if you have read the Old Testament of the Bible you have read this book. Nice retelling. Or nice original tellilng - depending on your religious views and cultural background. ( )

Jews--History.

Have officially given up on this book, after reading over 100 pages. I loved Potok's novels, and I was hoping that his history of the Jews would hold my interest as well as his Jewish fictions--but alas. His writing is middling: he does not write with the authority of an expert (which he admittedly is not), but still attempts to cover as much ground as he can (the book is huge, given the subject matter). Potok's novelistic tendencies betray him here, leading to him speculate rather unhelpfully about the thoughts and desires of his ancestors.

Perhaps his material on the Middle Ages and modern Jews would make for a better read, but I don't think I'll ever find out. ( )