Published: March, 2004

Two novellas by S.Y. Abramovitsh open this collection of the best short works by three influential nineteenth-century Jewish authors. Abramovitsh's alter-ego -- Mendele the Book Peddler -- introduces himself and narrates both the The Little Man and Fishke the Lame. His cast of characters include Isaac Abraham as tailor apprentice, choirby and corrupt businessman; Mendele's friend Wine 'n Candles Alter; and Fishke, who travels through the Ukraine with a caravan of beggers.

Sholem Aleichem's lively stories reintroduce us to Tevye, the gregarious dairyman, as he describes the pleasures of raising his independent-minded daughters. These are followed by short monologues in which Aleichem gives voice to unforgettable characters from Eastern Europe to the Lower East Side.

Finally, I.L. Peretz' neo-Hasidic tales draw on hasidic traditions in the service of modern literature.

About the Editor

Ken Frieden is the B. G. Rudolph Professor and Director of the Judaic Studies Program at Syracuse University.

Professor Frieden has published numerous books and essays on Yiddish and Hebrew literature. His acclaimed study Classic Yiddish Fiction is the companion volume to the anthology Classic Yiddish Stories.

Frieden received his doctorate in comparative literature at Yale University.. He has taught at Syracuse University and Emory University and has been a visiting professor at Tel Aviv University, Haifa University, Heidelberg University, and the University of California Davis. He has also received major fellowships for research at Harvard University, Oxford University, the Free University of Berlin, and the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Frieden's previous work as an editor resulted in the anthologies Tales of Mendele the Book Peddler and Sholem Aleichem's Nineteen to the Dozen: Monologues and Bits and Bobs of Other Things. He edits the Syracuse University Press series, Judaic Traditions in Literature, Music, and Art.

Online Resources

A review from JBooks.com

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