Jewish Latin America

"Superb volume consists of Scliar's six collections of stories published between 1968-89, three of which have never before been rendered into English. Excellently translated, work conveys in fluent, evocative prose Scliar's enormous success in this difficult form. Stories range from biblical parables, through magical realism, to fantastic and humorous accounts. Concludes with a short autobiographical essay"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 58.

"Reprint, with minor changes, of the 1955 translation of Gerchunoff's 1910 classic volume about Jewish immigrants in rural Argentina. Twenty-six vignettes, with some inter-related characters, tell stories of customs, love, death, religion, prejudice, and assimilation. Skillful translation captures bilingual (Spanish-Yiddish) flavor of original. Stavans' essay provides useful historical and literary background"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 58.

The Book of Memories, originally published in Spanish in 1994, is a humorous yet moving exploration of a Jewish family's history, as seen through the eyes of three generations of women. The story begins with Grandfather Gedalia leaving Poland with forged papers to escape the army and sailing to Argentina, the "other America." Sometimes charming, sometimes stingy, this patriarchal figure, a peddler and sometime moneylender, heads a clan that includes, among others, the feisty and foul-mouthed Aunt Judith, and Uncle Silvester, a seducer of young girls who has such high principles that he turns himself in after missing the Argentine police raid on his socialist printing press. From the assorted perspectives of these and other characters, this tale of Jewish immigrants explores life in Argentina, the role of women, and the power and the limits of machismo and nationalism.