5 comments about The Hidden Pope: The Untold Story of a Lifelong Friendship That Is Changing the Relationship Between Catholics and Jews: The Personal Journey of John Paul II and Jerzy Kluger.

1. This is a fabulous book. I am neither Catholic nor Jewish, but I was fascinated by the depth of the man we all call Pope. I had no idea of his personal journey, and the breadth of his goodness. Too many times, we don't look beyond the title and the robes. This is truly a saintly man.



2. I am an Irish Catholic that married a Jewish girl with roots in Poland, so this book took on special meaning for me. I was very proud of our pontiff for making extraordinary strides in Catholic-Jewish relations. His message still hasn't made it down to all levels of the church, but I hope that it will. Many Catholics still feel that Jews are doomed and must be converted/baptized in order to be saved, but the Pope clearly states that this is WRONG. We are all sons of Abraham, and the Jews are our older brothers.
   
   I would like to write to Jurek Kluger and tell him so. If anyone knows his address or email, please forward it to me. Thank you!!



3. I bought this book a few years ago. The recent death of Pope John Paul II inspired me to take it off the bookshelf and start reading one night. If you are a gentile and think you know the meaning and impact of anti-semitism, think again and read this book. This is the history of 20th century Europe told through the lives and experiences of Lolek and Jerzy, two precocious small town Polish friends whose friendship helped change the course Catholic-Jewish relations after twenty centuries of misunderstanding and mistrust. It was providential that both ended up residing in Rome and worked together to change the perceptions of many people who have adopted anti-semetic attitudes based upon false assumptions and lies. Through their eyes see the horrors of Nazism and Communism as their friends and families are slaughtered by these inhumane political systems. By the end of the book you will feel like you know these two men (Pope John Paul II and Jerzey Kluger) as very very special human beings. It may be profane but they remind me of Pat O'Brien and James Cagney combination in the movie, "Angels with Dirty Faces." One, the saintly but very world wise priest and the other, a wise cracking but trouble prone friend. These two men teach us that at a personal level Jews and Christians are cousins in faith and these ancient misunderstandings should be resolved once and forever. The Hidden Pope would make a wonderful movie about two mensches for the ages!



4. This book was so touching that I beg both Catholics and Jews to read it and meditate on the message. I laughed and cried. It is a great book.



5. I got this book from a family member, and wasn't quite sure if it was something good or bad, mainly due to the title, "The Hidden Pope". It kind of has a bad connotation to it, as if there's some dark secret. "A Personal Journey" might have been better as the title rather than the sub title. -2 points for a bad title that could send a conflicting message.

5 comments about Entebbe: A Defining Moment in the War on Terrorism--The Jonathan Netanyahu Story.

1. Yoni Netanyahu courage at this time, his ability to plan, and lead this rescue has become legendary. The fact that the rescue was carried out without the "unit commander" is a testamony of his great ability. All of Israel knows and the Netanyahu family knows, even more so, what Israel lost when Yoni died. Even though I knew the outcome of the book (as it happened 30 years ago) I cried, and cried and cried when the book stated he died. And I was reading it on July 4th, the 30th anniversary of his death. This book also takes you into the mind set of Israel and why some things have been done. I now see Israel in a new light. Thank you Iddo, for writing this book about your beloved brother.



2. If there is one book that everyone needs to read about the so called War on Terror, this is it.
   
   A superbly written account of the last few days in the life of Lt. Colonel Jonathan Netanyahu, the late commander and architect of the famous Operation Entebbe, now also called Operation Jonathan in his honor.
   
   Although several written and video accounts are available of this operation, this is by far the best. Operation Entebbe, was the hastily planned and executed rescue operation of about 100 Israeli hostages, held by Palestinian terrorists at the old airport terminal in the east African nation of Uganda's town of Entebbe. For those not familiar with it,
   suffice it to say that it was probably the boldest, most audacious, best executed, most dangerous, and most successful rescue operation ever carried out.
   
   Iddo Netanyahu is in a unique position to give to best accounting possible of the details of the operation. Youngest of the three Netanyahu brothers, Jonathan (Yoni), Benjamin,and himself, the latter had access to public and private interviews with other participants in the mission, ranging from its lead pilot, Joshua Shani, to many of Yoni's fellow
   expert commandos and members of the raiding party, to political figures such as then defense ministers, Shimon Peres.
   
   For skeptics, I suggest the begin with the last chapter of the book, only 4 and a half page pages written by the publisher, entitled "Publishers Afterword." I cannot improve on it to explain why this book is so important, and should have the largest possible audience. Aside from the obvious, i.e Yoni being the greatest fighter Israel (or possibly the world) has ever known, this chapter explains that Operation Entebbe defines terrorism - those who are willing to give their lives for the purpose of taking lives,to the absolute opposite, the soldiers engaged in the fight against terrorism, for the purpose of saving lives. Aside from being a fascinating and riveting account of the details of the operation, the larger "lessons learned" are much more important in sustaining us in the current war against those who would destroy the whole Western way of lifeRaid on Entebbealong with it's Judeo-Christian values.
   
   This book is definitely not for Jihadists, Anti-Semites, Israel bashers, or knee jerk anti-war people. I ask that all of these refrain from rating this review.



3. To my deep regret I can't give this nice looking book a good rate. The heroe in question deserves all the credit in the world (and I respect the author -his brother) and his selflessness and dedication to others -to the point of ultimately giving his life to save others- truly merits our love, gratitude and admiration. But this book does not provide the readable qualities one would wish to find in a book of these characteristics. It gets entangled in trivial details, endless and boring talk. I recommend that people interested in knowing the story of the rescue at Entebbe watch the documentary "Against All Odds", with a reenactment of the action.
   
   Here's a sample of the book's style: "To bring in the armored vehicles would require two more Hercules transports, each carrying two armored personnel carriers (APCs). Altogether then, the Unit's operational requirements alone called for three transport planes. If indeed only four Hercules were taken, with one designated for..." you follow me? Do you know what we are talking about? And how many of what? Me neither. And so forth for too many pages. Past half of the book and the actual action hadn't started yet. You understand that I gave up right about that page, don't you?
   
   I honestly would like you to know more about this young Jewish heroe, and me too. And that's why I can't understand how one can make such an interesting story so irritatingly boring. There are whole paragraphs dedicated to insignificant details. Details that don't add anything, believe me, anything at all to the story. And when you think it may start getting close to the point... there you find a flashback to somewhere and sometime not connected to the story. I want to stop.
   
   Here's the summary in one sentence using the author's own words: "They settle together into my mind -not in a jumble but in a line, each memory leading to the next". Yes, in a jumble, yes.



4. Netanyahu alternates between a eulogy for his brother, Jonathan, and a history of the Entebbe rescue.
   
   This book draws heavily upon first person accounts gathered years after the event. As one would expect, due to individual perspectives, there are inconsistencies between the people interviewed. In my mind, this adds to the authenticity of the story.
   
   The fluid nature of a crisis and rescue attempt is vividly portrayed in the many interviews. They were already enroute to the site before the GO order was given and the plan continued to evolve until the moment they landed.
   
   An amazing story that will be told for generations to come.



5. This is a book that on looks is not too inspiring, as the binding leaves a lot to be desired, however, the subject matter is inspiring.
   Written by Iddo Netanyahu, you couldn't get closer to not only the 'unit'comanader Lt Colonel 'Yoni' Johnathan Netanyahu, or the story behind the planning, execution and aftermath of the 1976 raid on Entebbe. The author has been able through military and familial connections been able to draw on the raid form those who were there, and of his own memories of his older brother. I felt that the deviations into Yoni's past was a look into the circumstances that made him the man and professional soldier he was, and is entirely justified, unlike some previous reviewers who have thought otherwise. I would have liked to have seen more photographs, but that small critsim aside, I was enthralled by this book, and throughly recommend it to anyone interseted in not only the Raid on Entebbe, but the spirit and determination of the Isreali people and the IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) in particular. The afterword by the publisher is strongly biased to the U.S. public and experience post 9/11, but the lessons of Entebbe and the Isreali reaction are no less pertinant today as they were in 1976.

5 comments about Most Holy Trinosophia.

1. This book tells us about a symbolic path (a mixture of egyptian and grec symbolism) which is as the same time the travel of an initiate. This book is an enigma at each page but it can give us good esoteric clue if we are ready to receive it. We have to meditate on symbols and their true meaning. On my point of view this book contains highly magic components and it is the reason why it is so hermetic and can't be understood by everybody. Anyway the contents seem to be very deep. But since I am not wise enough to give a correct advice on the interpretation of different symbols given in this book, I suggest that you read this book and decide if it is helpfull or not!



2. This is St. Germain's own words of the mystery of Immortality couched in alchemical terms which he achieved many hundreds of years ago. He was known as the Wonderman of Europe used the philosopher's Stone and alchemically created the elixer of immortality. He is still active in the world today. Read Unveiled Mysteries and The Magic Presence by Godfre Ray King. Comte de St. Germain is one of the greatest men of all time, we will know more about him in the years to come He was instrumental in the founding of America and will establish the golden age within her borders.



3. This treatise is so full of allegorical allusions that I doubt anyone's expertise to fully interpret it and I found the reading for the most part to be disappointing. I think the Godfrey Ray King books are much more interesting and insightful. In some ways it reminded me of an Alice in Wonderland journey. In my opinion, if you are looking for insight, this book will not be that need fulfilling-the Masters of the Far East series might be a better read. The most informative section is Hall's analysis.In short it was not a good read for me.



4. This treatise is too well disguised to trust anyone's interpretation. It reminds me of someone interpreting Alice in Wonderland. I think there many better spiritual resources. For this reader, the book proved to be a disappointment.



5. This book is totally not what I was expecting. Saint-Germain uses very deep and real symbols and correspondences to communicate that which can only be communicated through this means, and only with great care and understanding. To those who overlook this, as a previous reviewer who seemed to think that "spiritual works" should be more simplistic and literal, the only possibility is that they must be missing out on a lot. Even though this book is very short, it must be very carefully analyzed. A good working knowledge of Astrology, Alchemy, Kabbalah, Neoplatonism and Hermetica is recommended. Manly P. Hall's introductory writings are also really a fascinating read, and while I am open to even the most extreme possibilities, from experience I tend to take some of his information with a grain of salt and would like to see some evidence to back them up. I think this text may also shed some light on the development of the various rites of Egyptian Freemasonry.

No comments about Some Dare to Dream: Frieda Frome's Escape from Lithuania.

No comments about The Righteous Among the Nations: Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust.

5 comments about Memories of Survival.

1. I picked up this book at the school where I teach on the advice of our librarian and I am so very glad I did! The stories woven in the embroidered panels speak volumes about what Esther Nisenthal and her family endured during the horror of the Holocaust. Her use of color is astonishing, and the fact that she actually embroidered the words to her story onto the cloths just makes the whole experience seem so much more real and personal. This book is a moving tribute to all who perished and survived this evil time. This is an amazing book. Highly, highly recommended.



2. In this outstanding book are displayed thirty-six embroidered pictures that the author began at the age of fifty, to illustrate the stories of her childhood in Poland and her survival during the Holocaust. When she died at the age of seventy-four, she wasn't finished, but she left this remarkable book. Her daughter Bernice used her mother's comments to write the text. It is amazing how much Esther remembered, which is evidenced in the intricate details and vibrant colors of the needlework. Each full-page picture is framed in a different color, with Esther's comments under it and the text on the opposite page. The deceptively simple pictures have the look of folk art in contrast to a grimly realistic story. At the end, there is a poignant page titled "To Germany," where Esther has joined the Polish Army in March 1945 and she shows us in it what she remembers so many years later: seeing Nazi officers hanging from every tree as they passed along the road of an earlier battle with the Russians on their way to Berlin. The last frame shows Esther landing at Ellis Island, viewing the Statue of Liberty. She was very excited, because she felt that this meant she would never again be persecuted for being Jewish. Her daughter Bernice calls this a memorial to her mother's family, because of them all, only Esther and a sister survived the war. Esther's daughters Bernice and her sister have founded a nonprofit educational organization called Art and Remembrance, which is dedicated to using the power of story and art to illuminate the effects of war, intolerance, and social injustice. This book is highly recommended for all collections, as Esther's story brings these terrible times alive in a way that adds a different dimension to children's understanding of the Holocaust. For ages 12 - adult.
   Reviewed by Andrea Davidson



3. I saw the panels on which this book is based at the Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore and wished at the time that there was a book. When it came out I made a special effort to get it. Esther Krinitz spent years creating these works of art to illustrate the story of her experience, and the combination of her drive to communicate with her obvious enjoyment of creating surely makes hers a uniquely life-affirming voice recounting the terrible tragedy faced by her family and beyond them, her people, her country, and all humankind. For young people, the details are both strange and familiar, commonplace and unthinkable. They will relate to the young woman's independent streak as well as her affection for her family and grief at losing almost all of them. I look forward to sharing it with the young people in my life.



4. This book is a testament to art as an expression of pain and redemption.
   It is original and beautifully executed.



5. powerful book as well as the added gift of fiber art that the writer used to illustrate her experiences

3 comments about An Autobiography.

1. This is an amazing book and I am surprised it is not better known. It tells about the life of a Polish Jew who escaped from what he considered the stifling atmosphere of Polish Hasidic life and went to Germany to become part of the German Enlightenment. He translated Kant into Yiddish for the edification of his compatriots back home. The scenes depicting Maimon's marriage at the age of 12 and of Jewish life in eighteenth century Poland are very memorable. Someone told me recently that this book might not actually have been written by Maimon at all but by the "editor," the German writer Karl Philip Moritz, who apparently had a similar life. Perhaps that is why the book has not been reprinted.



2. This autobiography seems to me more important as a historical document than as a work of art. Maimon despite his great intellect and his courage in going where his mind led him does not seem to me to speak of himself or his life with great psychological depth or insight. I too think that he did not understand truly the nature of the Hasidic movement he criticized harshly. Still this is an important work as a document which gives insight into the Jewish world of his time.



3. Solomon Maimon is known in the history of German Idealism as the person to whom Kant himself attributed the deeper understanding and penetration of the main problems of his Critique of Pure Reason. Moreover Maimon's internal criticism of Transcendental Idealism and his proposed solution to its major, according to him, problem paved the way for the theories of the post Kantian Idealists. So he was one of the thinkers who helped the thansformation of 'critical' to 'dogmatic' idealism. Now this may seem to many a step backward but this is another story.
   In this small book just a few pages are devoted to Kant's reception of his manuscrispts. What we have instead is a concise, well written with brevity, wit and humor recounting of the memorable events of his extraordinary life. The form of the narrative is similar to that of a bildungsroman. He tells how he left the confines of his backward, isolated and ridden with prejudices small hometown in Polish Lithouania in search of knowledge.
   Maimon was a man of exceptional intelligence and that was obvious not only to himself but also to his countrymen whose high esteem he commanded from a young age due to his excelence in the talmoudic studies. Yet he grew sceptical towards the latter and set out to seek rational and scientific enlightenment in Germany. In this endeavour he even managed because of his destitution to follow a beggar for six whole months, "two such heterogeneous persons were nowhere to be met in the world, I was an educated rabbi, he was an idiot".
   His story from successes to misfortunes hovers from the hillarious to the tragic and reveals a personality of a genius whose naivety in social relationships and incistence never to pursue anything but knowledge kept him in almost constant destitution.
   It is enjoyable reading and also contains much information about the jewish intellectual world in 18th century Europe.

5 comments about Leap into Darkness: Seven Years on the Run in Wartime Europe.

1. I just finished this book, I coulnt beleive the outcome of it.It was so shocking to hear all of this. I couldn't put it down. Im very interested in the Holocaust, even though im not a surviver, but it is so interesting on how people were back in WWII, it amazes me that people had to go through all of this..I would diffently reccommend this. Thanks to Leo and Michael, to share such a tragic story and a big and unhumian peice of your life, a peice of history..Best Wishes



2. I've read several books about the holocaust,whether their authors were survivors of the death camps, survivors on the run, or even non-Jews who helped others survive by hiding them. This book was an incredible story. His escapes were brave and amazing. I'm always looking for more stories such as this, it is amazing to me, there are so many stories, I want to know them all. If you have any other recommendations, e-mail me at Stacy1212@aol.com. Great book, must read.



3. The part that most struck me was when he wrote "Before the war would end, little Austria would supply nearly half of the staff of all Nazi concentration camps and death camps." and the story he tells of being a boy in Vienna in March 1938 "when Hitler entered the city and found a quarter of a million people rapturously cheering him". He says his cousin Sonja still lives in Vienna "where the citizens now call themselves victims....hoping to keep their secret from the rest of the world". Hitler was an Austrian and so was the head of the Gestapo Kaltenbrunner and many many other Nazi's.



4. Well, the writer is my Grandpa. I am 10 years old so I read it early. My mom helped me out a lot. But thats not exactly a bad thing! Everytime I came to a word I didn't know she would tell me. My mom really could help because my mom was even the one who read it and edited it so she was one of the first, and that really helped because she knew the whole story. I first thought it wasn't such a bad tradgedy of what he did, but after I accually read it, I really changed my mind! If you have not read it, you really got to. Even if you are ten like me, try and you will really like it! Expeccially read it if you like biographies and autobiographies, cause this is an autobiography! Even if you don't like non-fiction, read it anyway! This is so cool that it sounds impossible, and im it sounds impossible it's as fiction as any other book!



5. an incredible story about the human spirit and the will to live against all odds.

5 comments about Burnt Bread and Chutney: Growing Up Between Cultures - A Memoir of an Indian Jewish Childhood (Ballantine Reader's Circle).

1. This book was a wonderful read, and introduced me to the overlooked Indian Jews. Her descriptions of living in virtually a dual lifestyle were very vivid and educational to say the least. I look forward to more releases by Carmit Delman.



2. The book itself was very unappealing to me and the text is rather bland. Overall the book was just not as well written as it could have been, sometimes contradicting and overworked. I would not recommend this book. Readers Beware.



3. horrible, self-involved memoir, supposedly about growing up Indian Jewish American, but really about me me me. Nasty family skeleton I didn't want to know about from grandmother's generation. I didn't finish and threw it out - something I never ever do. I didn't even want to give it to the library.



4. This is a very interesting book! Talk about your culture clash and your family secrets! Like many children of mixed cultural backgrounds, Carmit found it a bit difficult to fit into either. But it was more difficult because she was a minority within a minority, a dark-skinned, South Asian who "didn't look Jewish", and an Indian whose family had a different religion and different traditions from the Hindu majority. As a child, her grandmother makes her promise that she will always return to the Bene Israel, and she does.
   
   Her family history, too, set her apart. Her grandmother was betrothed to a man who turned out to be an alcoholic. This put an end to the engagement, but it also made her grandmother practically unmarriageable. Until her sister's husband offered to take her as his second wife. He treated her and her daughter very differently from the way he behaved towards his first wife, being abusive, forcing her to live in poverty while her sister lived in luxury. The family's condescension towards Nana-bai and her descendents continued into the author's generation.
   
   While I wasn't terribly impressed with the author's writing style (I thought she jumped around a lot, among other things), the book is well worth reading for an understanding of the difficulties of growing up in a multi-cultural household, of being "odd girl out", as well as to learn a little bit about this small, perhaps dying, segment of Judaism. I would, in fact, have liked to have learned more about Bene Israel, its history, how its practices differ from mainstream Judaism, but I guess that would be another book!



5. A very different take on growing up Jewish in the United States. You won't find the usual lox and bagels stories here.

5 comments about Streets: A Memoir of the Lower East Side (The Helen Rose Scheuer Jewish Women's Series).

1. This book was written by a very eloquent author in 1922. At 23years of age, she carefully details her struggles of growing up inpoverty on the lower east side of Manhattan. This is one of a few books that deals with the difficulties faced by immigrants of to New York around the turn of the century. Her battles are those of a poor, Jewish girl growing up without a father in tenement housing. I thouroughly recommend this book to Jews, feminists and historians.



2. This is a coming of age story depicting the harrowing early life of an extraordinary talent. Told with an amazing eye for detail and a highly developed sense of humor, this is one of the most moving autobiographies I have read. Bella Spewack writes of her thirst for knowledge and determination. In later life Bella invented the Girl Scout cookie, became a noted journalist and wrote successful plays and movies. Streets tells of the difficult circumstances of her childhood.



3. Streets: Memoir Of The Lower East Side was written in 1922 and published for the first time in 1955. This remarkable memoir of a young Jewish girl's coming of age in the tenement slums of New York's Lower East Side is gritty, candid, vivid, engaging, sensitive, and streetsmart. Bella Spewack overcame obstacles of gender, background, and religious discriminations to succeed as a celebrated journalist, playwright, and screenwriter. Streets is highly recommended, articulate reading and will prove of special interest to students of American Jewish history, Women's Studies, and biographies reflecting the triumph of the human spirit over social and cultural barriers.



4. this is my favorite book. if anyone has similar taste to me then i highly recommend them to read it. i was getting so into reading it that i never wanted it to end. to last forever. so i tried to do so by reading a limit of pages each day. i live in NYC and by reading the book i had grown a stronger love for the city and thats another reason i loved the book. the down fall of the book? well, it was and made me sad. it was kinda a depressing book. you now. like a heart-acher.

   it was indeed a pleasure to read and in the future, if you do read it, i hope you injoy.

   thats my review! i hope i helped!




5. this is my favorite book. if anyone has similar taste to me then i highly recommend them to read it.

   i'm going to describe it as a story of a girl growing into a women on the streets of the lower east side of manhattan. she tells of different jobs and the boarders that her and her mother board to help pay the rent. its very hard for me to describe becuase of 2 reasons 1) you can't describe it you have to read it 2)i read it a year ago.

   i was getting so into reading it that i never wanted it to end. to last forever. so i tried to do so by reading a limit of pages each day. i live in NYC and by reading the book i had grown a stronger love for the city and thats another reason i loved the book. i also loved the stories she has of her childhood. the down fall of the book? well, it was and made me sad. it was kinda a depressing book. you now. like a heart-acher.

   it was indeed a pleasure to read and in the future, if you do read it, i hope you enjoy.

   thats my review! i hope i helped!