Synopses & Reviews
The selective relish with which most American Jews affirm their identity -- consuming kosher delicacies once a year, extravagantly celebrating the bar mitzvahs of their sons and the weddings of their daughters -- has usually given rise to satire or consternation.
The Wonders of America offers an alternative perspective, for this pioneering social history of Jewish culture highlights the cultural ingenuity and adaptive genius of American Jewish life.
Drawing on advertisements, etiquette manuals, sermons, and surveys, Jenna Weissman Joselit constructs a lively and humorous account of how three generations of American Jews created their distinctive American culture. This provocative, enlightening study describes the forging of a rich and exuberant modern Jewish identity and makes it clear that it is not the theoretical debates of rabbis and scholars but the small choices of daily life that shape and sustain a culture
Jenna Weissman Joselit is a visiting professor of American studies at Princeton University and the author of several acclaimed books, including A Perfect Fit. She lives in New York City.
Winner of the National Jewish Book Award in History
This pioneering social history of Jewish culture highlights the ingenuity and adaptive genius of American Jewish life. Drawing on advertisements, etiquette manuals, sermons, and surveys, Jenna Weissman Joselit gives us a lively and humorous account of how three generations of American Jews created their distinctive American culturehow they raised their children, decorated their homes, shopped and cooked, celebrated holidays, and marked birth and death as they became at home in America. This provocative, enlightening study describes the forging of a rich and exuberant modern Jewish identity and makes it clear that it is not the theoretical debates of rabbis and scholars, but the small choices of daily life that shape and sustain a culture.
"A fine, original work of social history . . . felicitously written, filled with entertaining and often hilarious details."Phillip Lopate, The New York Times Book Review
"A fine, original work of social history . . . felicitously written, filled with entertaining and often hilarious details."Phillip Lopate, The New York Times Book Review
"A treasure trove of wondrous, forgotten lore, this vibrant social history explores how three generations of American Jews improvised on tradition to fashion a singular culture that redefined Jewish identity."Publishers Weekly
"Joselit has written a book of modern Jewish history like we've never read before . . . a fascinating and informative book."The Eccentric (Detroit)
"A sophisticated, tightly written and engaging account . . . enhanced by the author's scholarly and often witty interpretations."Humanistic Judaism
"Each page sparkles with wit and insight . . . Reading not only the documents of the period, but also clothing, furniture, toys, flowers, and food, this imaginative historian finds in the details of daily life a wellspring of cultural creativity."Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett
Review
"an original work of American Jewish social history . . . felicitously written, filled with entertaining and often hilarious details"
--Philip Lopate, The New York Times Book Review
". . . sparkles with wit and insight . . . this imaginative historian finds in the details of daily life a wellspring of cultural creativity."
--Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett
"Unforgettable."
--Laura Shapiro, The New York Times
Synopsis
The selective relish with which most American Jews affirm their identity -- consuming kosher delicacies once a year, extravagantly celebrating the bar mitzvahs of their sons and the weddings of their daughters -- has usually given rise to satire or consternation.
The Wonders of America offers an alternative perspective, for this pioneering social history of Jewish culture highlights the cultural ingenuity and adaptive genius of American Jewish life.
Drawing on advertisements, etiquette manuals, sermons, and surveys, Jenna Weissman Joselit constructs a lively and humorous account of how three generations of American Jews created their distinctive American culture. This provocative, enlightening study describes the forging of a rich and exuberant modern Jewish identity and makes it clear that it is not the theoretical debates of rabbis and scholars but the small choices of daily life that shape and sustain a culture
About the Author
Jenna Weissman Joselit is a visiting professor of American studies at Princeton University and the author of several acclaimed books, including
A Perfect Fit. She lives in New York City.