The 391-page book minutiously chronicles the history of the Yiddish speaking community of Williamsburg (Brooklyn, NY): its stringent inception in the post World War II years by a wave of Hasidic Jew immigration originated from Eastern Europeanshtetls, its contentious relations with neighboring African American and Puerto Rican communities, and its partly reluctant but progressive gentrification by the forces of commerce and urban development. The narrative covers historic, racial, sociological, political, urbanistic, and emotional aspects.
Critique
Critics from various sources encounter the book "persuasive" (Samuel Stein, Jewish Currents, 2021).[5] "fascinating" (Zalman Newfield, New Books Network),[6] or "delightful, compelling, interesting" (Bennet Baumer, The Indypendent).[7] Ben Rothke (The Times of Israel) praised its "spellbinding narrative",[8] while Gabe S. Tennen (Gothan Center) referred to the book as "detailed, crisply written, a caveat to nearly fifty years of scholarship".[9]
Awards
The book won the 71st National Jewish Book Awards in American Jewish Studies (2022) given by the Jewish Book Council, in recognition to the "impressive training, sensitivity and scholarly style" distinguishing the authors.[10]
