There are two major problems with this scenario: - See Problem 1. The brothers were separated by a rather large distance. Life was local. I was also disappointed with the place that Yonah's Judaism took in his life. For a book named "The Last Jew," you expect him to be a bit more Jewish or at least introspectively so.
Instead, Yonah has good fortune wherever he goes and he generally fails to thank God for keeping an eye on him. The story is utterly predictable in its plod forward. All in all, the book is pretty boring and completely implausible.
I'm rather afraid to re-read Gordon's other novels for fear that they're similar. View 1 comment. Apr 02, Lauren rated it it was amazing. This is one of the best books I've read in a while. The setting is fascinating and terrifying - the Spanish inquisition. While the inquisition is a continual backdrop - especially the first half of the book - the book is not really about the horrors of the inquisition in the blood and gore sense. Yes, there are some passages about the brutality, but this book is at its core a deep character study.
The Last Jew is about Yonah Toledano, a man who by circumstances ends up orphaned at the time of th This is one of the best books I've read in a while. The Last Jew is about Yonah Toledano, a man who by circumstances ends up orphaned at the time of the expulsion. It is too late for him to leave Spain and he does not want to convert to Catholicism he is offered the opportunity to stay in Toledo and become the adoptive son of his father's friend, an "Old Christian".
Instead, he leaves Toledo alone with a burro and meanders across Spain, terrified of being discovered but steadfastly opposed to converting to Catholicism.
He finds himself in various cities, tries out several professions and meets some interesting people along the way. He uses adopted names, eventually settling on Ramon Callico. There is the constant fear of being turned in and he gradually learns to act outwardly as a Catholic.
He tries to keep up with Jewish tradition, but as time comes, he remembers less and less. He struggles to remember, but there is no one to remember with him. Eventually, Yonah finds his way to Saragossa and becomes a physician. At the end of the novel, Yonah has changed - he realizes that for better or for worse he must be an outward Catholic and he assumes the identity of an "Old Christian.
He learns to hob-nob with preists and no one suspects that not only is he not an "Old Catholic" - he never even converted to Catholicism! Yonah is a Jew until the end, but ultimately, he adapts.
This books is definitely not "light reading. Nonetheless, I recommend it! View 2 comments. Jul 22, Christine rated it really liked it. The year is and the royal decree has gone out that all Jews in Spain must be out in three months. What follows is understandably chaotic and cruel. But what befalls the Toledano family is especially horrible. The Inquisition looms large throughout the entire story and 15 year old Jonah faces almost insurmountable challenges.
Somehow, trapped in Spain after the expulsion, this lonely Jew makes a life for himself and his story is riveting. View all 3 comments. Aug 23, Jessica rated it liked it. The back cover of this book promised me "a glimpse of history, an authentic tale of high adventure, and a tender and unforgettable love story," about a fugitive learning to fight like a knight, and "hurling snatches of almost forgotten Hebrew at the stars.
I got a so-so historical adventure story. I felt as if the author wanted to remind his readers every so The back cover of this book promised me "a glimpse of history, an authentic tale of high adventure, and a tender and unforgettable love story," about a fugitive learning to fight like a knight, and "hurling snatches of almost forgotten Hebrew at the stars. I felt as if the author wanted to remind his readers every so often that Yonah was attempting to remain Jewish, and did so by mentioning every so often that he said a prayer, or thought about his father.
There was none of the poignancy or the psychological and emotional exploration that I had hoped for, nothing of how being Jewish shaped his responses to situations, his ethics, etc.
There wasn't a great deal of excitement, either. Things just happen, almost perfunctorily, to Yonah, and he seems almost to fall into lucky situations.
One small element that was a big distraction for me was the author's treatment of women. Perhaps he was trying to reflect the mindset of a young man who grew up without a mother or sisters, but the female characters almost exclusively serve as objects of sexual desire. If Yonah isn't interested in them, they're lucky to get more than a sentence.
For example, the only actions the mother of Ines, a young women in whom of course! Yonah is interested, is allowed to take is to act suspicious when Yonah spends too much time with Ines.
About Ines herself, all we are allowed to learn is that she's pretty, she works with her father, and that she's rather shy but probably interested in Yonah. Even more galling, both the narrator and the characters repeatedly refer to women as "females.
Oct 27, Peter rated it really liked it. The Last Jew is the second book by Gordon that I've read in recent months. The first was The Physician His stories offer excellent reading value both as a result of the amount of historical research he puts into them which give them a feel of authenticity as well as the way each story is crafted. The Last Jew takes place during the Inquisition in Spain in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. The first part of the book conveys the devastating impact the Inquisition had on Jews.
As a result, however, the story of "the last Jew" -- Yonah Teledano -- emparts less tension than the first part of the book, especially as it becomes clear that Yonah will escape personal persecution. Gordon skillfully brings the book to a close wrapping up the pieces launched in the opening chapters. Despite the topic, this book is not as difficult to read as many books on the Holocaust -- both because of the time difference and the way Gordon handles the more terrifying aspects of the story.
People who like stories about pre-modern medical practices will enjoy this book as well as The Physician, although read his note at the end about the medical aspects of the book before trying any at home. Oct 18, kristin rated it really liked it. I loved this book as a way to familiarize myself with the history of Spain. I traveled to Spain and Portugal this past summer and had a fun time reading the history of this painful period.
May 09, Michal rated it liked it Shelves: historical-fiction , zbookchallenge. Actually, there is always a percentage of Jews in each generation that are cultural Jews and do not have the knowledge of Judaism to understand what is to be a Jew and the value in persisting to be Jewish, even if it means death, imprisonment or exile. These days the Holocaust and Israel substitute for 2. These days the Holocaust and Israel substitute for authentic Torah Judaism for many.
The book was pleasant to read. I honestly don't know the details of life in that period in Europe but the author made it all seem plausible. It was unclear what was the point of the story, as I mentioned at the beginning of the review. Jun 12, Lawrence Schwimmer rated it it was amazing. This is a wonderfully absorbing historical novel about people and the central character, a Jew living during the 15th century and the Spanish Inquisition.
The author is a great story-teller and weaves his character through this period in history giving you the feeling that you are a living, breathing person alive during this tumultuous time. This story engages you from the very beginning a holds your interest until the last page. And, like most great books Larry Schwimmer, Reviewer Jul 12, Cindy Katz rated it really liked it. It is in Spain and the Inquisition is in full force.
A young lone man travels to avoid being found out. Not only is the historical piece interesting, the character himself, Yonah, is interesting, forced to try his hand at whatever gainful opportunity presents itself.
This was a book club pick but I missed reading it then. I picked it up to read while traveling through Spain. This made for an even better read and added to my travel experience. I recommend. Mar 25, Sori rated it it was ok. I was worried that this would turn into "My name is Yonah Toledano. You killed my father. Prepare to die. Mar 12, Maria rated it liked it.
It was supposed to be a heart wrenching story of a jewish youth who lost his entire family and friends to the Expulsion of Jews from Spain. Or maybe it should have been a detective story, a theft and murder perpetrated by a cleric and the truth is discovered by the protagonist, and maybe even vengeance delivered.
It could have been a self-search story of a Jew stuck alone in Spain, facing discovery by the Inquisition and still choosing to be a devoted Jew. It is neither. Though very detailed and It was supposed to be a heart wrenching story of a jewish youth who lost his entire family and friends to the Expulsion of Jews from Spain. Though very detailed and full of explanations, the book fails to convey the severity of protagonist's loss, the story of the expelled Jews remains mainly untold and the atrocities of the Inquisition are shown but little.
The deeds, the travels, the decision makings of Yonah, the protagonist, are also detailed, ad nauseam. But the descriptions are dry, the motives and the logics are extremely weak. We do not see a character development, but have to believe to the author stating it does so. Any hopes for a detective story in style of Eco's The Name of the Rose are vanquished promptly: the killer is mentioned in the very beginning of the book and even the vengeance doesn't come and the excuse is lousy.
Though the book is fast-pasing and promises a lot of excitement just on the next page, it never delivers. Instead of human drama we get a sugar-coated story of the Expulsion. Jan 12, Amy rated it liked it Shelves: bookcrossing , read-on-recommendation , taught-me-something. I read The Physician by this same author years ago and bits and pieces have come back at odd times to haunt me.
I suspect it will be the case with this book as well. This period of Jewish history has always fascinated me though my family's background is from an entirely different region. As to the book itself, I found the pace a little uneven and the story thinned out in points to test my powers of believability. But all in all, I am more satisfied than less. Even if it got a little pat in plac I read The Physician by this same author years ago and bits and pieces have come back at odd times to haunt me.
Even if it got a little pat in places, i still liked reading and learning of the world at that time. And we think it rough when forums go down. These people had to deal with their entire lives being yanked from them, fear of discovery and the regular hazards of 15th century life!
This book was initially recommended to me by another BookCrosser. I'm glad of the recommendation. Jul 02, Karen rated it really liked it. Ferdinand and Isabella kick all the Jews out of Spain and this book tells the story of one who stayed behind in hiding.
Learned a lot about a time period I don't know much about plus can't see that much has changed from the 15th and 21st Centuries This online book also provides some example to explain the explanation clearly. So, the reader will reallyget the point of the book.
It means that reader can know how to face her or his future problems that may want to come to her or his life. The reader also will be always ready with the best solution to solve the problem. Actually, you can get the online book easily in the website. However, you have to follow some steps recommended to get the online book.
You can also see andget many other books. Actually, this website provides many books with different title from different genre. Home [0cU. Smith [2pn. Hunter [2RO. Swenberg [5Zs. Mandell [9IK. Spatola [aIQ. Lipsky [aiY. Hansen PhD [aNY. Hay [AVv. Kiyak [bom. By Group Publishing [CkX. Gibbs [cSe. Lilly [dKM. Hedges [dkw. Lovich-Sapola [Drk. Bartholomew [egV. Corton, Steven Bloom [Eif. Turnbull [Esj. Peter [etC. Dunham [gDA. Hicks [GiQ. Cheeke Professor Emeritus [HcB.
Bowen [HOJ. Brinson [HY8. Schultz [Hz2. Fisher [iF6. Platt [kDK. Johns [kXV. Graham [Kye. McGillen [lfd. Bueschel [lip. Martin's Publishing Group. In the year , the Inquisition has all of Spain in its grip. After centuries of pogrom-like riots encouraged by the Church, the Jews - who have been an important part of Spanish life since the days of the Romans - are expelled from the country by royal edict.
Many who wish to remain are intimidated by Church and Crown and become Catholics, but several hundred thousand choose to retain their religion and depart; given little time to flee, some perish even before they can escape from Spain. Yonah Toledano, the year-old son of a celebrated Spanish silversmith, has seen his father and brother die during these terrible days - victims whose murders go almost unnoticed in a time of mass upheaval.
Trapped in Spain by circumstances, he is determined to honor the memory of his family by remaining a Jew. On a donkey named Moise, Yonah begins a meandering journey, a young fugitive zigzagging across the vastness of Spain. Toiling at manual labor, he desperately tries to cling to his memories of a vanished culture. As a lonely shepherd on a mountaintop he hurls snatches of almost forgotten Hebrew at the stars, as an apprentice armorer he learns to fight like a Christian knight.
0コメント