Hasidic People: A Place in the New World

by Jerome R. Mintz

In this engrossing social history of the New York Hasidic community based on extensive interviews, observation, newspaper files, and court records, Jerome Mintz combines historical study with tenacious investigation to provide a vivid account of social and religious dynamics. Hasidic People takes the reader from the various neighborhood settlements through years of growth to today’s tragic incidents and conflicts. In an engaging style, rich with personal insight, Mintz invites us into this old world within the new, a way of life at once foreign and yet intrinsic to the American experience.

Genres: Judaism, Religion, History

446 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

Reviews

[Frimet Goldberger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book for my research on the radicalization of the Satmar community. Having lived the better part of my youth in the Satmar community, I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical going into it, since I found most other contemporary literature on Hasidic people to be sorely lacking. However, this book did not disappoint; it stands out in both form and content. The author weaves in anecdotal evidence with the facts, and achieves what most other anthropologists were unable to: he lands interviews with Satmar Hasidim from Kiryas Joel - the epicenter of Satmar.

Jerome Mintz is an unusual scholar in that he allows his subjects to speak for themselves. This book was invaluable for my research!