****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
This remarkable book describes Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg' camping trip, accompanied by his faithful canine companion Mitzpah, to bring back the flame of the Ner Tamid (Eternal Light) --from its original location in his grandfather's erstwhile West End Synagogue in Frankfurt am Main - to his own congregation in the recently rebuilt new North London Synagogue in Finchley. I first got to know Jonathan through his grandfather Rabbi Dr. Georg Salzberger, who, before he took up his Frankfurt pulpit, was one of the approximately thirty Feldrabbiner (Jewish chaplains) in the First World War German army. Rabbi Salzberger's war diaries appear (translated in English) in my upcoming book on the subject and shed further light on his personality.Jonathan has succeeded in combining the existential tragedy of the Holocaust, especially as it touched his own family, with deep insights about Judaism and its attitude to light and darkness, hope, consolation, and eternal rebirth, as well as the enormous contribution of Jews to German culture. His book is informed by a deep understanding, not only of Jewish tradition, but also of English and High German culture. Torah and Talmud sit comfortably next to Lessing's Nathan der Weise, Moses Mendelssohn's Kantian/Jewish philosophy, Heine's acid alienation, and English romanticism. The book also contains deeply personal insights into what it was like to be orphaned at a very early age, and to grow up in a `refugee' German-Jewish atmosphere in England. A beautiful and poetic image of the autumnal Rhine valley, its towns, abbeys and castles, and the remnants of their Jewish communities, emerges, written with deep compassion and love, not least with Mitzpah's blog which describes everything from a canine point of view. The very idea of a rabbi and his faithful hound was a new idea for me, reared with unbending orthodox South African rabbis with little ability to deal with anything beyond their own narrow horizon.Jonathan is uncompromising dealing with the causes and effects of the Holocaust, including the Jewish experience in Holland (a trip through Dutch wind, rain and storms end his hiking trip) and the equivocal role of the Dutch in the murdering of 70% of Dutch Jews, counterposed with their heroism in protecting countless Jews at risk of life and limb. There is also a moving description of the difficulty of hidden Dutch children and also children of the English Kinderstransport in adapting to life after the war.I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to renew faith in the human condition - with love, compassion, and tolerance for all -- in the present angry, tumultuous world.Peter AppelbaumI expected a lot from this book & I wasn't disappointed.It's the story of a journey which could have been desperately sad (& it is, in places) throughout, but it isn't.Rabbi Wittenberg writes fluently & he's funny (both essential qualities for a rabbi, I think) and there's an extra unexpected narrative voice which is. . you'll have to read it to find out.This journey was made into a film, which I suspect hasn't reached a wide audience.I was fortunate to see some excerpts and it's very watchable.But unless someone gives it a chance (hello BBC 4?), it'll stay within the Jewish community.A pity.If you're a religious Jew, of any affiliation, it's worth reading.If you're not Jewish, but you're interested in what makes (some of) us tick and are intrigued about why German Jews felt so intensely & passionately German, it's worth reading.And if you're interested in what makes you the person you are, it's worth reading, as a piece of family history.And a memoir of a a group of people who were ripped out of Europe, like weeds.And destroyed, like weeds.I chose this book after seeing it reviewed enthusiastically in the Jewish Chronicle and other publications. I loved it for many reasons: it is of great historical interest for everyone but perhaps especially for Jews and, even more especially, for Kindertransportees like me. The style is serious AND lighthearted in appropriate places and the contents are moving, interesting and, often, very amusing. Rabbi Wittenberg describes his journey of reminiscence and learning with a light touch but with honesty and wisdom - a rare combination!In his walk from Frankfurt to Finchley, accompanied by his wonderful blogging dog, Rabbi Wittenberg discovers and describes the story of his family's experiences of settling and living in Germany - and in the leaving of it. Whilst unique in itself, the story also reflects other refugee experiences in depth and with much philosophical insight. i warmly recommend this book, both as a treat and an education.D.F. Sheffield.A stimulating read. Part history, part travel writing, part religion with plenty of philosophy.Well worth reading. ExcellentUnusual mix of history, fun, tolerance and surprises with more than a touch of interest for dog lovers! Go for it.
