The Last Jew

Beautiful writing, clear and clean. Gordon takes you into Medieval Spain with a believable story and terrific character development. The story is sad yet triumphant. Looking forward to exploring more of Gordon's works.

It was supposed to be a heart wrenching story of a jewish youth who lost his entire family and friends to the Expulsion of Jews from Spain. Or maybe it should have been a detective story, a theft and murder perpetrated by a cleric and the truth is discovered by the protagonist, and maybe even vengeance delivered. It could have been a self-search story of a Jew stuck alone in Spain, facing discovery by the Inquisition and still choosing to be a devoted Jew.

It is neither.
Though very detailed and full of explanations, the book fails to convey the severity of protagonist's loss, the story of the expelled Jews remains mainly untold and the atrocities of the Inquisition are shown but little.
The deeds, the travels, the decision makings of show more Yonah, the protagonist, are also detailed, ad nauseam. But the descriptions are dry, the motives and the logics are extremely weak. We do not see a character development, but have to believe to the author stating it does so.
Any hopes for a detective story in style of Eco's [b:The Name of the Rose|119073|The Name of the Rose|Umberto Eco|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1415375471l/119073._SY75_.jpg|3138328] are vanquished promptly: the killer is mentioned in the very beginning of the book and even the vengeance doesn't come and the excuse is lousy.
Though the book is fast-pasing and promises a lot of excitement just on the next page, it never delivers. Instead of human drama we get a sugar-coated story of the Expulsion. show less

Gordon's scathing denunciation of prejudice and its effects, couched in a moving narrative. Yonah, a young Jew in 15th century Spain, is forced to flee his home of Toledo after his brother and father, the latter a talented silversmith, are killed in what we'd call a pogrom which followed Ferdinand and Isabella's infamous Order of Expulsion of Jews from Spain. Yes, THOSE monarchs! Yonah, through his life, holds on to his religion and stays one step ahead of the horrible Inquisition. He represents himself as a Christian under an assumed name, Ramón. The novel recounts his flight, his years of manual [and menial] labor as farm hand, seaman, and shepherd. He finally apprentices himself to an armorer. Each time, some incident forces him to show more keep on the move. He finally ends up in Saragossa, and becomes a physician. Can he maintain his integrity and his false identity?

The novel gave me a lot to think about, which might be simplistic--why are men prejudiced in matters of religion? To me it is a matter of one's personal belief--a matter of faith--and should be respected. I got a feeling for the times at which the story took place, through the author's vivid descriptions. The action seemed too fortuitous and on occasion contrived; Yonah would meet just the right person at the right time.

The author's research into the period was thorough--conducted mainly through interviews with and help of people mentioned in the extensive Acknowledgements. The maps of Yonah's journey from Toledo and to Saragossa on the endpapers were invaluable. show less

I have been a big fan of historical fiction ever since reading Gary Jenning's Aztec in high school. At its best, historical fiction is educational allowing the reader to experience an alien culture or different place, or a past epoch. In the case of The Last Jew you experience late 15th and early 16th Century medieval Spain during the Inquisition. The last Jew is Yonah Toledeno who remains true to his religion even after the murder of his brother and father, the expulsion of the remainder of his family and other Jews or their forced conversion. The Last Jew follows Yonah from the beginning of his quixotic (a word derived from that classic Spanish novel, Don Quixote) journey through Spain beginning at age fifteen and follows his life and show more travels up until his marriage and the birth of his son in his mid thirties. It is a tale of horrible cruelty and oppression in the face of an intolerant society. Would that the world had matured in all these centuries into a place more enlightened. Sadly, it has not. The Last Jew is a worthwhile read for those who wish to remain true to themselves in the face of incredible adversity. It is a great and exciting read. show less

[The Last Jew] takes place in the late 1400's in Spain which is under the control of the Inquisition. The protagonist of the story, Helkiah Toledano (Yonah) sees his family murdered as he makes an escape. The book is very rich in detail of the Church, the Inquisition, and the day to day lives of those living at this time. The story is a "good" story and holds ones interest until about 3 chapters from the end where the story hurriedly becomes sappy and predictable, ending like a fairytale

Historical fiction taking place in 1480’s to early 1500’s during the expulsion of the Jews from Spain. Many converted to Catholicism rather than leave, but many who converted (‘conversos’) were later hunted down by the Inquisition, persecuted and burned at the stake. This is the story of Yonah Toledano, teenage son of a master silversmith who is separated from his family during their hasty flight from their home. His father is killed, his younger brother, aunt and uncle flee to who knows where, and Yonah finds himself totally alone, to the point where he feels like the last Jew in Spain. As he wanders from town to town, farm to farm, working manual labor jobs and staying in each place for only a few seasons (occasionally a few show more years until trouble managed to find him again) and eventually apprenticing himself to a physician in Saragossa, pretending outwardly to be Christian but inside still trying to stay true to the memory of his father and remain a Jew, Yonah meets many fascinating people and has many adventures. Absolutely wonderful story, very atmospheric and moving, and with an appropriate ending. show less

Although I know very little about the Inquisition and do not have a strong historical background, I found this book interesting and thought-provoking. This is basically a survival story. Yonah learns to survive physically, mentally, and spiritually against huge odds. At times, I felt he was a bit "over the top" with his ability to adapt so easily and become a master metalsmith and then a physician, but undoubtedly, there are individuals who do succeed in many diverse areas. Yonah was smart and talented. Equally important, his family background provided him with a sense, not of entitlement, but one of obligation to do his best, taking care of himself and those around him. As interesting as he is as a main character, the individuals show more around him are also remarkable in that they are so human and are formed and reformed by the circumstances they find themselves in.
Overall, this is a good read. I would highly recommend it to any lover of historical fiction. show less