The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays

Plot

The diverse, nondelineated material in this book precludes its easy use as a handbook, distinguishing it from such works as Leo Trepp's traditional Complete Book of Jewish Observance ( LJ 10/15/86) or Arthur Waskow's innovative Seasons of Our Joy (Summit Bks., 1986) . The chapters on each major and minor holiday are crammed with facts, anecdotes, and personal reflections; the Hassidic and Kabbalistic tales contain moral messages that reinforce Greenberg's perspective. Indeed, Greenberg appears to use the holidays as a vehicle for expressing his own philosophy of Judaism. There are meaningful interpretations, but they can best be appreciated by readers with a basic understanding of Jewish principles. Carol R. Glatt, Northeastern Hosp . of Philadelphia