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Title: Wandering Stars: An Anthology of Jewish Fantasy and Science Fiction by Jack Dann ISBN: 1-58023-005-9 Publisher: Jewish Lights Publishing Pub. Date: 01 April, 1998 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 5 (6 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Great to see this classic collection back in print!
Comment: This book, first published in 1974, was billed as "the first time in a science fiction collection that the Jew -- and the richness of his themes and particular points of view -- will appear without a mask." Mask? What mask? The mask of non-Jewish pennames, for one thing. Did you know that "Clyde Crane Campbell" is really Horace L. Gold? Or that William Tenn is Phillip Klass? Heck, even "Jack Dann" doesn't sound very Jewish. As Isaac Asimov points out in his intro to this book, many Jewish F&SF writers of the pulp era used gentile-sounding pennames to get published, because antisemitism kept people with names like "Chaim Ishkowitz" out of print. Asimov was the first Jewish SF writer to use his own ethnic-sounding name because, as he explains in the introduction, "I didn't know any better." (Asimov's intro, entitled "Why Me?", is a real gem -- be sure to read it!)
Jews also come out of the closet in the stories themselves. In most F&SF of the time (and even today) you rarely see an openly Jewish character or theme. Here in "Wandering Stars," we meet futuristic rabbis, Hasidim, dybbuks, golems and more. Some of the stories are humorous, others are spine-chilling. "Gather Blue Roses" falls into the second category: Imagine a highly-developed empath trapped in a Nazi concentration camp... Then there's "Trouble with Water," which is more of a fantasy, as is the I.B. Singer classic, "Yachid and Yachidah." Two of the stories also deal with the theme of gilgul (reincarnation): "The Jewbird" by Bernard Malamud, and "I'm Looking for Kadak" by Harlan Ellison.
One thing which struck me about this collection is how many of the stories assume that Jews will still be persecuted in the distant future. William Tenn's "On Venus have we got a Rabbi" actually uses persecution as the definition of "Jewishness" on a planet of non-humanoids. In "Paradise Last," Jews who score well on standardized achievement tests are "rewarded" with a planet of their own -- and thereby removed from mainstream society. These are good stories, but I would like to think that there could be a better future-vision for my people. Still, this anthology was ground-breaking in its time, and remains a good read today.
Rating: 5
Summary: An Easy Read, Repeatedly
Comment: The stories here address Jewish themes, but they also address more universally human themes. The best science fiction is as much about the characters and their motives as about technology. The truly sublime stuff gives us an insight into how technology affects the character's motives.
The stories in this book range from the merely great to the truly sublime. Most are humorous and these tend to be the most memorable. This book has quickly become an old friend I pick up when I don't have the energy to read a new book.
Rating: 5
Summary: Memorable!
Comment: I read this book in its first release over twenty years ago. I lent my book out to many of my friends and eventually lost track of it. I just had to have another copy so I bought it once again. "Unto the Fourth Generation" was my introduction to Isaac Asimov and led to my love of his writing over the years. "Look, You Think You've Got Troubles" by Carol Carr is a humorous look at futuristic bigotry ... I think of it as a jewish Archie Bunker in space. All of these short stories are excellent and I look forward to re-reading each and every one of them..
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Title: More Wandering Stars: An Anthology of Outstanding Stories of Jewish Fantasy and Science Fiction by Jack Dann ISBN: 1580230636 Publisher: Jewish Lights Publishing Pub. Date: 08 November, 1999 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Mystery Midrash: An Anthology of Jewish Mystery & Detective Fiction by Lawrence W. Raphael ISBN: 1580230555 Publisher: Jewish Lights Publishing Pub. Date: 01 August, 1999 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Criminal Kabbalah: An Intriguing Anthology of Jewish Mystery & Detective Fiction by Lawrence W. Raphael ISBN: 1580231098 Publisher: Jewish Lights Publishing Pub. Date: 01 April, 2001 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Seven Blessings: A Novel by Ruchama King ISBN: 0312309155 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 01 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
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Title: Lost Tribe: Jewish Fiction from the Edge by Paul Zakrzewski ISBN: 0060533463 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 05 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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