Book Notes

Book Notes American Jewish Life Book Notes 151 The Grandees: The Story of America's Sephardic Elite, by Stephen Binningham. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 1997. 386 pp. $16.95 (P). ISBN 0-81560459 -9. Descendents ofthe origina123 Jewish families who arrived in New York in 1654, the Sephardic Jews began a tradition ofwealth, pride, and exclusiveness that continues to this day. Stephen Binningham sheds light op this segment of Jewish society who viewed other Jews as peasants and ardently shunned all publicity. Satmar: Two Generations ofan Urban Island, by Israel Rubin. New York: Peter Lang, 1996. 352 pp. $39.95 (c). ISBN 0-8204-0759-3. Satmar is a Hasidic community of Jews originating in an area that once belonged to Hungary but parts of which are now incorporated in neighboring countries. These Jews settled inthe United States in the 1940s and 50s and succeeded in resisting assimilation for themselves and their children. However, changes are occurring since their leadership changed. In this book the author discusses both the continuity and the change, offering a sociological analysis ofboth processes. To the Other Shore: The Russian Jewish Intellectuals Who Came to America, by Steven Cassidy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1997. 320 pp. $29.95. ISBN 0-69102975 -X. A small but influential group ofJewish intellectuals immigrated to the United States from the Russian Empire between 1881 and 1920. This pioneer group abandoned their Jewish identity and adhered to radical political theories, which they then circulated when they became leaders in the labor movement. Zion in the Valley: The Jewish Community ofSt. Louis. Vol. I: 1807-1907, by Walter Ehrlich. Columbia: University ofMissouri Press, 1997. 441 pp. $35.95. ISBN 0-82621098 -8. St. Louis contains one ofthe largest Jewish communities in the interior ofthe United States. Walter Ehrlich shows how the St. Louis Jewish community grew both internally, through relations of Jews with fellow Jews, and externally, through Jews interacted with the non-Jewish population. 152 Art and Music SHOFAR Spring 1997 Vol. IS, No.3 The Iconography ofJob Through the Centuries: Artists as Biblical Interpreters, by Samuel Terrien. University Park, PA: Penn State Press, 1996. 272 pp. $65.00. ISBN 0-271-01528-4. The author analyzes images of Job from the frescoes of ancient synagogues to the paintings of Chagall. The Music ofIsrael: From the Biblical Era to Modern Times, by Peter E. Gradenwitz. Portland, OR: Amadeus Press, 1996. 2nd rev. ed. 420 pp. $39.95. ISBN 1-57467-0123 . Incorporating current research ofboth Israeli and international scholars, the author traces the rise ofHebrew and Jewish music from its earliest beginnings. He considers historical and musical aspects ofancient, medieval, and modem Hebrew liturgical and Jewish secular music, pointing out Jewish contributions to world music and examining musical cross-relations between the Jews ofthe Holy Land and throughout the world. Twenty Israeli Composers: Voices ofa Culture, by Robert Fleisher. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1997. 340 pp. $39.95. ISBN 0-8143-2648-9. Twenty ofIsrael's art-music composers discuss the interaction of inspiration, method, and cultmal context in their work, revealing both international and national influence and scope. Each composer's interview is accompanied by an update documenting recent accomplishments. A discography is also included. Biblical and Rabbinic Literature Bible Then and Now, by Jenny Roberts. New York: Macmillan Books, 1996. 144 pp. $29.95. ISBN 0-02-861347-3. This book superimposes color recreations ofhistorical sacred locales over present-day photographs, showing how each place appeared in its time ofbiblical significance and how it appears now. Includes 150 color photographs and 14 acetate overlays, as well as maps, diagrams, and reproductions of ancient art and artifacts. The Birth of God: The Moses Play and Monotheism in Ancient Israel, by Richard Courtney. New York: Peter Lang, 1997. 235 pp. $44.95. ISBN 0-8204-3055-2.. The author explores the role of ritual drama in.the creation and transmission of monotheism among the ancient Israelites. Book Notes 153 The Stone Edition ofthe Tanakh, edited by Nosson Schennan. Brooklyn, NY: Mesorah Publications, 1996. 2150 pp. $59.99. ISBN 0-89906-269-5. This edition includes all 24 books ofthe Hebrew Bible, complete with Hebrew text, a new...