Judah the Pious

by Francine Prose

A reissue of a novel first published in 1973. In it, a rabbi tells the story of Judah ben Simon, the son of a village scholar. Judah's discovery that his conception is entwined with magic sets off his flight from family, roots, and self.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Jewish, Literature, Judaica

279 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Francine Prose is the author of twenty works of fiction. Her novel A Changed Man won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and Blue Angel was a finalist for the National Book Award. Her most recent works of nonfiction include the highly acclaimed Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife, and the New York Times bestseller Reading Like a Writer. The recipient of numerous grants and honors, including a Guggenheim and a Fulbright, a Director's Fellow at the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at the New York Public Library, Prose is a former president of PEN American Center, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Her most recent book is Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932. She lives in New York City.

Reviews

[Kent Winward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Issac Bashevis Singer meets the Brothers Grimm meets the cynical in a marvelous little fairy tale with all the grim realities of real life -- sex, betrayal, death, religious persecution, and the black plague. A devilish little tale that challenges what it means to "know" something and what we are willing to believe, especially in the furtherance of a story.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful Cascade of Twists and Turns:
Judah the Pious by Francine Prose, A Review

Judah could not meet his father’s stare. “What good will books do me?” he mumbled, concentrating on his hands as he attempted to scratch the soft dirt from beneath his fingernails. “What good will they do you?” mocked Simon angrily. “They can make you wise, they can make you happy, they can bring you as close to heaven as it is possible for a living man to come; they can help you lead a life which will not look pitiful in God’s sight. Is that good enough for you, or do you want something better?”(pg. 34)
This conversation between father and son sums up my feelings on literature pretty well. Judah the Pious is a fairy tale, within an epic, within a story, within a novel. Never have I read a piece with so many storylines, yet I followed them all effortlessly. Wrapped up in an old man telling these tales to a young Prussian prince, I was just as enthralled with his story as was the royal. Francine Prose wrote brilliantly, and kept many secrets until the end, even after it was thought all had been revealed!
Told mostly in the voice of a decrepit, unconventional rabbi, the voice is fluid, sinking the reader into the narrative, until it snaps back to the present situation of the rabbi speaking to the young King. It's like opening a book inside of a larger one. While the voice belongs to the rabbi predominantly, our protagonist is Simon ben Judah, who is lost in more ways than one, and serves the rabbi’s purpose well with his lessons. Simon seems to be a rather weak character, despite his fantastical origins. A seemingly immaculate conception, does not match up with his simple life, or his simple mind. We do get to see this character develop somewhat over the course of the story. But honestly, not much. If anything, the further the reader gets inside the tale, the shallowness of his heart, and the double standards that arises, are revealed. I do believe in this way, Prose heavily leans on her anticipation of the final reveal, hoping to tie loose ends and leave the reader assuming that this ending “fixes” our protagonists less desirable qualities.
From a small Jewish community, to the great hall of the King of Poland is where the initial setting takes place for our Rabbi and King. However his story, whirls us into many different places, times, situations and circumstances. Many of them magical in feeling.
“I am laughing at all of us,” gasped the rabbi. “But, more than that, I am laughing with the amazement of finding myself where I find myself.”
Simon experiences a forest cabin, a long journey abroad, a peculiar school of science, and 3 strange women alone in a beautiful city, out to teach him a lesson of their own. While these settings are temporary and rather quick to change, our story is anchored by the palace walls, and returns to that scene multiple times, a check-in of sorts for the reader as well as the story-teller.
The tension in this narrative drives it well. As soon as it’s believed Simon ben Judah has reached a goal, its found to only be an empty shell. Constantly being strung along with him, and as a good writer should, Prose keeps us on our toes wondering, what could possibly happen next. Beginning many scenes that at first seem to be unrelated, or a completely new track, she loops back around and reveals more about who the characters are, what their backgrounds consist of, the value of those truths and how they bear on the main character. Simon leaves at first to find a dream, and when he returns he leaves again to find himself. Just when it seems something is about to be accomplished, it goes the opposite direction!
Because of such rich, vibrant settings, tension and many characters Judah the Pious delivers wonderful language and dialogue. While the vocabulary is simple and casual, her figurative language, descriptions, and metaphors are unique. The dialogue is meaningful, and rife with emotions, all of which has a purpose towards the conclusion. Peppered throughout are examples of Prose’s great use of metaphors, such as “Tempers crackled like dead leaves.” They draw the reader in and make the situations, while far-fetched seem down right plausible.
Overall, this book is a wild ride. Not ending up where you expected to find it whatsoever, and taking many hairpin curves, and detours along the way. While the feeling Prose wrote this with her twist ending in mind from the start, and having the sensation something like that would happen, still did not bring the reader to a premature conclusion.
“Eventually, they began to make up stories concerning the sage’s early life, and at last, in an effort to understand and preserve the Rabbi Eliezer’s heroic achievement, they invented this legend of his meeting with the king.”
It was a rapid fire of surprises in the last few chapters, that brings a lot of gasps and giggles. Interesting, tense, and chock full of wonderment Judah the Pious is a novel worthy of a bookshelf, coffee-table or where ever one may keep their personal favorites, and lives on in the sharing of those who invite others to experience the same epic, adventure.

[Umar Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book in prison after randomly finding it on a book cart and I don't think I've ever been mesmerized by the beauty of words in a work of fiction as I was upon reading the opening chapters of this book. Francine Prose is a great writer and this is a work of master storytelling, magic, and creative attempts to address roles of religion, peoplehood, and gender.

[Nurete · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book defies all expectations.
Every time you think you've grasped the direction it's going it pivots and turns away.
You think it's a love story but then it's not; you think it's a coming of age novel, but then it's not; you think it's a tale of magic and it is but also it's not.
It's hard to grasp hold of the meaning of it.
Maybe it's about synchronicities and I experienced all kinds of startling synchronicities while reading it. Maybe it's about how our destinies are orchestrated for us and our free will is in how we respond.
Judah ben Simon is a flawed character. We are all Judah but we are also all Casimir and those of us who have been on this planet for at least several decades are also all Reb Eliezer.
It's a mystery.

[Sarahanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up with really no info at all. Turns out to be a story in a story (sometimes in a story) telling the lives of some vibrant characters all connected to Judah the Pious.

It has a delightful tall tale/storybook feeling. I was quite captivated by the way it unfolded & was surprised by many of the twists and turns.

I have the audio version which was well performed.

[Karen Berlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun compilation of folktales within a folktale that explores the merits of miracles, faith, scientific evidence, tolerance, and love through imaginative story telling. Using elements characteristic of classic fairy tales, the wanderings and questions of Judah Ben Samuel, readers may find themselves also pondering what is real.

[Arnie Kahn · Rating 3 out of 5]

An elderly rabbi visits the King of Poland and tells him a long tale of Judah the Pious in an attempt to get the king to allow the Jews to live at peace in Poland. Interesting with a surprise ending. This was prose's first of about 20 novels.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such an interesting book! The stories within stories containing subtle, and some not so subtle, lessons was a delight to read.

[Jscorse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very few people know about this book but I loved it. Has a nice twist at the end.

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has the charm of a fairytale. It is deceptively easy to read and quietly thought-provoking.

[Daniel]

A curious and engaging story set in 17th century Poland. The title refers to a background character, very loosely based on a historical figure. Like The Life of Pi, this has a surprise at the end.

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got bored ... lucky I finished it