Rambam's Ladder: A Meditation on Generosity and Why It Is Necessary to Give

I think a good book is one you can't forget. A great book is one that changes the way you live your life. Rambam's Ladder is a great book. After reading this book, we upped our charitable giving 500%. I took a good look at what we are giving and how much we are earning and came to the conclusion that we were appallingly cheap. The family had much more fun on Thanksgiving giving away more money. Everyone who is asked by a begger on the street to give me and feels uncomfortable needs to read this book.

Rambam's Ladder is a primer for charitable giving. As to Mr. Draiman's criticism that Ms Salamon never actually told us HOW to give, he missed her point. Clearly, the steps on Rambam's ladder gave us the blueprint. It is up to each of us to choose HOW and how much. Just as no one can tell us HOW to live, the right role model can inspire our choices. Maimonides was an exceptional role model. Evidently, Mr. Draiman and I were reading two different books. On pg.5, "He was Rabbi Moses ben Maimon....Among his most significant works was a treatise on God and metaphysics..'The Guide to the Perplexed'."This book should be given as a gift to teenagers. It will open their minds to the beauty of tikkun olam (healing the world) and tzedukah (justice). It's a great gift for a friend, as well.

One of the many virtues of "Rambam's Ladder" is that it can be read in one sitting! I never expected it to be a page-turner, but Salamon managad to find so many ways to keep me reading, from the running character of David the homeless man to the steps of the ladder to her examination your own experiences and feelings. At several points i found myself stopping to reflect (guiltily) on my own circumstances/attitudes/experiences. I can't imagine anyone reading it and not having a some form of personal response. Her honesty and clarity (and wisdom) made it so compelling, and her interviews with people like the executive at Citibank and her friend Patti --and her little stories, like the one about the young guys on the subway -- balanced the historical material perfectly. It will have a profound impact on everyone who reads it.

The first thing to know about this fine book is that it does NOT preach. The object is not to make the reader feel guilty, but to think and search within herself or himself. The word "meditation" on the cover is key: this is a glimpse into Julie Salamon's own soul-searching, amplified by her talents as a researcher and writer. Reading this slender book is like taking a seminar from a very wise teacher, and taking the lesson in deeply. Julie talks to everyone from rich philanthropists to a homeless man she encountered often, and helps us think through some of the deepest goals of philanthropy. This is a quiet book that will make you really think about something that deserves thought: how does giving change the world, and us, in the best possible way? I know it will change the ways in which I give, and the reasons I give as well.

Well, I am enjoying the privilege and the pleasure of reading Julie Salamon's book, "RAMBAM's LADDER, A Meditation on Generosity and Why It Is Necessary to Give",and I keep thinking that you shouldn't leave your apartment or home without having read this book. The book is a quick read, but the messages -- and the writing (how I adore her writing) -- will stay with you forever and will alter the way in which you see the world.For Gotham-dwellers, especially, Julie delves into one of the issues that confronts us daily, and which begins one of those internal arguments and justifications we have with ourselves: the issue of "to give or not to give" to the people in our neighborhoods begging for money on the streets. Julie, true to her amazing talents, turns this internal debate into some goose-bump-sprouting stories that help us sort out the issues and share with us some hard-won wisdom.I think this book should be required reading for everyone!!!