Chaim Potok

Asher Lev, born into a devout Jewish family and community, struggles to reconcile his burning need to create art with the restrictions and expectations placed on him by his faith and his people.

While Chaim Potok is most famous for his novels, particularly his first book The Chosen (1967)-which was listed on The New York Times bestseller list for 39 weeks and sold more than 3, 400, 000 copies-he also wrote plays, which are collected and published here for the first time. Rena Potok edited the collection and wrote the introduction. This book features all five of Potok's plays, production notes on each of the plays, prefaces by the directors,...

Reuven Malter lives in Brooklyn, he's in love, and he's studying to be a rabbi. He also keeps challenging the strict interpretations of his teachers, and if he keeps it up, his dream of becoming a rabbi may die. One day, worried about a disturbed, unhappy boy named Michael, Reuven takes him sailing and cloud-watching. Reuven also introduces him to an old friend, Danny Saunders--now a psychologist with a growing reputation. Reconnected by their shared...

The novel, set in the Bronx, New York, concerns a gifted Jewish boy who becomes a Biblical scholar. From shortly after birth, in the 1920's, David Lurie is plagued by illnesses that prove to be emblematic of his growing up. He is bullied by bigger boys, haunted by the "accidents" that he brings upon others, safe only within his pious home. David's inner life, tortured with fears and bad dreams is followed through the Depression, which nearly ruins...

The story of two teenage boys who become best friends despite huge differences in their upbringing. Danny is the son of an orthodox Hasidic Rabbi. Reuven comes from a progressive Jewish family whose father stands at the forefront of the battle for Israeli statehood. Danny's every moment is devoted to religious study, while Reuven plays jazz piano and is intensely interested in the changing world around him. Their family differences soon force both...

"Follows the journey of a young Jewish painter torn between his Hassidic upbringing and his desperate need to fulfill his artistic promise. When his artistic genius threatens to destroy his relationship with his parents and community, young Asher realizes he must make a difficult choice between art and faith."--P. [4] of cover.