Translated from the Romanian by Alistair Ian Blyth
ISBN: 978-1-912545-360
Once again, the extraordinary storyteller, Ludovic Bruckstein, opens the door onto a lost world of Jewish history and lore in the central European Carpathian region, now parts of Hungary, Romania and Ukraine. Invoking the tales of a great maggid – a wandering storyteller within the East-European tradition of Hasidism – he weaves tales of wisdom and mystery which linger inside us long after the story has ended. Bruckstein’s previous titles (The Trap, 2019 and With an Unopened Umbrella in the Pouring Rain, 2021) have gained him a growing audience of dedicated readers in the English-speaking world, where his work has been too-long absent.
This edition comes complete with a fascinating glossary of terms and historical references compiled by the translator.
“Whereas contemporary short stories often rely on ephemeral insight, the lessons here feel solid, timeworn and tested. ..The translation from Romanian by Alistair Ian Blyth captures brilliantly the sage wisdom of the rabbis with all their humour and mischief, while preserving the author’s rich lexicon of Hebrew and Yiddish terms. Recommended with enthusiasm, this is a collection I plan to return to often.”
Rónán Hession, The Irish Times
“Bruckstein’s stories twist in oblique, unpredictable, eminently Jewish (or is that human?) ways… Bruckstein’s first-class translator, Alistair Ian Blyth, has supplied copious erudite and readable notes on Jewish customs, towns and personalities in a book that celebrates a lost Jewish world joyously but realistically.. . In dark times it serves as a welcome panacea.”
Mark Glanville, The Jewish Chronicle
