The Classic Tales: 4000 Years of Jewish Lore

by Ellen Frankel

Frankel has compiled the classic stories and tales of 4,000 years of Jewish legend, and made them accessible without necessitating hours of Talmudic study. There's Lot's Wife, The Witches of Ashkelon, and 298 more, culled from the Bible, the Talmud, and Diaspora lore. The writing is simple enough to read aloud to children, the font's large enough to invite the tired eye, and the selection's interesting enough to read to yourself after bedtime stories are over. Well-referenced so you can look up the Giant Og when you want, it's the sort of book that becomes a family favorite.

Genres: Judaism

704 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Sharon Barrow Wilfong · Rating 3 out of 5]

These 300 Tales range from brief to short story length. The book can be divided into four parts:

Bible stories retold, sometimes irreverently and certainly with no pretense to accuracy.

The Diaspora: Folk Tales from the countries Jews traveled to and settled in. These stories date from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.

The Hasidim: These are stories that center around the Hasidic community in Eastern Europe.

Finally stories of Elijah. These are not actual stories about Elijah from the Old Testament, but fictitious tales involving the Old Testament prophet where he appears to Jews in recent centuries. These stories resemble secular Fairy Tales and even some Greek folk lore where Elijah appears to people in disguise to test their piety.

As a non-Jew, I found these stories useful in gaining insight and information about Jewish customs and values through the ages.

[Bjørn-Erik Skjøren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read book for all people interesting in lore. Its interesting to read Jewish "stories" around known situations and people I know from the Bible

[Jesse Engel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable stories over the past 4000 years of Jewish history which are moral proverbs in themselves.

[Linda J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Focuses on the non-biblical tales. If you like Aesop's...

[Jesse Engel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful exciting times reviewed the ethical time period throughout the scriptures