Sheldon Harnick (1924–2023)

Tevye, a milkman with a quintet of daughters to marry off and no money for dowries or much of anything else, maintains his equilibrium by adhering to the traditions he knows, respects, and counts on. Increasingly he finds them undermined to the point of collapse by the intrusion of modern ideas and political upheaval. “Every one of us,” says Tevye, “is a fiddler on the roof, trying to scratch out a pleasant, simple tune without breaking his neck” (p. 13) as his position grows ever show more more precarious.

Aficionados of the twentieth-century American musical theater are well acquainted with Tevye’s travails, as chronicled in the highly acclaimed Fiddler on the Roof, with book by Joseph Stein, music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. On the fiftieth anniversary of the play’s Broadway premiere, Crown Publishers, a division of Random House (noted for decades for its hardcover editions of Broadway plays), has reissued the book of this beloved musical. All of the dialogue and the lyrics of the charming songs are here, though not the score.

Reading the libretto, as opposed to watching the movie or a stage production, facilitates contemplating the timelessness of the story. In every era, the new pushes aside the old, and circumstances beyond one’s control change one’s life. The conclusion of the play, when Tevye and the other residents of his village are scattered by a pogrom, not knowing whether they will ever see loved ones again, recalls the dispersal of U.S. Gulf Coast residents as a result of Hurricane Katrina.

Those who enjoy viewing the movie or play will find that reading Fiddler of the Roof adds a new dimension to their appreciation of it. Newcomers to Tevye’s story will find a well-constructed, seemingly simple but deeply wise story of love, loss, and life. show less

Reading this made me want to watch the movie so bad! This book is the complete script for the original musical, it's awesome. I found myself humming along to the songs while I was reading. Reading the script made me appreciate how brilliant this musical really is. It's timely and continues to speak to people. The human drama and raw emotion shown in the dialogue and songs are still prevalent today nearly fifty years after it debuted on Broadway. Full of historical drama, Jewish identity, show more tradition, and love this tale will continue to last for many decades more.

For fans of the original musical, American theater, and Jewish history.

I received this book for free from Blogging for Books in return for my honest, unbiased opinion. show less

I received Fiddler on the Roof through the LibraryThing Early Reviewer program.

This is the complete libretto of the famous musical, together with the lyrics of the hilarious and heartbreaking songs. It is not a volume of sheet music -- just the beautiful story of Tevye, the traditions he agrees to sacrifice for love of his daughters, and the one compromise he is unable to accept.

This is a truly great work, saturated with dark humor and with love. I hope, since I've made that point, it is show more also OK for me to mention how much I enjoyed reading, in black and white,

TEVYE:
If I were a rich man
Daidle deedle daidle
Digguh digguh deedle daidle dum,
All day long I'd biddy biddy bum,
If I were a wealthy man.

Wouldn't have to work hard,
Daidle deedle daidle
Digguh digguh deedle daidle dum,
If I were a biddy biddy rich
Digguh digguh deedle daidle man. (p. 27)

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Joseph Stein’s Fiddler on the Roof is one of the longest-running Broadway musicals (winning a Special Tony Award for this in 1972), won 9 Tony Awards in 1965, and has seen numerous revivals over the years. Sadly, I have not seen the play on the stage and so my review can only address this fiftieth anniversary edition. The story follows Tevye, a dairyman, and his wife as three of their five daughters get married against the backdrop of Tsarist Russia in 1905. The titular Fiddler on the Roof show more is explained in the prologue to Act One to represent the uneven balance of a life without tradition. As the story progresses, Teyve’s three eldest daughters each marry for love rather than accept a marriage arranged through a matchmaker and agreed upon by their father and potential husband. One of the daughters even marries a Russian man outside of the Jewish faith. The village elders are at first frightened by this flaunting of tradition, but begin to see that the world is changing. Through his use of humor and wit, Stein tells a story that could take place in nearly any traditional community. The fiftieth anniversary edition of the book is quite lovely, though such an auspicious edition could benefit from the inclusion of more history about the play itself. Additionally, though the book includes the lyrics to the play’s classic musical numbers, they lose much of their zest when represented in print. Still, the book is a nice copy that any fan of the show would like. show less