Foreskin's Lament: A Memoir

A reviewer

They are obviously going to disagree with Auslander, who has created a stunning and, at times, hilarious memoir. Everything he writes about, and I say this coming from a similar background and having gone to the same yeshiva high school he went to for a year, rings true. And his use of biblical characters to illustrate parallels to his own experience is masterful. I studied Talmud and all that for a long period of time as well, but I checked on a few things after reading this book and saw that this guy knows his stuff. No one should skip this one, as it is an important depiction of the scars a forced religious education can leave for life. If religion floats your boat, fine. What Auslander seems to suggest, and what I wholeheartedly agree with, is just don't impress it on those who don't ask for it and certainly don't scare them into it. Oh, one final note to the reviewer before me with the one-star rating. If one has strong feelings against Judaism, as I do, it does not mean he/she is a self-hating Jew and hates all Jews. I still get along with many Jewish friends. Shocking, I know. In 2008.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

inside view of child's orthodox upbringing

funny, sad, bewildering view of life growing up in an orthodox Jewish community and his struggle in leaving it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Interesting But Painful

Austlander's story is painful. It reminded me of the story of the Biblical prophet Jonah who tried tp flee from God, but could not. Jonah was cought in the sea by a fish. Austlander is cought between the void and thoughts of emptiness, which dwells in an atheistic universe and permissive society and the horror of the existence of an angry God who controls the world absolutly and is angry at him. Unfurtunatly, situations like these are created by a lack of transmittal of authentic religion, distortion of the concept of God, divinity, and judaism by parents, teachers and the society at large. Perhaps, one day, like Jonah, Mr. Auslander will rediscover what God's intentions really are, and undo his feelings toward religion.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

UGH!!!!

If you like self-hating Jews, you will love this book, from its cheap-shock title on. Those who compare Auslander to a Sedaris or other great memoirists are off the mark. Sedaris has some love and respect for his subject matter. While Auslander is occasionally funny, his bitterness casts a shadow over his work.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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