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Collected Stories III: One Night in Brazil to The Death of Methuselah
In the wake of his receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1978, Isaac Bashevis Singer published several volumes of short stories in collections that mingled recent work with previously untranslated stories written in Yiddish decades earlier. Stretching back to “The Jew from Babylon,” a story first published in Yiddish in 1932, and gathering tales such as “Brother Beetle” and “There Are No Coincidences” from the 1960s, the works in Collected Stories: One Night in Brazil to The Death of Methuselah serve as a retrospective view of Singer’s achievement as a storyteller.
Collected Stories: One Night in Brazil to The Death of Methuselah also contains ten stories published in English translation for the first time, selected from the extensive collection of Singer’s papers at the University of Texas. Ranging from “Between Shadows,” an evocative, naturalistic sketch set in Warsaw, to the bittersweet melodrama “Morris and Timna,” to the beguiling fable “Hershele and Hanele, or The Power of a Dream,” these stories enrich our understanding of Singer as a writer. The volume also includes “The Bird,” “My Adventures as an Idealist,” and “Exes,” stories published in magazines that were not included in any of Singer’s collections. Complementing the 78 stories gathered here is the introduction to Gifts (1985), a version of a lecture Singer had delivered since the early 1960s sometimes called “Why I Write as I Do,” which illuminates his biography, philosophical outlook, and literary aims.
Collected Stories: One Night in Brazil to The Death of Methuselah also contains ten stories published in English translation for the first time, selected from the extensive collection of Singer’s papers at the University of Texas. Ranging from “Between Shadows,” an evocative, naturalistic sketch set in Warsaw, to the bittersweet melodrama “Morris and Timna,” to the beguiling fable “Hershele and Hanele, or The Power of a Dream,” these stories enrich our understanding of Singer as a writer. The volume also includes “The Bird,” “My Adventures as an Idealist,” and “Exes,” stories published in magazines that were not included in any of Singer’s collections. Complementing the 78 stories gathered here is the introduction to Gifts (1985), a version of a lecture Singer had delivered since the early 1960s sometimes called “Why I Write as I Do,” which illuminates his biography, philosophical outlook, and literary aims.
915 pages, Hardcover
First published July 8, 2004
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About the author
Isaac Bashevis Singer
554 books1,104 followersIsaac Bashevis Singer was a Polish American author of Jewish descent, noted for his short stories. He was one of the leading figures in the Yiddish literary movement, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1978.
His memoir, "A Day Of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing Up in Warsaw", won the U.S. National Book Award in Children's Literature in 1970, while his collection "A Crown of Feathers and Other Stories" won the U.S. National Book Award in Fiction in 1974.
His memoir, "A Day Of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing Up in Warsaw", won the U.S. National Book Award in Children's Literature in 1970, while his collection "A Crown of Feathers and Other Stories" won the U.S. National Book Award in Fiction in 1974.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 20, 2019
This is the last of three volumes of stories Isaac Bashevis Singer collected and were translated from the Yiddish into English.
Singer was a Polish Jew who moved to the United States. These stories are a combination of local stories from the villages he lived in while growing up in Poland and later his years in New York and occasionally other countries as well (like Brazil).
Most of his stories are from the perspective of eyewitness accounts. He narrates the story someone else tells him. The other person is a part of the story in that they start with a little background as to how the narrator met the other person, before recording their particular story, and finishes with an epilogue as to how the story teller's relationship ends with the narrator.
The stories are told with such convincing, powerful voices that I wondered if they were truly stories told to him by other people.
Many of these stories run along similar themes: adultery, persecution, life in a Jewish village, marriages and the intricate relationships, mostly complicated and tragic, inside the families there.
Most of the characters are desperate regardless of wealth or poverty. They all seem to be seeking some kind of meaning in their life through material gain and sensual relationships. Singer concentrates on the will of man, how it is not really free, but enslaved to its own selfish desire, while it devours the person as he or she runs around in circles, chasing his or her own tail, trying to satiate the lust they are tormented by.
Of course, the story is the same for all humans, since humans have the same nature regardless of culture or country. But this tale is told in the context of the Jewish culture, the Jewish plight, and the history of Eastern European Jews as they lived in the old country and also after they leave the old country and try to survive and find joy in the new one.
His stories are poignant and acute. The human tragedy from the Jewish viewpoint, at least as told by one man.
Singer was a Polish Jew who moved to the United States. These stories are a combination of local stories from the villages he lived in while growing up in Poland and later his years in New York and occasionally other countries as well (like Brazil).
Most of his stories are from the perspective of eyewitness accounts. He narrates the story someone else tells him. The other person is a part of the story in that they start with a little background as to how the narrator met the other person, before recording their particular story, and finishes with an epilogue as to how the story teller's relationship ends with the narrator.
The stories are told with such convincing, powerful voices that I wondered if they were truly stories told to him by other people.
Many of these stories run along similar themes: adultery, persecution, life in a Jewish village, marriages and the intricate relationships, mostly complicated and tragic, inside the families there.
Most of the characters are desperate regardless of wealth or poverty. They all seem to be seeking some kind of meaning in their life through material gain and sensual relationships. Singer concentrates on the will of man, how it is not really free, but enslaved to its own selfish desire, while it devours the person as he or she runs around in circles, chasing his or her own tail, trying to satiate the lust they are tormented by.
Of course, the story is the same for all humans, since humans have the same nature regardless of culture or country. But this tale is told in the context of the Jewish culture, the Jewish plight, and the history of Eastern European Jews as they lived in the old country and also after they leave the old country and try to survive and find joy in the new one.
His stories are poignant and acute. The human tragedy from the Jewish viewpoint, at least as told by one man.
October 19, 2021
Another definitive collection from LOA. One is constantly confused by their choices. They promise to publish only American authors, but fail to define what makes a writer American. Singer wrote in Yiddish and English, was born in Poland, and considered English his "second original" language. Whatever that means. As in the majority of his novels, the stories in this volume contain a few constants, like universal laws by which the author is guided. These are: adultery, The Torah, and adultery. In that order.
Impressively, there are two confusingly similar volumes, making a set, distinguishable only by the complex titles of the bookend stories. Like the Henry James collection and the Updike collection, one is compelled to complete the collection for the sake of shelf aesthetics. Luckily, the contents merit the price.
Isaac Bashevis Singer can be awfully cheeky, but his wisdom shows through in most cases. Many of the outcomes of his O. Henry-esque scenarios are ruled by either arbitrary fate or determinism. In a lot of things, Singer lands in the middle, conveying moral values without drawing more than a few black and white lines in the sand.
You will get plenty of gossipy village tales constrained by a limited purview. You will learn about living a virtuous life, complacency, the social landscape in Poland and America, economical matters in the home and business, and much much more in the wide historical swathes of context making up the settings. He is concerned with the human capacity for giving, loving, cheating, battling sin, inner demons, haunting pasts, old age, through parables starring pathetic wastrels, virtuous men and women, and covering piety, religious observance, science and the nature of the soul, ritual and sacrifice, childbearing and marriage, realism and folklore, travel, thrift, adaptation, multiculturalism, and blinding psychological weaknesses- all this to say you will experience a surprising picture of human life.
Grounded in wisdom and heartfelt concern for human struggle, historical atrocities, societal consciousness, and artistic merit, his stories will speak to a wide audience, and alienate only a few as a result of his didactic tone. In the end, he probably sounded old fashioned in his own time, as most writers from his demographic did. But that did not stop him from being widely read.
A well-informed Singer reader will notice common themes and refrains, frequently repeated through the stories, which somehow avoid formulaic plots in favor of slow, careful deployment of stinging truths. Early ambition, the pitfalls of betrayal and lust, impatience and human nature, the roles of women in the male-centric world view, classical education, universal hopes, dreams, etc. One might find resemblances to Chekhov, Maupassant, Strindberg, Dostoyevsky, Laxness, Lagerkvist, Tolstoy, Turgenev, and Hamsun. But only superficially. Singer is his own thing, I believe, in the way that other Yiddish writers might not be. At least, he gives that impression through his prefaces, a few of which are included in this volume.
He brings to bear a disarming amount of philosophy, melodrama, tragedy, and pathos. He criticizes Freud and praises Spinoza often. There is a bit too much of people telling the first person narrator their life stories, mainly about women who betray them - this shtick gets old by the twentieth time he uses it. He made a good agony uncle.
In one story, an abandoned wife reclaims her crossdressing husband. In others: affairs are portrayed as an integral component of life, miracles of the devil will astound in the surreal "The Jew from Babylon." A tale of gift-giving mania speaks to the money-conscious tendencies the author noticed in his fellow men and women. Greed permeates the entire volume to the point where it is almost glorified. There is also the secret joy of death, how mistakes follow us, luck, fate, divine intervention, incest, illegitimate children, how to avoid sin, the lengths people will go to to commit sin, keeping accurate accounts in more senses than one, as well as tales of thieves who share wives,
many tales of failed marriages, few instances of happiness, the rich life, the poor life, plentiful humor, death, acceptance, blessings, fidelity, transvestites, a famous writer's insane fans, women possessed by dybbuks, haphazard living situations, the sadness of critics, sex as impetus -relationship's defining moment, the violence of love, the hysterics of women, malicious women without morals, persecution on a ship by an astral body, the desperation and impatience of young writers, free will, crime, repentance, harlotry, disillusionment, soul-death, a hellish bus tour through Spain, souls conversing in the hereafter, discussing the working conditions in Gehenna, the perils of aging alone, a journey through Nazi-occupied Warsaw, what happens when one is consumed by religious devotion, a man juggling four wives, love as adversity, and a smorgasbord of quotable yiddishisms.
These are collaborative translations from the Yiddish. Singer was a lifelong newspaper writer, whose novels appeared in serializations, and had a brother and sister who were also prominent writers. He received the Nobel Prize plus every other conceivable literary prize. As prolific as Updike, but disciplined as Dickens, other Yiddish writers spoke out against him as if envious of his success. Also a member and supporter of Writers' Associations, which feature prominently in his fiction as a platform for discussion and satire.
Most deal with city life, New York, the fallout from WWII for the Jewish people, their long history of persecution, the constancy of their traditions, and the relations between men and women, which will undoubtedly register as a red flag for feminists.
Other writers he recommends: Isaac Meir Dick, Solomon Ettinger, Mendele Mocher Sephorim, Sholem Aleichem, Peretz, Sholem Asch, Zeyfert, Shomer, Kubrin, Libin, Hinde Esther, Israel Joshua, Sforim, Bergelson, Spinoza, d'Annunzio.
Impressively, there are two confusingly similar volumes, making a set, distinguishable only by the complex titles of the bookend stories. Like the Henry James collection and the Updike collection, one is compelled to complete the collection for the sake of shelf aesthetics. Luckily, the contents merit the price.
Isaac Bashevis Singer can be awfully cheeky, but his wisdom shows through in most cases. Many of the outcomes of his O. Henry-esque scenarios are ruled by either arbitrary fate or determinism. In a lot of things, Singer lands in the middle, conveying moral values without drawing more than a few black and white lines in the sand.
You will get plenty of gossipy village tales constrained by a limited purview. You will learn about living a virtuous life, complacency, the social landscape in Poland and America, economical matters in the home and business, and much much more in the wide historical swathes of context making up the settings. He is concerned with the human capacity for giving, loving, cheating, battling sin, inner demons, haunting pasts, old age, through parables starring pathetic wastrels, virtuous men and women, and covering piety, religious observance, science and the nature of the soul, ritual and sacrifice, childbearing and marriage, realism and folklore, travel, thrift, adaptation, multiculturalism, and blinding psychological weaknesses- all this to say you will experience a surprising picture of human life.
Grounded in wisdom and heartfelt concern for human struggle, historical atrocities, societal consciousness, and artistic merit, his stories will speak to a wide audience, and alienate only a few as a result of his didactic tone. In the end, he probably sounded old fashioned in his own time, as most writers from his demographic did. But that did not stop him from being widely read.
A well-informed Singer reader will notice common themes and refrains, frequently repeated through the stories, which somehow avoid formulaic plots in favor of slow, careful deployment of stinging truths. Early ambition, the pitfalls of betrayal and lust, impatience and human nature, the roles of women in the male-centric world view, classical education, universal hopes, dreams, etc. One might find resemblances to Chekhov, Maupassant, Strindberg, Dostoyevsky, Laxness, Lagerkvist, Tolstoy, Turgenev, and Hamsun. But only superficially. Singer is his own thing, I believe, in the way that other Yiddish writers might not be. At least, he gives that impression through his prefaces, a few of which are included in this volume.
He brings to bear a disarming amount of philosophy, melodrama, tragedy, and pathos. He criticizes Freud and praises Spinoza often. There is a bit too much of people telling the first person narrator their life stories, mainly about women who betray them - this shtick gets old by the twentieth time he uses it. He made a good agony uncle.
In one story, an abandoned wife reclaims her crossdressing husband. In others: affairs are portrayed as an integral component of life, miracles of the devil will astound in the surreal "The Jew from Babylon." A tale of gift-giving mania speaks to the money-conscious tendencies the author noticed in his fellow men and women. Greed permeates the entire volume to the point where it is almost glorified. There is also the secret joy of death, how mistakes follow us, luck, fate, divine intervention, incest, illegitimate children, how to avoid sin, the lengths people will go to to commit sin, keeping accurate accounts in more senses than one, as well as tales of thieves who share wives,
many tales of failed marriages, few instances of happiness, the rich life, the poor life, plentiful humor, death, acceptance, blessings, fidelity, transvestites, a famous writer's insane fans, women possessed by dybbuks, haphazard living situations, the sadness of critics, sex as impetus -relationship's defining moment, the violence of love, the hysterics of women, malicious women without morals, persecution on a ship by an astral body, the desperation and impatience of young writers, free will, crime, repentance, harlotry, disillusionment, soul-death, a hellish bus tour through Spain, souls conversing in the hereafter, discussing the working conditions in Gehenna, the perils of aging alone, a journey through Nazi-occupied Warsaw, what happens when one is consumed by religious devotion, a man juggling four wives, love as adversity, and a smorgasbord of quotable yiddishisms.
These are collaborative translations from the Yiddish. Singer was a lifelong newspaper writer, whose novels appeared in serializations, and had a brother and sister who were also prominent writers. He received the Nobel Prize plus every other conceivable literary prize. As prolific as Updike, but disciplined as Dickens, other Yiddish writers spoke out against him as if envious of his success. Also a member and supporter of Writers' Associations, which feature prominently in his fiction as a platform for discussion and satire.
Most deal with city life, New York, the fallout from WWII for the Jewish people, their long history of persecution, the constancy of their traditions, and the relations between men and women, which will undoubtedly register as a red flag for feminists.
Other writers he recommends: Isaac Meir Dick, Solomon Ettinger, Mendele Mocher Sephorim, Sholem Aleichem, Peretz, Sholem Asch, Zeyfert, Shomer, Kubrin, Libin, Hinde Esther, Israel Joshua, Sforim, Bergelson, Spinoza, d'Annunzio.
March 9, 2015
Singer is the master of the short story. Whether it is a retelling of tales told by his Aunt Yentl, people he meets who discuss their adulteries, loss or confirmation of their faith, or the inhabitants of hell, on their day off, considering writing a magazine for those in heaven, each story is a jewel with many unexpected facets. The author’s introduction to the collection Gifts is a gem of autobiographical writing and the highlight of an exceptional collection. This, the third and final of the Library of America’s Singer volumes, features all the collections published after he received the Nobel Prize. Like the previous two editions, it is a literary treasure trove.
December 24, 2023
19 öyküden 9'unu beğendim. İçindekiler kısmında bunu işaretlediğim için daha sonra elime aldığımda o kısımları keyifle okuyabileceğim. Anlatım tarzı yine mükemmeldi diyebilirim. Aynı şekilde çevirisi de. Aslı Biçen çok iyi iş çıkarmış.
"Orada, Tanrı'nın büyüklüğünü idrak edebilmek için insanın kendi hiçliğini fark etmesi gerektiği yazıyordu. İnsan kendini önemli bulduğu müddetçe ilahi gücü göremiyordu." (sf 23)
"Gehinam'dan (cehennem) neden bu kadar korkarlar? Orayı da Tanrı yarattığına göre kılık değiştirmiş bir cennet olmalı." (sf 107)
"Başka birinin ilacını kim kullanır?" diye sordum.
"İnsanların elinden gelse, birbirlerinin gözlerini bile çalarlar." diye cevap verdi. (sf 222)
Ardında iyi bir isim bırakma ayrıcalığı sadece köylülere ait. New York gibi bir şehirde insanın adı kendinden de önce ölüyor. (sf 225)
"Hayatımız bulutsuz bir gökyüzü gibi günlük güneşlikti." (sf 32)
"Kendi kendini okuyan İlahi Kitap, herkes ona kendi günahını kendi yazar." (sf 96)
"Kenarı oyalı bir mendil çıkarıp, görünmeyen bir damla gözyaşını sildi." (sf 166)
"Güneş küçük ve parlak battı. Gök kubbedeki bir yangından fırlamış kor parçası gibi hızla aşağı yuvarlandı. Arazinin üstünde gece kasveti asılıydı, sonsuz olmaktan bıkmış bir sonsuzluk." (sf 185)
"Orada, Tanrı'nın büyüklüğünü idrak edebilmek için insanın kendi hiçliğini fark etmesi gerektiği yazıyordu. İnsan kendini önemli bulduğu müddetçe ilahi gücü göremiyordu." (sf 23)
"Gehinam'dan (cehennem) neden bu kadar korkarlar? Orayı da Tanrı yarattığına göre kılık değiştirmiş bir cennet olmalı." (sf 107)
"Başka birinin ilacını kim kullanır?" diye sordum.
"İnsanların elinden gelse, birbirlerinin gözlerini bile çalarlar." diye cevap verdi. (sf 222)
Ardında iyi bir isim bırakma ayrıcalığı sadece köylülere ait. New York gibi bir şehirde insanın adı kendinden de önce ölüyor. (sf 225)
"Hayatımız bulutsuz bir gökyüzü gibi günlük güneşlikti." (sf 32)
"Kendi kendini okuyan İlahi Kitap, herkes ona kendi günahını kendi yazar." (sf 96)
"Kenarı oyalı bir mendil çıkarıp, görünmeyen bir damla gözyaşını sildi." (sf 166)
"Güneş küçük ve parlak battı. Gök kubbedeki bir yangından fırlamış kor parçası gibi hızla aşağı yuvarlandı. Arazinin üstünde gece kasveti asılıydı, sonsuz olmaktan bıkmış bir sonsuzluk." (sf 185)
November 2, 2024
Disguised, the New Yorker fiction podcast
January 12, 2026
Hadn’t read Singer in decades; just a novel in undergraduate days. His short stories, however, are excellent. Those taken here from his “Collected Stories” are the best but virtually every one is worth reading. They are suffused with the wisdom - and not a little of the whimsy and folklore - European Jews amassed over centuries. Most of the stories take place in Eastern Europe or New York City (the title story one obvious exception, although even that involves a New Yorker and Eastern Europe).
June 22, 2009
This is not the edition I read; it was rather a shorter collection of stories under the title The Death of Methuselah and Other Stories. I'm not sure of the publisher or the date, I picked it up from a sidewalk vendor near the subway and gave it to a church jumble sale after I finished. The subjects of the stories are familiar to Singer fans: the lost world of European/Yiddish Jewry, the transplantations in and around New York City. Some are tender and endearing, some despicable.
May 21, 2016
A Polish-American Yiddish writer. Not amazingly written language-wise, but interesting in the sense that it opens up a whole culture of the European Jewish people through a variety of short intricate plots, microcosms of the community.
August 13, 2024
Too much Singer can get on yr nerves...
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews