A Short History of Judaism and the Jewish People

by Steven Leonard Jacobs

In this exciting addition to Bloomsbury's Short Histories series, Steven Leonard Jacobs critically yet concisely examines the history of Judaism and the Jewish people, drawing from maps, photographs and archives to illuminate the history of one of the world's oldest religions.

Beginning by establishing a definition of Judaism, Jacobs explores the historiography of the Jewish people, in addition to the role of memory in charting history. Including a comprehensive breakdown of the history of Judaism, the author splits discussion into defined eras, taking readers from the beginnings of Judaism, to the split between Judah in the South and Israel in the North, the united Monarchy, and the Age of the Prophets.

Exploring the social structures and institutions of ancient Israel, Jacobs incorporates key themes such as civic life, economics, and art – before analysing the interactions of Judaism with Romanism and Hellenism. Moving through the Middle Ages and Pre-Modernity, and acknowledging the role of key figures such as Yosef Karo and Moses Mendelssohn, this book brings the narrative up to the present day, and uncovers the foundations of Judaism in modernity.

Jacobs' authoritative yet engaging prose shines through each of the thirteen chapters, which seamlessly intertwine to produce a thorough yet concise examination of the history of Judaism and Jewish peoples.

248 pages, Paperback

Published December 14, 2023

Reviews

[Will · Rating 1 out of 5]

While there's some good information in here, it reads more like an emotionally-laden, Wikipedia article-length apologia of Judaism and Jewish people against anti-semitism rather than an impartial history of these complex and variegated phenomena. While this is understandable given the persecution Jews have suffered over the centuries and rising anti-semitism today, it's not an acceptable excuse for poor scholarship and propagandistic soapboxing. The author is above all not only anxious to counter anti-semitism on every page (whether it's relevant or not), but also to explain away or just omit entirely any examples of the more sordid episodes of history that every group of people, including Jews, have been involved with. This reduces 2500 years of Jewish history to nothing but righteous victimhood, whether it's the Babylonian Exile or the occupation of Gaza and the West Bank. The brazen apologia for Zionism and the modern state of Israel towards the end of the book is shameful and is essentially pseudo-scholarship. There is very little of the kind of nuanced historiography of Jewish history as seen in the works of Martin Goodman, Norman Cantor, or Shlomo Sand. The author prioritises the obsequious regurgitation of clichés from the party line of neoliberal Zionism and philosemitism over actually applying the historical method. It is chauvinistic, one-dimensional, and - above all - profoundly tedious reading.

[Sheldon · Rating 5 out of 5]

My close friend Steven L. Jacobs has done an admirable job of writing a brief review of both the high and low points of the centuries long journey of Jews and Judaism. To do so in a total of 235 pages with copious scholarly notes and bibliography delivers a wikipediaesque totality. If there are flaws, I blame them on the editors, who allowed unnecessary repetition where the limited space could have been utilized for sharing more historic information. Sadly, current Middle East conflict has already dated part of the work. I highly recommend the text for a brief introduction or review of the topic.