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The second of a three volume cultural history that details the journey of the Jewish people from 1492 through the end of the nineteenth century, incorporating the stories of many who seldom figure in Jewish histories. Through Schama's passionate and intelligent telling, a story emerges of the Jewish people that feels as if it is the story of everyone, of humanity packed with detail. -- Adapted from book jacket. "Simon Schama's great project continues and the Jewish story is woven into the fabric of humanity. Their search for a home where a distinctive religion and culture could be nourished without being marginalized suddenly takes on startling resonance in our own epoch of homelessness, wanderings, persecutions, and anxious arrivals. Volume 2 of The Story of the Jews epic tells the stories of many who seldom figure in Jewish histories: not just the rabbis and the philosophers but a poetess in the ghetto of Venice; a general in Ming China; a boxer in Georgian England, a Bible showman in Amsterdam; a teacher of the deaf in eighteenth-century France, an opera composer in nineteenth-century Germany. The story unfolds in Kerala and Mantua, the starlit hills of Galilee, the rivers of Colombia, the kitchens of Istanbul, the taverns of Ukraine and the mining camps of California. It sails in caravels, rides the stagecoaches and the railways, trudges the dawn streets of London with a pack load of old clothes, hobbles along with the remnant of Napoleon's ruined army. Through Schama's passionate and intelligent telling, a story emerges of the Jewish people that feels as if it is the story of everyone, of humanity packed with detail, this second chronicle in an epic tale will shed new light on a crucial period of history." -- Provided by publisher… (more)
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Schama narrates the first chapter of the Audible version. His nuance and enthusiasm is infectious and convincing. Pity he then hands the baton to another, who is OK, but lacks the heart. This is a personal story as much as a history book. A competent third party doesn't do it justice.
The story that Schama tells is as epic in scope as it is global. We travel with him all around Europe, into the cold of Russia, across the Atlantic to the New World of America and venture into the privileged upper-class world of the English aristocracy. He tells of those that lost children as they were conscripted into the army, those that found peace before the winds of change in Europe blew through once again, those that suffered for their faith and those that fought back. Even though this is a sweeping history of a people, he concentrates on individuals and specific events to explain the wider history the Jews.
This is a huge book, at around 800 odd pages long and Schama goes into huge amounts of detail as he tells his stories of the Jewish people. Some of it is fascinating, but there were times when I felt like I was wading through it as he expanded on the minutia as the events unfolded. It is one that I feel some sort of accomplishment having read it now.
Finally, a bit about the style: this is not a straight chronological narrative, but is more of a literary effort. The style is dense with unfamiliar Hebrew terms, names of persons and locations, and allusions to Biblical and classical sources. As such, it appears to presume a basic familiarity with these, perhaps not unreasonable among Westerners, but a bit of an obstacle to the average reader from other parts of the world. It is also a massive work, with perhaps more details than can be absorbed at a first reading. Much of the time, the average reader may not be very clear what the author is saying or implying. However, all this does not detract from the significance and weightiness of this book, which should probably be read by anyone willing to try and understand the world today.