Elijah's Violin & Other Jewish Fairy Tales - Softcover

Schwartz, Howard

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195092007 ISBN 13: 9780195092004

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1994

Synopsis

In this magical collection, Howard Schwartz has gathered together and retold thirty-six Jewish fairy tales that are at once otherworldly and earthy, pious and playful. Drawn from sources as diverse as Morocco and India, Spain and Eastern Europe, Babylon and Egypt, the stories are characterized by their infusion of traditional Jewish characters with the archetypal forms found in all fairy tales, or by their treatment of Jewish religious themes. The book combines the playfulness of fairy tales that will be loved by children with the author's depth of knowledge of the historical origins of the tales. Throughout one can find the quests and riddles of the traditional fairy tale along with the divine intervention that characterizes the Jewish fairy tale.

About this title

Review:

'as poignant and silly as anyone else's fairy tales'The Guardian

Schwartz supplies a concise introduction and retells the stories in a plain and simple prose which serves them well. An exotic and varied collection, intriguingly illustrated by Linda Heller. (Sunday Times)

good stories deserve retelling, and Schwartz retells them beautifully (Jewish Chronicle)

Synopsis:

With this collection, Howard Schwartz retells 36 Jewish fairy tales that are at once otherworldly and earthy, pious and playful. Drawn from sources as diverse as Morocco and India, Spain and Eastern Europe, Babylon and Egypt, the stories are characterized by their infusion of traditional Jewish characters with the archetypal forms found in all fairy tales, or by their treatment of Jewish religious themes. The book combines the playfulness of fairy tales with the author's depth of knowledge of the historical origins of the tales. Throughout one can find the quests and riddles of the traditional fairy tale along with the divine intervention that characterizes the Jewish fairy tale.

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0195092007
• ISBN 13: 9780195092004
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 324