The Purple Ring

Ruach Ami #6

by Avner Gold

ships to lower 48 states only

Genres: Jewish, Childrens, Young Adult

191 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Yaakov Yosef Reinman is an American Orthodox rabbi and writer, historian, and scholar. His monographs and articles have appeared in many Jewish periodicals and his study of Talmudic contractual law is a text used in yeshivas throughout the world. His Ruach Ami series is written under the pen name Avner Gold.

Reinman is the author of sefer Shufra Dishtara, an analytical study of the philosophy of Talmudic contractual law, which is utilized as a text in yeshiva studies. He also co-authored the book One People, Two Worlds: A Reform Rabbi and an Orthodox Rabbi Explore the Issues That Divide Them with Reform Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch. A fluent speaker of several languages, Reinman has also become known as a translator for ancient Jewish texts into English.

He is a descendant of the Narol, and his first wife, Shami (Shlomtzie) née Rubin was a descendant of the Nadvorna Chasidic dynasties.

Reinman lives in Lakewood Township, New Jersey.

Reviews

[Perlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this aloud to my son has been a shared pleasure. The writing is good (only occasionally a bit
overwrought), the characters mostly well developed, and I love the intertwined history and hashkafah. We are now anticipating sharing the next volume in the series!

[Michael Fishman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was very into Avner Gold back in middle school. But I never read past his 3rd book. A compelling historical fiction about a Galitzian shtetl called Pulichev and its rabbinic dynasty, the Pulichevers.

The fourth book began after the Tach and Tat massacres of 1648-9. In their wake, a false messiah names Shabbetai Tzvi appeared in Turkey. Many believed in him, others saw him as a very charismatic charlatan. Shloimie Pulichever was one of the latter. Apparently, the 5th book focused on Shabbetai Tzvi's effects on Turkish society. I haven't read it, so I don't know.

This book, the 6th in the series, is a mystery. A group of gentiles are plotting to discredit the Jews of Pulichev. The current king of Poland, along with the local count, have made it illegal to persecute the Jews. But in light of Shabbetai Tzvi, some are afraid that the Jews are plotting to take over. The group, led by an apostate Jew/cum priest, conspire to besmirch the Jews. They call themselves The Purple Ring.

This book is a solid read. It spends as much time on the Jews as it does the gentile. And it hardly seems forced. The Gentiles are as fallible as the Jews, and vice versa.

My only problem is the portrayal of the priest. They make him into a tormented figure who was purposely hating the Jews just to prove he's no longer Jewish. I don't know if I bought it. And that Shloimie, himself a former priest, was so cool with them, I didn't buy that either. Avner tried to be objective, but sometimes he is not successful.