Deborah Dash Moore

This definitive history of Jews in New York paints a colorful history of how they transformed the city. Spanning three centuries, the authors trace the earliest arrival of Jews in New Amsterdam to the 2015 immigration of Jews from the Soviet Union. Jewish New York describes Jews’ many positive influences on New York. They built the clothing industry, and helped to make the city the center of the nation’s publishing industry. They helped shape popular culture in music, theater, and the arts. With their strong sense of social justice, a dedication to civil rights and civil liberties, and a belief in the duty of government to provide social welfare, they influenced the city, state, and nation with a new wave of social activism. The book not only describes the Jews’ many positive influences on New York but also exposes the group’s struggles with poverty and anti-Semitism. This fascinating study explores the streets, synagogues, politics, and organizations of New York Jews as well as its diverse cultural expressions. The appended visual essay is an added bonus… (more)

I found this book hard to follow. The writing was turgid, repetitious, and over-qualified. I'm actually not sue what it says. The 2nd generation is the people who came of age in the 1910's & 1920's, and she writes about the new neighborhoods that they settled into & about American Jewish institutions. This is the 2nd book I've read by this author & I think she is making a career out of writing about a certain section of the population but that there really isn't enough content to justify whole books.… (more)