So I recently read the book Foreskins Lament by Shalom Auslander. I usually don’t do book reviews, mostly because they may make the blog into a serious one and I don’t want that, and because I read so many damned books, that I highly doubt you would want to hear about them. But some books demand a review, as do some movies, maybe that will be next on my list.
So anyway I read Foreskins Lament after many folks hounded me by basically saying it was the best and worst book they ever read that described the frum community. You see the man who wrote the book, wrote it as a memoir of his life growing up in a dysfunctional frum family in Monsey. Its not one of those secular childhoods that revolved around bagels and lox, this is the real deal.
Auslander takes the reader through his uprbringing in which everything was prohibited, he brings you to his schools, Yeshiva Spring Valley, MTA and Niveh. He talks about burning porn from feeling guilty and sinning purposefully prior to becoming bar mitzvah so his father would be killed. He talks about how he frummed out in Israel and how he struggled with his Judaism every step of the way.
He does this in an amazingly cynical and negative way, yet it is one of the funniest books I have ever read. It kind of reminds me of the John Powers book Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Reflect up? In which the author takes you to his catholic school upbringing focusing mostly on adolescence and trying to get laid. Here is some frum kid secretly truning on lights during shabbos, eating slim jims and looking at porn all so his abusive father will be put to death by God because the father gets all of the sons sins, this off the derech kid had more faith in God then many folks I know.
He then talks about being a young married guy in Teanack, which again is hilarious and he really does a great job describing it, so good that any person who grew up frum would be rolling with laughter while reading this book, while you are rolling with laughter you may be offended by his direct way of bashing orthodox Judaism, its funny, but may aggravate some folks- probably not the folks who read this blog. When I have time i’ll throw up some links to other bloggers as I am sure many have had something to say about this book.
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I want to read it but the last thing I need is more warped views…..ah.
One of the most fun books I’ve read in years! The first of its kind. I hope to see many more brutally honest memoirs like this about the frum community even if they are just copycatting.
I guess I should read this book. As a yeshiva reject, it seems interesting to me. Although if looking at porn and eating beef jerky was all he did then he’s probably ok. By the way if you want to reach a wider audience, even if you do not intend to make this a more serious blog, you should work on your grammar and spelling. Also a more expanded vocabulary would be helpful. Overall you do have some funny topics to write about though.
its much sadder then it is funny
It just scares me a bit that people actually think this is the “real deal” about Orthodox Judaisim. He grew up in a crazy messed up abusive home. His views on OJ cannot be trusted or taken without a huge grain of salt. He’s not being “open” or “honest” or “revealing”. He’s writing as a bitter, messed up, sad sad man, trapped in a religion he views as bad because of his father and family. I wouldn’t want that kind of religion, either.
He was on the NPR Fresh air Radio program I will try to find and post the link
Ok here is the link
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15059329
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15059329
All the funny parts of the book were already published in a New Yorker article. The rest isn’t funny in the least and just serves as Auslander’s catharsis.
it was only a matter of time until something like this popped up….the guy had serious issues, was probably swept under the rug at the institutions he attended, now is biting back a litle at the people who ignored him. Sad, sad story…but unfortunately not that uncommon in an atmosphere of absolutism and lack of an infrastructure to help truly troubled people.
I think he has a brilliant take on the thin layer of superficiality of the frum world. He reminds of a young Howard Stern back in the 80’s when he utttered stuff that was just lodged in back of my head which I dared not to relate to any of my family or friends
I have to say that if he wasn’t so self deprecating and negative it may have been more enjoyable. Someone needs to write a similar book but from the head of someone who happens to be frummish and lived through the same sort of thing- minus all the meat tenderizer to his penis- that was just too Kinsey-esque.
Now I want to read this book. I don’t look forward to cynicism and negativity though. That freaks me out more than his professed going off the derekh-ness.
Going off the derech would not be the correct word, this dude is out of his mind and he admits it.
another place you can hear plenty of this seriously messed up dude’s ranting is on a radio show called “this american life.” (i happen to have gotten most of my education from this show, as it is the source of all wisdom. BUT shalom auslander is one of the contributors i could do without)
i certainly feel sorry for him. but i guess there are bound to be people who are abused and have crappy parents/upbringings in any society. so it’s not really fair to mix in frumkeit and blame religion the way he does.
the outside world looks at us as freaks (at best) anyway. guys like auslander really don’t help.
Big deal, here’s another writer who bashes Orthodox Judaism. I can’t understand why Auslander is getting so much press for a book that’s mostly angry rants. It’s like having yet another Chabad-bashing blogger on the internet. So what?
Judaism will survive Auslander, as its survived all its previous critics.
i think auslander also mentions maneshevitz wine in one of his pieces (that his father was drunk on manishevitz friday night — maybe someone can verify this). this struck me as weird because as we all know, real jews don’t drink maneshevitz. it seems he’s trying to get extra mileage from this old stereotype.
This american life is an amazing radio show. I didn’t realize Auslander was a contributer
Actually when I was in yeshiva all they had was Manishevetz wine- because the plant is only 45 minutes south of Rochester. We must remember that Auslander grew up in Monsey before the invention of frummies- this was the 80s- the frummer than thous only surfaced in the late 90s
i know in the grand scheme of this book this isnt a big deal but it really annoys me.
towards the end he quotes “just when i think I’m out, they pull me back in” from Al Pacino in that mafia movie (i assume he means Scarface) now everyone knows thats from the Godfather 3, even if dont have the movie memorized like me, still its one of those lines that everyone knows.
am i missing something or did nobody seriously catch that?
I only read the book a while ago, but i cant get past that.