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Title: A Summer World: The Attempt to Build a Jewish Eden in the Catskills, from the Days of the Ghetto to the Rise and Decline of the Borscht Belt by Stefan Kanfer ISBN: 0-374-27180-1 Publisher: Farrar Straus & Giroux Pub. Date: March, 1992 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 5 (1 review)
Rating: 5
Summary: Cover to cover in one weekend; mesmerized and moved
Comment: My interest in Jewish history was borne from my love of the Catskills in New York. Having grown up in a Jewish community provided me with a background that prompted many questions for which I never quite found answers. As a young person my favorite comedians were all Jewish-their sense of humor and timing was uncomparable. I could laugh and cry at the same time and it felt good. Upon venturing into the local library in my town upstate in the quest for answers to the whys and wherefores of the names around the Catskills and the pockets of Hasidic communities around my little town, I spotted Stefan Kanfer's hardbound book. A quick glance at the title and the jacket was all I needed to decide this was must reading. From the first few pages my fascination began with the accounts of the immigrants at the turn of the century from Russia settling in New York City and their reasons for looking for 'a land flowing with milk and honey'; their determination to make a living as peddlars of assorted wares; their 'at odds' relationship with other incoming Jewish immigrants; the origin of many of the words we use today; the notoriety of the little towns along Route 17 and the 'not-so-nice' goings on; the rise of the empires of the many Catskill hotels that started out as places for immigrants seeking a 'cure' from TB; the true (and perhaps unknown to many) story of the Grossinger family and others; how many famous comedians got their start in these hotels, (Daniel David Kaminsky for one) and learning the real names of these men and women was a pleasant surprise; and, finally, the sad decline of the summer exodus to the catskills by the succeeding generations as times changed. I would venture to say that the Catskills were "made" by these Jewish immigrants and the knowledge I gained from this book was worth its weight in gold. I cannot imagine it absent from my bookshelf and know that is truly one of the finest books I have ever read. This is a 'must read' publication for any Catskill dweller. Thank you Mr. Kanfer.
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Title: It Happened in the Catskills: An Oral History in the Words of Busboys, Bellhops, Guests, Proprietors, Comedians, Agents, and Others Who Lived It by Myrna Katz Frommer, Harvey Frommer ISBN: 0156002388 Publisher: Harvest Books Pub. Date: 24 October, 1996 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: In the Catskills by Phil Brown ISBN: 0231123604 Publisher: Columbia University Press Pub. Date: 15 June, 2002 List Price(USD): $29.50 |
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Title: Sullivan County's Borscht Belt (Images of America) by Irwin Richman ISBN: 0738505412 Publisher: Arcadia Pub. Date: July, 2001 List Price(USD): $18.99 |
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