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October 2020 Vol. 58 No. 2

The interwar flowering of Jewish intellect, creativity, and philosophy is well represented in this encyclopedia of diverse scholarly, religious, and artistic works from across five continents, one of 10 volumes funded by the Posen Foundation. Reflecting the chaos and nationalism of WW I, its revolutionary aftermath in Eastern Europe and Russia, increasing economic turbulence, and the burgeoning of American influence, this anthology explores the incredible variety of Jewish thought and talent in the interwar period. Editors Endelman, Gitelman, and Moore (all, Univ. of Michigan) have divided the book into seven sections ("Social, Political, and Cultural Thought"; "Memoir and Reportage"; "Scholarship"; "Religious Thought"; "Visual Culture"; "Fiction and Drama"; and "Poetry"), and each section is subdivided chronologically. The editors deftly capture essential streams of thought and intra-Jewish conflict. For example, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook’s reasoning that women should neither vote nor run for office sharply diverges from the opinions of Ben-Zion Hai Uziel, who suggests that a woman judge “by virtue of having been accepted by the public implies that such acceptance is valid. ...” (p. 530). Readers may examine this rich text from cover to cover or browse by topic, chronology, or contributor.

--A. Lieberman Colgan, West Chester University of Pennsylvania

Summing Up: Recommended. All readership levels.