The Talmud: Selections

If you have browsed a complete Talmud you probably know that the work is a vast expanse of wisdom literature with huge stretches of incredibly dry legal debates and minutiae interposed with rich oases of fascinating lore. It is difficult to find these islands without a map. Polano''s Talmud: Selections is just such a guide. This was one of the first English anthologies of Talmudic literature. The early Biblical lore is organized as a continuous narrative which makes an interesting supplement to a reading of the Bible. Polano includes a selection of the best stories of the Rabbis some reminiscent of tales of the Zen monks. The humor of the Talmud is also well represented (particularly the tale of the Emperor and the Aged Man with its archetypal Jewish punchline). And there is a wonderful list of Talmudic Proverbs. If you are impatient to get to the interesting parts of the Talmud this is the book for you.--J.B. Hare