"The Rest of Us": The Rise of America's Eastern European Jews

I originally got this book from the library, and enjoyed it so much I wanted my own copy . - It is a fascinating history of the immigration of Eastern European Jews to the U.S. Has many facts which are unique and I've never read or heard anywhere else. Well written and very readable. A valuable part of my own library.

The Rest of Us isn't really about the 'rest of us', it's mostly about the American Jewish experience through the lives of those Russian immigrants who became famous in America. This emphasis can be forgiven, because the famous are the people that most of us want to read about and identify with. You get a peek at the turn of the century Lower East Side community, and gain an understanding of how very reformed Jewish traditions and entrepreneurial opportunity for Jewish immigrants got a jump start in a free country. I would have liked to have heard the author debunk the myth that all Jewish immigrant families wind up rich in this country, however. Enjoyed the insights regarding the clash bewtween German and Russian Jewish comminities and influences.