't think a reread will be too far into the future, a more studied reading.

There is a chance I might squeeze in a third Potok this month, in the final week.

66fuzzi
Edited: Jan 18, 2019, 6:01 pm

While at the public library this afternoon, I found another Chaim Potok on the 25 cents' shelves, In the Beginning. I don't think I'll get to it this month, but later on...

67brenzi
Jan 18, 2019, 8:59 pm

I forgot to post here after I finished The Chosen which I enjoyed and reviewed on the book’s page. I may look for The Promise which is the sequel because I’d love to see what happens to Danny and Reuven. I’d also like to read My Name is Asher Lev at some point.

68LovingLit
Jan 19, 2019, 5:56 pm

>49 Caroline_McElwee: This 320 pages are epic.
Hallelujah! I agree, of course :)

I will have to seek out The Gates of November, as I have never heard of it!

69streamsong
Jan 20, 2019, 11:06 am

I stayed up way too late last night finishing My Name is Asher Lev. I had to almost force myself to read the last chapter, since from the first few pages, the reader knows how wrong it goes. But what a wonderful read! Epic indeed.

I'll definitely look for The Gift of Asher Lev. I want to read it; but I'll put it off for a bit. I need to let Asher Lev soak for a bit before I go on.

I've added it to FictFact so I can remember that I want to read the sequel. :)

70jnwelch
Jan 23, 2019, 1:20 pm

I'll be looking for The Gift of Asher Lev, too. Thanks for finding that one, Caroline.

I'm finally cleared for takeoff with The Promise.

71laytonwoman3rd
Jan 25, 2019, 5:21 pm

I finished My Name is Asher Lev, my second Potok of the month. This one was also a re-read for me, but I seemed to remember more of it than I did of The Chosen. Nevertheless, I was surprised at its power and dark truth. This is a very great novel. From a very young age, Asher Lev exhibits a gift for drawing, and it consumes him, even in the face of his parents' disdain and discouragement. Drawing is foolishness, a waste of time, his father feels. When Asher wakes up to find he has drawn a disturbing portrait on the wall beside his bed without remembering it, when he drifts off in class and then realizes he has again been drawing unconsciously (this time in a sacred text), the matter becomes terribly serious for his father, a prominent member of Brooklyn's Hasidic community, a representative of the Ladover Rebbe in the halls of the US government and around the world. This must not continue. Asher protests that he must draw, that he cannot help himself, which only confirms his father's belief that this "gift" is from the Other Side, not from the Master of the Universe. Only animals cannot control themselves. Asher loves his parents, he observes the rituals and offers the prayers, he tries to apply himself to his secular and religious studies. Yet as he gets older the gift gets stronger; his talent is undeniable; his study of great art leads him away from the cloistered existence of his insular community, and exposes him to centuries of Christian and "pagan" images. What reconciliation of the two worlds is possible? Can an artist be true to his vision without causing grief? Faulkner said, "The writer's only responsibility is to his art. He will be completely ruthless if he is a good one. ... If a writer has to rob his mother, he will not hesitate; the Ode on a Grecian Urn is worth any number of old ladies." That's all well and good from the distance of a couple hundred years, but delving into the life of a young man grappling with this awful dilemma makes one wonder a bit. In the context of this story, I came away feeling that Asher Lev might have fulfilled his artistic responsibility, and yet have found a way to be slightly less brutal to his parents. Yes, he had to crucify his mother on canvas. OK. But he did not have to let his parents come upon that image unwarned in such a public manner. He considered it cowardly not to express his mother's anguish in precisely that way, but did not realize it was also cowardly to avoid the uncomfortable conversation that would have spared both parents the shock and horror of seeing the result, which they could only view as blasphemy and a betrayal? . Very often, when faced with a difficult question, Asher remains quiet, as if unable to speak when he knows his answer will be hurtful or unacceptable. In the end, his silence leads to what may be an irreparable rift.

72Caroline_McElwee
Jan 25, 2019, 5:29 pm

I can see where you are coming from Linda. I think he was just still quite a young man when he painted those images. If he had told them before, he knew they would never have come to the exhibition. The other thing that crosses my mind is that he inherited stubborn genes. His own father was inflexible and manipulative.

73laytonwoman3rd
Jan 25, 2019, 5:39 pm

>72 Caroline_McElwee: I agree with all of that, Caroline. Perhaps it would have been better if his parents had not gone to the exhibition. Asher couldn't have thought any good would come of that.

74Caroline_McElwee
Jan 25, 2019, 5:43 pm

I hope you go on to The Gift of Asher Lev sometime Linda.

I'm just about going to get The Chosen in before month's end I think. Unheard of for me to read three books by the Challenge author in one month. I'm glad I already had the first in the tbr mountain.

75laytonwoman3rd
Jan 25, 2019, 5:53 pm

>74 Caroline_McElwee: Undoubtedly I will read The Gift of Asher Lev, Caroline. I'm quite invested in that young man now.

76Helenoel
Jan 26, 2019, 7:44 pm

I picked up My name is Asher Lev at the library today. May not finish by yhe end of the month, but expect to start.

77fuzzi
Jan 27, 2019, 1:03 pm

>43 jessibud2: I finished Old Men at Midnight, but I liked the first and second novellas the best:


Old Men at Midnight by Chaim Potok

I've read other works by this author, loving the characters surrounded by an authenticity that settled deep, putting me in the stories. In the three novellas contained within the covers of Old Men at Midnight I found myself, again, within the stories, immersed to the exclusion of outside distractions...but I had a hard time finding something to like about the people within his tales. Four stars for execution, three stars for likability.

78laytonwoman3rd
Jan 27, 2019, 3:26 pm

For those who are ready to move ahead, the Louisa May Alcott thread is up.

No need to stop reading and commenting on Potok, however. This one aint' goin' anywhere.

79klobrien2
Jan 28, 2019, 8:15 pm

I caught the movie version of "The Chosen" this afternoon (on DVD, only a little difficult to track down). Excellent cast, very nice "translation" of Potok's book. I hadn't seen it since I was in my 20s? a loooonnngg time ago! I would recommend it if you haven't seen it, or if it's been a while.

Karen O.

80nittnut
Jan 29, 2019, 9:07 am

I finished The Chosen and loved it. The baseball game is an incredible opener. I probably won't get through Old Men at Midnight this month, but I will keep it around a couple more weeks. My reading time has been extremely limited the last few months.

81jnwelch
Jan 29, 2019, 1:20 pm

I'm about halfway through The Promise, the continuing story of Reuven and Danny, and it's plenty good, but not, so far, at the level of The Chosen. I'm hoping there's a little more dazzle in the second half.

82laytonwoman3rd
Jan 29, 2019, 3:00 pm

>79 klobrien2: I still can't decide whether I've ever seen the movie.
>80 nittnut: No real deadlines here, Jenn. The challenge has been met if you've brought an author up from the obscure depths of your TBR stacks!
>81 jnwelch: That's how I remember it from when I read it way back, Joe. I don't think it ever rose to the level of The Chosen for me, but that's often the case with sequels.

83Caroline_McElwee
Jan 29, 2019, 5:14 pm

The sequel to My Name is Asher Lev came pretty close I have to say.

84Helenoel
Jan 30, 2019, 10:08 am

I finished My Name is Asher Lev last night- Very grateful for this challenge/thread or i would not have picked it up. So many good books in the world!
Will wait awhie, but plan to look for the sequel.

85laytonwoman3rd
Jan 30, 2019, 10:18 am

>77 fuzzi: " characters surrounded by an authenticity that settled deep" I really like that. It's the best reading there is, when the author takes you right out of your current environment and makes the fictional world more real than the chair you're sitting in.

>84 Helenoel: I'm grateful that so many readers seem to have had a good experience with Potok this month, whether they were meeting him for the first time or getting reacquainted.

86jnwelch
Jan 30, 2019, 12:12 pm

Yay! I finished The Promise in January! The second half was much more involving for me, and it ended up being a good read, even if it falls short of the exceptional The Chosen. I continue to find the contrast between Hasidic Jews, Orthodox Jews, and more progressive Jews fascinating, and Potok is so good at steeping us in the conflicts. Here's a quote from Reuven being among Hasidim that I liked a lot:

"It was strange enough being on those streets during the week. But on Shabbat, when I could feel them making the very air tremulous with exultation, when I could see them in their respective garbs, most of them in fur-trimmed caps, some in dark suits, some in white knickers, all of them walking quickly, sometimes in groups, sometimes alone, sometimes the father accompanied by a troop of male children - on Shabbat it was particularly strange, and I felt myself to be an uncomfortable outsider who had somehow been transported to a world I once thought had only existed in the small towns of Eastern Europe or in books about Jewish history. They were my own people, but we were as far apart from one another as we could possibly be and still call ourselves by the name 'Jew' - and I never felt as distant from them as I felt that evening walking along Lee Avenue with my father to the synagogue where we prayed."

87Donna828
Jan 31, 2019, 10:56 am

Linda, it looks like your first month of the AAC was a big hit! I really enjoyed my reread of The Chosen. In fact, I liked it so much that I jumped right into The Promise. Like Joe said, it wasn't quite as good as its predecessor but a very good read nonetheless.

88laytonwoman3rd
Jan 31, 2019, 11:57 am

>87 Donna828: Thank you, Donna. I confess I did have qualms about no one showing up at all!

89Caroline_McElwee
Feb 1, 2019, 5:33 pm

The Chosen (Chaim Potok) (01/02/19) ****1/2



Another fine read from Chaim Potok. I even survived the first chapter on baseball, which for someone who has absolutely no interest in sport is an achievement!

What I love in his books is there is a wealth of information about Jewish culture, so I'm learning a lot. There is a lot to think about, which I know will draw me back. First reading for me is really just getting involved with his characters.

This novel, first and foremost, is about deep friendship. And I really enjoyed watching this evolve.

This was my third Potok, for January's AAC.

90fuzzi
Feb 1, 2019, 6:42 pm

>89 Caroline_McElwee: very nice review.

91jessibud2
Feb 1, 2019, 8:11 pm

Did anyone watch Jeopardy tonight? There was a question about Potok's book, The Chosen!

92laytonwoman3rd
Feb 1, 2019, 10:07 pm

>91 jessibud2: Yeah! I was pointing at the screen and doing a chair-hop. Actually, it was about My Name is Asher Lev...but the answer and question could have applied to either.

For an interesting corollary read to all these Potok novels, I recommend Pete Hamill's Snow in August, in which an Irish Catholic boy and a Jewish rabbi become unlikely friends.

93jessibud2
Feb 2, 2019, 7:52 am

>92 laytonwoman3rd: - You know, as I was writing my post last night, I suddenly blanked on which Potok story is was, thanks for correcting that. And yes, I read that Hamill a few years ago and thought of Potok when reading it. I am not a fan of magical realism and that bit of the Hamill didn't sit well with me but overall, I did love the story.

94laytonwoman3rd
Feb 2, 2019, 8:09 am

>93 jessibud2: Hamill has a tendency to that magical realism...and he usually gets you very wrapped up in the realism before he hits you with the magic. That can make it harder to accept, especially if you don't know it's coming. Usually I prefer to know going in if I'm going to encounter other-worldliness. But I have loved everything I've read by him.