Jew[ish]

by Matt Greene

For author Matt Greene, “ish” was probably the most important part of being Jewish. Yes his family had Friday-night dinners, and yes they kept a kosher house, but somehow it was never the most important part of his identity. He wasn’t even sure what he was supposed to be believing in. And yet he had to contend with the responsibility of his ancestry. That’s what first struck me about this book—how tradition and expectation sit heavily on one’s shoulders, and how Greene offers a fresh new voice for the generations of Jews who were born after the Holocaust.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Religion, Jewish, Biography, Biography Memoir, Judaism

199 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2020

About the author

Matt Greene is a novelist and essayist. His first novel, Ostrich, published in 2013, won a Betty Trask Award and was a Daily Telegraph book of the year. His memoir, Jew(ish) was published in 2020. He lives in London with his partner and two sons.

Reviews

[Paul JB · Rating 5 out of 5]

The impression I'm left with after reading this book is that being Jewish would be a lot like sitting at the centre of a kind of inverted Panopticon: living your entire life with the possibility of being surveilled from every angle, but without ever knowing when, or by whom, or for how long, or with what purpose. Bentham's original design supposed that his prisoners would be forced to regulate their behaviour in conformity to a theoretical central observer, but even an acquiescent conformity offers no clear way out if you're never sure who you're supposed to be conforming to; when your conduct is simultaneously too Jewish, and not Jewish enough.

It's possible that this - the pressure of performing your identity for an audience of thousands and never finding the one that makes everyone stand and clap at once - is not all that different from your bog-standard human paranoia. In which case, to paraphrase the author, maybe being Jewish is like being human, only more so. Or maybe the difference is that some of the audience are Nazis.

I guess what I'm ultimately trying to say here is that I wish there were some way that I could have read this book - with its wit, and its charm, and the generous view it affords the reader into the characterful lives of Greene's own extended family - without him having had to write it. I wish that sections of it could have been published in code, with special enigma rings secretly couriered to each of the 11 people left in Britain who genuinely intend a good-faith discussion of contemporary antisemitism. I wish it could be guaranteed that the sincerity of the author's inquiries into a complex topic will not be read as simple endorsements or condemnations, by those who have long since condemned and endorsed.

It is a sophisticated analysis and a shifting one. There are sections I agree with, sections I reject entirely, and sections that on second or third reading I still don’t know what to think of, which I have to conclude is entirely the point of writing them. There are valuable interventions on the misapprehension of 'Zionism' as a politically descriptive term, and on the brittleness of right-wing 'concern' for the Jewish community. There are jokes, most of them good.

I'm grateful to the author for writing it, even if in full view.

[Jesse · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two stars is my "it was okay" rating. I didn't dislike this book, but I have a hard time saying I liked it.

I'm always interested in memoirs through which people analyze their own Jewish identities, which is why when I saw this book on Amazon Firstreads I picked it, and it hasn't wallowed on my kindle for months as a backup book.

I think my main problem is that Matt Greene, who constantly refers to himself as a "lapsed Jew," is misrepresenting what that means. Shulem Deen and Shalom Auslander are lapsed Jews. Greene is simply an irreligious Jew. And I mean that with no judgement. It's a fine thing to be. But to me it makes his quandary over his Jewish identity, one that he basically abandoned in all but the name, but still desperately clings to, sort of weak.

Greene admits that his lived experience is one that is not very Jewish. Sure, he went to Hebrew School as a kid, and had a Bar Mitzvah, but as he admits, that was his ticket out. His ultimate question, the question that he's afraid to ask his Holocaust-surviving grandparents, is that if he's rejected the Jewish community (the larger Jewish community, not just a particularly religious part), is he still a Jew? Greene says he's more comfortable being the only Jew in a room than in a room full of Jews. I don't really know the answer to that question. I think that while he'll always be a Jew in the technical sense, it seems like he opted out.

His analysis of antisemitism on the internet and in British politics was interesting, and it's something Greene has obviously thought a lot about, even while living a life completely removed from experienced antisemitism. All of the actual Jewish content just seemed kind of trite, I think because it's something that he doesn't struggle to reject as other lapsed Jews do, since it was such an integral part of their lives for so long. He's never been so firmly tied to the Jewish community that opting out would be a traumatic event for him and mean reevaluating his whole system of life and belief, and because he basically just walked away from something that he was afraid would define him, but still wants it to somehow define him, I just can't really care about his internal conflict. Throughout the book Greene admits that his jockeying with his Jewishness is from a place of privilege, and I agree with him. The real interesting stories are the ones who grapple with much more.

[Zeb Kantrowitz · Rating 2 out of 5]

So it's not Portnoy's Complaint, but it a rant (essay) on what one man thinks it means to be Jewish. Well as all members of the Tribe will tell you, that's one opinion among many, and that just covers Matt Greene. For an American, this is a whole different jar of gefilte fish. Living in a country (and I spent a couple of years in Blighty) that is a monarchy, with a State religion is much different than living in a democracy.

Prior to WW2, England (or the UK) was a provincial country that kind of ignored that there were Jews and Roman Catholics (Papists) living among them. When Disraeli wanted to be in politics in the mid 1850s, he had to convert to the Church of England to run for office. When Shakespeare need a villian, as did Dickens, there was always a handy Jew around, to represent greed and avarice. English anti-semitism was/is a more subtle version of dislike as opposed to middle/eastern European hatred. More of a NIMBY type of thing.

At least for me, yes of MOT, none of this was inciteful or eye opening, it's what we live with day to day. In pre-WW2 Europe going back hundreds of years, Hebrews/Israelites (Jew is from German meaning related to Judas) have been escoriated in every European country and at some time been exiled from every country in Europe. So none of this should come as a surprise to anyone with a modicum of historical background.

When people talk about the Israel/Palestine problem, they tend to forget about the other problems in the Middle East where the two major sects of Islam are busy committing atrocities against each other, not to mention groups like the Kurds, Bahais, Eastern/Greek Orthodox. But that's my schtick.

There are way too many comparisons to Woody Allen's 'nebbish' character (which is another story) and not enough recognition as to the contributions of Hebrews to the world at large. The largest ethnic group of Noble Prize winners are US, and on all levels of the prizes. We are overachievers because we have no choice, and even the worst anti-hebrew (arabs are semites so you go figure) seldomly use the expression "dumb Jew".

So all in all, move on, nothing new here to see.

[kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

surprisingly really enjoyed this timely take on lapsed jewish identity, culture, and ethnicity. greene is quite hilarious but writes eloquently about modern anti-semitism, holocaust remembrance, and his family history. -1 star for losing me in some of the british politics sections too bogged down in detail and for the unfortunate exclusion of POC and Black Jews in the chapter on judaism, whiteness and race.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.75

As a secular, non-practicing Jew who grew up in a fairly religious Jewish family, and is now raising children who are technically interfaith (my husband was raised Catholic) but raised without much religion at all, this book was an interesting read. I could relate to quite a lot of what the author has experienced, particularly in questioning whether I am actually Jewish if I don't practice. My youngest child has been asking ALL the questions lately, trying to figure out what she believes. I never quite know how to talk about religion with her, being that I would consider myself both an atheist and a Jew...two things that seem incompatible, yet, according to the author, aren't. He says something to the effect of "to be Jewish is to doubt" which really sums up my entire relationship with religion. This book gave me a lot to think about.

[Cookie M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably extremely relevant and true, but mostly about the British Jewish experience so I did not get a whole lot from it. I am an American and am confused by the British political system for the most part, so how it relates to being Jewish and the British experience of systemic antisemitism would probably best be addressed in a whole different book for me.

[Joyce Schiff · Rating 1 out of 5]

Found the England politics added a lot of confusion to the book.
He seems to point out the importance of feeling Jewish without any commitment..... And he seems not to want his son to be exposed to being Jewish. Very u ncomfortable reading this book.

[Helene Coorsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being Jewish, this book was extremely interesting and relatable. No matter what your background, however, this book is written with soul and depth and purpose. I would highly recommend it to anyone.

[Kira · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very insightful.

[Nancy · Rating 1 out of 5]

In his Afterword the author says that Jewish (one complete word) identity is complicated and confusing. No one is more confused and complicated on the matter than the author. He ties himself and his thinking in knots trying to deny his Jew(ish) - his term, not mine - identity yet internalizing and railing against the slightest anti-Semitism sentiment. He doesn’t want to be lumped into any group yet is guilty of lumping anyone he sees as against his thinking into extremely negative identity.

This was a painful read that did not deserve even one star. I can never explain nor understand my commitment to finish what I begin to read.

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 rounded down.

I enjoyed quite a few parts of this. I found the chapters on Israel, race and Greene's Poland trip particularly interesting. Although some parts of Greene's narrative came across to me as naive and oversimplified, I thought there was still a refreshing amount of nuance. There are many Jewish activists who touch on issues such as the intricate complexities of Israel, the (perceived) whiteness of Jewish people and the danger of antisemitism from both sides of the political aisle, so these ideas are far from new to me, but it was great to see these potentially reach a new audience that may not otherwise have found its way to them.

I would want to know more about why Greene is so averse to participating in Jewish community life, to the extent of explaining to his son that he is Jew-ish rather than Jewish. Greene's experience is his own and I will not challenge it; however, I profoundly disagree with the idea that one can't be proudly, unapologetically and unequivocally Jewish and still united with other people, without erasing or downplaying their experiences.

[Alicja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Matt Greene’s ‘Jew(ish)’ is certainly interesting book covering a range of important topics and underlying some hard truths. At the same time, it remains deeply personal, the author’s subjective perspective at the heart of all the essays.

[Jonathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had been sitting half opened on my kindle for a while now, and wanted rid, so set myself the goal of finishing it, to get rid.

As a ‘proud Jew’ I could relate a lot to what the author was saying, but would struggle to say it was an enjoyable read.

Some interesting thought provoking points were scattered throughout, however despite that it would be hard for me to recommend to anyone as a decent read.

[Sammy · Rating 2 out of 5]

So frustrated by this one. The topic is extremely interesting, but the writing is all over the place. It jumps from one thing to another and often forgets to go back and finish an anecdote, repeats itself needlessly in other places and is just, frankly, a mess.
The first half is personal anecdotes and the author figuring out his identity, the second half is political commentary. During that second half it became clear that the author was a journalist, and that certainly explains the format of the second half, which seemed tyo be a collection of rants/opinion pieces suitable for a newspaper column. Unfortunately it doesn't read well as a book format.

With some editing/rewriting, I think this could be an excellent read.

[Michael Doppelt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I discovered “Jew(ish)” as a result of the Amazon algorithms offering me a free kindle version (the author can feel free to insert his joke of choice) but I have since gifted the book to others and am taking the time to write a somewhat positive review so I guess the joke is on me as the algos did their job.

Early on, I almost put the book down on several occasions as I was not interested in being lectured on the foolishness of older Jews, the archaic nature of our rituals, and the evil tendencies of anyone to the right by yet another self-appointed, self-congratulatory, self-righteous enlightened young person. The author spends much of the book, especially the early section, establishing his bona fides about his irreverence towards organized Jewishness, how lapsed his practice is, and how well he knew how to rebel. The stage is set for the exploration.

In the era tik-tok and short attention spans, I am pleased to see Matt Greene do a deep dive on a 5,000 year old topic which is too often given short shrift. I appreciate and respect the journey on which he embarks (wondering if his journey reached an end). In our Western comfort, the wholeness of the Jewish experience is often easily reduced to some quick throw-away lines: I wasn’t bar-mitzvahed, I could not live without shrimp, I don’t want to go to Israel because of the Palestinian situation, my rabbi was boring, they don't consider me Jewish etc. At the very least, “Jew(ish)” gets to a place that says, wait this stuff is complex and nuanced and deserves discussion. Matt Greene realizes/learns that however he chooses to engage with Judaism and wherever he places it in his life, there is, indeed, a place for it. It does not need to be 100 percent (how could anything be?) but it is not zero percent either.

It was good to go along with him on his journey. It was particularly meaningful when it was about the Jewish experience writ large and less about his personal turmoil. The author uses this book to work through some struggles. It felt throughout that he was holding back, fists clenched, resistant to being convinced that there is something relevant about Jewish tradition today and great/important about Israel despite elements which can be confusing or troubling. He does not seem to have any such ambivalence when it comes to his political leanings. I am trying to understand why he is so resistant on the Jewish front. He ends the book by never feeling more Jewish with the “J” lower-cased and the “ish” in upper-case. It felt like a pareve outcome. He can be a capital J all day and not follow the commandments or support Israel. The tent is large; we can all be capital Js.

My big questions about “Jew(ish)” and the author relate to the end and the beginning. This exploration was undertaken in connection with the birth of a son to the author and his non-Jewish partner. The author rolls his eyes at his father’s comical suggestion of a brit-milah and a Hebrew name in honor of a departed loved one. At the end of the book, the author proudly declares that when his son asks one day if he is Jewish, the author will tell him yes! But, why and how? Is being Jewish similar to being Canadian or Belgian that one can be part this or part that? The author is clear that a British suburban teenager hearing the testimony of a Holocaust survivor is not actually a witness. How is a highly assimilated and a Jewishly ambivalent family part of the large tent? They can be if they want but it requires effort. What is this next generation Judaism that is the proud denouement of the book? The child’s mother is not Jewish and the father struggles with his Judaism like with a deep dark family secret. It is nice that the father will proudly declare yes when asked by his son. What will the mother declare? Perhaps the author’s conclusion is that being Jewish is actually like being Canadian or Belgian, we can all be a little of our history and we are whatever we feel. Feels ish.

The most telling point of the conclusion is that, the author will wait for his son to ask if he is Jewish rather than share that key fact first. What if this son does not have the capacity to ask?

Matt Greene is thoughtful and funny. I hope other people read this book. It is more plea than manual. I hope writing this book helped him establish convictions and provided him with the courage to express them without offending his enlightened peers.

[Jamie Bee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughtful, and Humorous, Look at Being a Modern Jew

While this book is billed as Jewish humor—and it certainly does have some witty and funny moments (some very subtle and dry)—I found the book, for the most part, to be more serious. Or at least, it discusses more serious topics like religious identity and what it means to be a post-Holocaust Jew as that earlier generation fades away. The author drew me right into the book with the prologue about the birth of his son and the religious questions that brought up for him as well as his concerns for what was going on in the world at the time. While humorous at times, I found this book to be so much more, incredibly thoughtful and thought-provoking. A fascinating read.

I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.

My book blog: https://www.readingfanaticreviews.com

[Cindy Salamone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jew(ish)

When I started this book, I thought it was going to be a humorous take on being a non-observant Jew. I thought only those of us raised as Jews would read this. There were stories and anecdotes at the beginning that I definitely could relate to as one who grew up in a Jewish household, participating in Jewish traditions and rituals, yet as an adult has largely( but not completely) put those aside. But this book is much more. It is an exploration of what it means to be a Jew, which is complex in and of itself...since it is so many different things to each of us. It also examines antisemitism and for that alone, is worth the read....for everyone.

[Jonny Brick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Primer (Jews are funny), Memoir (Matt is clever), Manual (Anti-Semitism and Nazis are awful) and Plea: Matt's essays (born from a failed novel) outline the full megillah of British Jew-ish life, from the perspective of a man who has married out but will stay within the belief system he has grown up within but without. Very good on the Israel paradox and perfect for non-Jews. I hope he adapts this for the stage.

[Jonathan Hollis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jew(ish) challenges many preconceptions about what it means to be Jewish. It also highlights the sadly continuing role of antisemitism in forging that identity. It is a subtle book that does not seek simple answers. Highly recommended to anyone with an open mind.

[Teri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Matt Greene leans more heavily on the "ish" of his Jewish identity. Greene's memoir begins with a humorous look at his perspective of growing up Jewish and questioning his faith and understanding of his Jewish heritage. What the book ends up being is, in part, a history of Jewish persecution and a political discussion on antisemitism. Greene is British, so part of the political discussion was lost on me as an American; however, there were certainly jabs at the racist rhetoric in recent American politics that I picked up on.

The chapters in Greene's book are mostly individual essays on eight subjects: God, family, comedy, security, Israel, race, the internet, and Poland. In each one, Greene discusses how these topics have helped shape his Jewish identity. Married to a non-Jew, Greene believed his heritage would not affect his relationship with his wife or consider how they raised their children, preferring not to keep a traditional Jewish home/life. It seems that over time, Greene contemplates what being Jewish meant to him and that maybe, for him, it's important to remember his heritage and advocate against antisemitism through his writing.

The last chapter was the most compelling to me, as he wrote about a trip he took to Poland to visit several concentration camps. Along a walk between Auschwitz and Birkenau, he befriends a Polish woman and gains her perspective on what being Jewish means to her.

This is a book I didn't love but didn't hate. I couldn't relate to much of the British political discussion and the racist incidents in Britain. Some of these incidents were mentioned without backstories, so I didn't completely understand their context to his thesis, but I certainly understood the point he was making and could relate to those he mentioned here in America. I had started out expecting a humorous memoir in the vein of David Sedaris, but it quickly became an appropriately serious look at antisemitism. If you can wade through the political rhetoric, there is an important message on Jewish identity.

[Ashley McMullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Jewish identity, as I hope this book begins to convey, is complicated and the times we live in are confusing and will only continue to get more confusing."

Matt Greene does a really remarkable job with this book in how he ties together witty, biting humor with serious, big questions about what it means to be Jewish for him. He tells a personal narrative about growing up Jewish while touching on important topics such as Israel, race, God, family, and a trip to Poland and the city his ancestors once lived in. I appreciated his challenge of what exactly does it mean to be Jewish and tying in cultural, racial, religious, and nationalistic views. He does talk about politics - in Great Britain, where he resides, as well as in the U.S., and a little bit in Israel and Palestine - and how that's shaping Jewish identity in the world today.

He also discusses important views for non-Jewish readers. Like the fact that anti-Semitism shouldn't have be proven to us and then proven why it's important that it's still happening in 2020. It's not every Jew's responsibility to have an opinion on what's happening in Israel, or at least an opinion they *have* to share with you. It also challenges non-Jews to reflect on how we discuss Jewish folks. Are they considered White until they're not? Meaning, when we think about the Jewish community, do we give them the perks of being White until we White folks don't want them to have those perks? Which really means, do we allow them to be safe they way White folks are safe . . . until we don't?

This is just one of the topics that made me stop and ponder a deeper concept of "Jewishness." I'm not Jewish, and I don't know many Jewish folks personally, so this was a book that shed a brighter light on the culture and realities for them.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the concepts it presented, and how they were presented. It challenged my views, and asked me to think about why I thought and felt the way I did whenever I think about certain groups of people. I docked it a star for one reason only: he rambles, and while most of the time, if it's kept humorous, like he did, it's fine. But there were times when we took a big loop to get to the point. That's fine. But it just didn't appeal to me always.

Anyway, I recommend this book, and I'm glad I tacked it on my reading list this year. Thanks GoodReads for showing it to me!

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an incredibly powerful and important book, and one I can highly recommend for both Jews and non-Jews as a valuable insight into the author’s experiences as a British Jew and a Jewish Brit (these concepts are discussed in the book).

Despite the book’s tag line, it is in part a memoir with the author sharing his thoughts and experiences of what it is to be Jewish, and the good and bad experiences of his friends and family of what it has meant to be Jewish through the decades. I actually found it less of a “plea” since at no point does Greene attempt to project his own political agenda on the readers, and all references to discrimination and anti-semitism in US politics and the main English political parties are fact based.

What is particularly clever is the juxtaposition of some very humorous anecdotes and Greene’s self-deprecating style, with some very tragic stories (the chapter entitled Poland is particularly difficult to read) and personal details on the expectations of the author’s family, his community and society as a whole of how he could and should be living his life as a Jew.

With thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

[Catherine Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was time well spent. On many levels. This is a millennial, considering his life to date (I'm estimating that's less than halfway through) AND YET . . . he's a husband and a new parent and a writer/comedian. His experience, his thoughts, his journey has something to offer to the rest of us.

I listened to the audiobook because I love when a writer reads their own work. It's like we're having a private moment. Him wanting me to understand what he's saying. I appreciate that.

It's actually a memoir done in a series of essays that are "chapters." And some of the coming-of-age stories are quite amusing. One "Aha Moment" was considering what it means to write Jewish comedy for a non-Jewish audience. I had never considered that, but he tells a great story about his own realization of this.

For me, the two standouts are "The Internet" and "Poland." And he does not spare his critique of America under Trump and what is happening globally that is impacting Jews worldwide. In the end, I think he makes peace with how he will live with his Jewishness and how he will raise his son (of a non-Jewish mother.) It was time well spent. I enjoyed every moment.

[Statia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Greene says, "the Jewish experience is not (or not exactly) defined by anti-Semitism." But that's exactly what this memoir does. It's a lot of UK politics, assimilation, Holocaust, persecution, and conspiracy theories just to get to Greene's resolution of "I still don't know what it means to be Jewish." I can respect his journey and it's a good thing I read Jew[ish] as part of my own Jewish journey and education. It gave me a completely different perspective than what I've been reading - which were overwhelmingly positive stories about adults returning to Judaism or Jewish coming of age stories.

I don't agree with the concept of being "ish" of Jewish. I think it diminishes the value that comes form being part of that community, tradition, and heritage. I also deplore his statement, "that Jews are white grants us certain advantages and rights." Not all Jews are white. That statement is isolating, incorrect, and actually racist. I'm reading Jewish Pride by Ben M. Freeman next just to get the sour taste of this memoir out of my mouth.

[Sara Green · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like I like quite a sheltered and uninformed life, so I really appreciated this book for the perspective it gave me one man’s experience of being Jew(ish) in the UK in the 21st Century. The overt anti-Semitic trolling in the internet chapter was particularly sad and shocking, but at a deeper level there are challenges I’d never really considered (which strike me as analogous to those faced by the LGBTQ+ community) - whether to conceal or reveal, the prevalence of damaging a and unhelpful tropes and the expectation to be a voice on key issues for the community as a whole (I liked that throughout Matt Greene always stressed that this was his personal experience, and that others may vary). If I give this 3 stars it’s only because I found some of the political chapter difficult to follow - a bit more focus on my part would probably bump it up a star.

[Dee Howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I certainly learned a lot of historical facts from this book, I am acutely aware that this is just one opinion, from one person, on his Jewishness. My Jewish husband, who is under investigation by Labour for anti-Semitism, despite suffering from it himself when younger, for his online criticism of the Israeli government's annexation, discrimination and bombing of the Palestinians, owns a different kind of Jewishness. He believes in human rights for all and stand in solidarity with all oppressed people around the world, not the oppressors. Matt Greene has made no mention of what he thinks on this subject and, as Jews are required to be caring people (donating to charities etc.) I would have hoped to learn his political views on apartheid too. This book left me feeling very sad.

[Meg Leader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was one of Amazon First Reads choices for November. There were parts of it discussing recent English politics that I found long and dry, but overall it resonated in so many ways for me. Whereas the author was raised jewish and no longer participates, I’ve spent time as an adult trying to understand the cultural impact of being of jewish, lower case j, descent has had on me. I highlighted so many passages through the book as I read it.

[Kate Peper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating exploration on what it means to be Jewish in the 21st century. 80 odd years on from the Holocaust, does anti-semitism still run rife? Importantly, this book discusses the difference between religion and ethnicity and debates the right/need for the Jewish state of Israel. Very informative.

[KD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stayed up late reading this - that's always the best recommendation, isn't it?
I wish I'd reviewed sooner as I think it's a great book, and would like to go in depth a bit more, but it's a personal memoir really, so I'm hesitant to critique in the way that I would a novel or non-fiction.

Anyway: this is an utterly readable book. It's firmly set in the UK. Greene's life is, frankly, interesting. When someone is as reflective and thoughtful about their life as he is, anything that they write is interesting. Whilst the book is called "Jew-ish", as I write this review a few months after reading, I wouldn't say that's a particularly dominant part of the book - it's not an exposé of a religious way of life in the vein of "Unorthodox" or similar. However, the personal points on anti-semitism are really important and personal testimony is so important in understanding what prejudice looks and feels like.

I thought there were a lot of quotable moments, so rather than try and extract all the quotable quotes, I mentally shelved this book as "fantastic memoir, recommend to all". And I have. Reflections on his identity, his family, his family's history, society, racism and antisemitism in particular...everything. I like that it's not conclusive on everything; the author is a young man and you do get the sense that he's still working things out. I just really related to being at this point in your life and related to the sense of having lived through so much, but knowing there is so much to come.

I would really enjoy reading more of Greene's work. After racing through this book, I just NEEDED to find more of his writing. I find his twitter witty, incisive, and super interesting - and I'd love to read more opinion pieces and interviews by him. He has a very human way of writing and a compassionate view of the world. I mean this as the highest of compliments - he writes like a top Guardian columnist. Very characterful, expressive writing that's just a joy to read. It's so well-suited to the memoir/personal history format. I'm sure it takes considerable courage to bare your soul and share your life story with the world through a book like this, but I'm certainly glad that Matthew Greene has done so.

A great compliment to this book is the recently published "Jews Don't Count" by David Baddiel, in my opinion - if you're looking for accessible reading on what modern british antisemitism looks like. "Jew-ish" is firmly rooted in British culture, which, as British person, makes the book highly relevant. We cannot only read and reflect on American society; as important and huge and influential as the US may be, there is plenty going wrong over here on this island! To that end, Greene is (sadly) able to supply many, many concrete examples of anti-semitism in the media and UK culture over the years. This armed me with irrefutable, citable sources for when I have to debate with people about the existence of the hidden bigotry that is antisemitism in the UK- thank you for compiling them in this book.

Most saliently: Greene shares my opinion of how disgustingly, openly antisemitic the media treatment of David Miliband was in the years around 2010 (general election). Greene is passionate and persusasive in his flawless takedown of racist media sources. Apologies to include this in the review as it is hard to read, but particularly the "North London geek" accusations. Three words, and the associated inferences - it implies so much. We MUST break down what these anti semitic codes are, we must spot them , dissect them, and rip them out of the hateful articles published in the UK gutter press. To add my own personal experience, I discussed this section on Miliband with a friend with a similar upbringing - he said that though saddening, he was so grateful to have people articulating and representing feelings such as this. This matters!

I'll close with two of my favourite quotes, which sum up what you can expect from this book. Firstly, on the disingenous British concept of assimilation:

"It makes assimilation both a failure and a requirement and asks only in return that you adopt the specifically British values of openness and tolerance, which means being open to closed-mindedness and tolerant of intolerance, even if they’re being directed towards your own community; it’s the height of bad manners to point this out."

This second point is one of the most beautiful, moving, and unforgettable depictions I've ever read. It's Greene's self-analysis of why we digest media - books, films - on the worst of human history - on the holocaust, on famines, on war atrocities, on torture - it really spoke to me. In this extract, Greene is a university student, so he's at that time in his life full of exposure to new people and experiences, with the time and experiences to explore new ideas. He's in his university library:

"in a rare foray into the library I got lost on my way to Cognitive Linguistics and, despite having an essay due, spent several hours learning about Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. I sometimes wonder now if this newfound interest in ethnic cleansing and racial atrocity was a way of confronting something a little closer to home – the way we watch an eclipse through its reflection on a lake."

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first part of this memoir, which is about understanding one’s identity when you are Jewish. Mr. Greene is British and only a few years older than my oldest child. Like so many from this generation, they are taking the time to examine the world and its problems and embrace differences in a way that hasn’t been possible or welcomed before.
I laughed a lot at his descriptions of his experiences growing up because they track with our family and of course especially my children’s. But you don’t have to be Jewish to read this book. I would suggest reading it as a thoughtful entry on seeing life from a different perspective if you’re not Jewish and to see the world through it’s on-going anti-semitism.

The rest of the book begins to pull in the politics of the last 5 years including the divisive and racist #45 presidential term here in America. But Greene is from Britain and there a lot of specific discussions about British politics and candidates that were not as well known by me as an American citizen. He used phrases that were unknown to me and at times it felt like generational lingo when standard terms or a better explanation was needed of his point.
My main issue is that some of the writing from the mid point on just wasn’t as smooth as it should have been.
The political reflections included Mr. Greene’s tour through Poland of Holocaust memorials. The last of the survivors are almost gone and too many people seem vulnerable to Holocaust denial. Greene reminds us of the real threat that exists when they are gone.
That said, Greene’s understanding of his Jew(ish) ness was spot-on for me. I think my husband would understand perfectly and that so to would our children. Yes, our kids have half of a family that is Christian-gentile, but at the end of the day we are Jewish.
To be a religious Jew is to be observant, but there is an ethnicity to your identity. This memoir circles around that Jews for the most part are not always obvious by looks, so some sense of experiencing racism isn’t acknowledged by others. Yet we must realize that Jews have historically been the world’s scapegoats, that anti-semitism is alive today—perhaps more overt now in Britain and the U.S. in recent years as populism, nationalism, and fascist tendencies abound in world politics. We cannot allow for prejudice in any form, towards any group. I think that is the point for Mr. Greene as I read it. To be Jewish is to have an identity. To be threatened and/or intimidated with one’s essence is crime against all humanity.