To say that this text is one of the most influential works of theology in general, and on Judaism in particular, is no understatement. With the publication of this book's first edition in 1966, the author single handedly created the discipline of "holocaust theology" and began a debate among Jews and Christians about the causes of this catastrophe and it's processes, that continues to this day.

The most widely commented and controversial assertion in the book was that the Holocaust proved that "God is Dead" or more accurately that the traditional notion of God as a loving, caring protector of the Jewish people, was in the light of the catastrophe, no longer tenable. This idea, eventually lead the author to experiment with and praise Buddhism, for it's notion of God as "empty", an idea which is also found in Jewish mysticism, known as the Kabbalah.

The author demonstrates great personal and theological courage in articulating the true issues concerning the Holocaust, and also in revising his original text a generation later, with the issuance of this superb second edition. This book covers all the developments in Israel, the U.S. and Europe between 1966-92 that the first edition could not foresee, and provides the "theological jumping off point" for those theologians, such as this writer who followed him.

That "jumping off point" is his assertion, that the Holocaust is only comprehensible in dumstruck silence as a mystery. or as traditional Jewish theology would have it, as a punishment. He finds the first course preferable to the second, since he states he would be unable to believe in a God who would punish millions of innocent Jews so horribly, for a cause he cannot or does not identify.

However, for this writer Rubenstein's inability to answer the dilemna he raises, is a critical issue, for answering this question well, and articulating it properly, are at the heart of whether it is possible to remain a Jew in this day and age. For my part, I was able to identify culpable Jewish behavior, words, thoughts and actions which could very well, from a mystical standpoint, have precipitated the Shoah as it is known in Hebrew.

My discussions of these issues occurs in my recent book, "Jewish History and Divine Providence: Theodicy and the Oddyssey" available here on Amazon.com. However, if all this writer did was to answer Rubenstein's conundrum, "Jewish History" would have only been half finished. I also work to explain the processes of divine providence which operate behind Jewish history, and how the Jewish poeple can avoid the pitfalls which lead to such massive destruction.

Rubenstein's 1992 edition of After Auschwitz is first rate popular and academic scholarship, but essentially it ends with a question. Post-Holocaust writers such as this reviewer, are as much if not more content, with answers than more questions.

In this (much) revised edition of the original After Auschwitz, Rubenstein provides not only some of the theological and social implications of the legacy of the Holocaust, but also looks to the future of Jewish theology.

Most memorable--and certainly one of the best ways to approach reading this book is to use this as a starting point--is Rubenstein's radical reconsideration of covenant. In this, Rubenstein's revised work still stands among the Death-of-God theologians of the mid- and late-sixties (Altizer, etc.) in its rejection of "that" God who either could not or would not, but certainly did not save the victims of the Holocaust. And while his more-or-less continued rejection of the status of the Nazi's mass-murdered victims as martyrs is questionable and certainly uncomfortable, this is entirely in keeping with the theological position of the work. Also keeping with his theological position as it has developed is Rubenstein's suggestion that Jews will either assimilate or reaffirm traditional perspectives on covenant--if only because no other theological resources exist in the classical Jewish texts.

Still chilling--and a must-read for anyone interested in post-trauma theologies--is the chapter discussing Rubenstein's meeting with Dean Gruber.

My only problem with the book has little to do with the quality thought or consistency--it is an astounding combination of methodological rigor and very profound theological reflection. I do think, though, that the continued emphasis on process theology and the yet-unrejected Death-of-God thought as it is reflected in Rubenstein's personal theological statements (particularly the extended discussion of the Ground-of-being) is not sufficient for a religious community. However, Rubenstein admits as much, and it is unfair to disparage him for his obviously very well thought out opinions.

Excellent and, for individuals who believe or do not believe, a necessary work for comprehending the implications of the Holocaust.

This book conveys the words of a young Union soldier who was captured and taken to the Southern prison they called Andersonville. This detailed account taken from the diary of Charles Hopkins tells a story of survival and horror. It makes you imagine trying to survive in a disease riddened prison with barely any food or fresh water. Read this book because it will be one you will never forget

This first person account provides a wealth of insight into the day-to-day rituals of "life" in one of the most forbidding Civil War prison camps. Throughout his trials, however, Charles Hopkins never loses his faith in humanity and even manages to endure with a sense of humor. His uplifting story bears testimony to the strength of the human spirit under fire. Hopkins' style of writing is descriptive and conversational, and works well with the enlightening information and photos supplied by editors Mr. Styple and Mr. Fitzpatrick. I highly recommend this book to all who are interested in the Civil War and in becoming acquainted with one of its many unsung heroes.

Emmanuel Levinas takes Jewish thought to new levels, adding very new, yet very ancient ways of thinking into his works. He has several highly recognized works in the philosphy world- "Time and the Other", amd "Existence and Existents", but his works that build directly off of Jewish thought (such as this one) are my favorites. He manages to cut through the shell of everything and shed a beautiful yet heavy light on life.... I think it would be more fitting to put a Levinas quotes from Difficult Freedom in this review, and let you see for yourself.

"At the dawning of the new world, Judaism has the consciousness to possess, through its permanence, a function in the general economy of Being. No one can replace it. Someone has to exist in the world who is as old as the world. For Judaism, the great migrations of the people , the migrations among the people and the upheavals of history have never presented a deadly threat. It always found what remained to it. It has a painful experience of living on; its performance accustomed it to judging history and refusing to accept the verdict of a History that that proclaimed itself judge. Perhaps Jewish thought in general consists today in holding on more firmly than ever to this permanence and this eternity. Judaism has traversed history history without taking up history's causes. It has the power to judge, alone against all, the victory of visible and organized forces - if need be in order to reject them. Its head may be held high or its head may be down, but it is always stiff-necked. This temerity and this patience, which are as long as eternity itself, will perhaps be more necessary to humanity tomorrow or the day after tomorrow than they were yesterday or the day before." Difficult Freedom, p.166

Several essays on Jewish issues and a brief and quirky, incomplete autobiography of Levinas, perhaps the finest thinker in post-modern Jewish philosophy. In this little volume are commentaries on Biblical and talmudic material, thoughts about current philosophical trends, what it means to be a Jew in the modern and post-holocaust world by a thoughtful survivor, and his unique wordplay. This book will shake your assumptions to their foundations. Never a casual read, but amazing to study.

THIS IS A TRUE STORY OF THE PEOPLES THAT CAME TO THE ISLAND,I AM AN EAST INDIAN AND I AM SO HAPPY THAT I FINALY CAN HAVE A BOOK THAT RELATES TO MY EAST INDIAN ANCESTORS.AND IF LUCK HAS ITS WAY,KNOW THE NAMES OF MY GREAT GREAT GRAND PARENTS THAT JOURNEYED ACROSS THE VAST SEAS TO MAKE A HOME IN THE WEST INDIES.

Look Lai has presented an in-depth analysis of Chinese and East Indian immigrants who migrated from their home countries and went to new lands in the West Indies where there worked in sugar plantations as indentured laborers. His hybridization thesis is refreshing and brings to light the different cultural experiences these immigrants had in the British colonies of Trinidad, Jamaica and Guyana. I recommend this text to anyone interested in learning about the history of plantation labor in the 19th. century and about the tumultuous events that occurred. This author is the only one so far who has investigated the West Indian Chinese and East Indian cultures together and he has worked to put the text into its correct historical context. Easy to read. A must for those who want to read about how two races, Chinese and East Indians, had ethnic tensions within their own cultural backgrounds: the caste system delineated who was higher in rank and who was at the bottom for those who came originally from India, and the Hakka/Cantonese differences were pre-emminent. Look Lai proves that the precursor of events that took place, the British immigration laws, the indentureship system, the riot incidents, and the tensions among the white plantocracy and freed slaves and indentured laborers, paved the way for the political and economic problems of the 20th. century. I enjoyed the book tremendously. Henrietta Akit. B.A. Hons.in History, University of Western Ontario, Canada.

I am about to enter a 4 month training school to be a Pharmacy Tech in the military. I wanted something to look over to generally familiarize myself with some common drugs, without too much overwhelming or detailed information. This book is perfect for that. It's quite a big book with lots and lots of different drug profiles, including common brand names of that drug and some very very general info about what it does, how it works, side effects, etc. It has an index of different categories of diseases and ailments that you can use to search for a specific drug, or you can search by the brand name to find the actual drug (ie searching for Tylenol takes to to Acetamenophin and so on...). Otherwise you can simply flip through the drugs alphabetically. I wish the explainations of how they work were a little more in depth, but for it's purpose it works perfectly as a very easy-to-comprehend reference guide for the general population on drugs. And it's nicely packaged to boot with sturdy smooth pages and color pictures - not cheaply made at all.

This book could not be more easy to use! Everything you need to know about the drug on one page! Very current, and from Johns Hopkins, no less. It has a great index, with both generic names and brand names listed, and is fully illustrated in color. An excellent book to own or give as a gift. the chart on grapefruit juice interactions could save your life!

I'm going back into a Masters Program and plan to teach English for a living. Already this book has proved to be a valuable resource when surveying various schools of criticism. The cross-referenced index is a bit confusing, but this is a nice book that you may want to sit down with and read for awhile anyway. I've found some wonderful items in here, and it's fun to flip through, looking for previously unknown literary schools that may catch my interest. It's a great reference book, but also a compelling source of information and direction. I laid out the bucks for this book because I know it will be a handy reference for the next thirty years. Already it's directed me to some outside reading that has proved quite profitable. I'll keep this guide close by as long as I am a student of Literature.

Provides a consise, and yet sufficiently nuanced and complex, summary of theoretical schools, practitioners, terms, and trends. Hefty and yet readable reference material -- cross-indexed with more thorough bibliographies for each entry.

From the highly respected John Hopkins University Medical School, "The John Hopkins Medical Guide to Health After 50" provides extensive information in an easy to use and easy to understand format. It is logically divided into three major divisions plus several extremely useful appendices. The three major divisions are Disease Prevention, a thorough Body Atlas, and the alphabetic Guide to Medical Disorders.

The section on Disease Prevention includes information on longevity, exercises, diet, Weight control, smoking, alcohol, and screening tests. It carefully discusses each of these items and their importance to keeping healthy.

The section on the Body Atlas is exactly what you would expect from the name. It is thoroughly illustrated and covers all major organs and structures of the body including the skeletal system, eyes, ears, endocrine system, digestive system, and others. The only one that I found lacking was the part on the muscular system. With a frontal view of the muscular system it clearly shows how they relate to each other, however, there was no illustration of the muscular system of the back. Since back problems are fairly common as we age I would have like to have seen a view of the back muscles in addition to the frontal. All the illustrations provided are detailed, in full color and well designed.

The Medical Disorders division is by far the most extensive section. It covers all the expected items such as arthritis, breast cancer, chronic pain, coronary disease, and emphysema. But it also includes some unexpected topics such as bipolar disorder, sleeping problems, and even wrinkles. Each disorder typically include information on causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment options, side effects, involved structures, current research, and alternative therapies. It is easy to look through a particular disorder and come away with sufficient knowledge to intelligently discuss the condition with your physician. Knowing what questions to ask and the purpose of a suggested treatment regimen is a critical step in taking control and responsibility for your own health. This book provides you with that knowledge.

A very highly recommended book, it is extensive in its coverage, filled with excellent illustrations that clearly demonstrate the accompanying text, contains a medical glossary, and a thorough listing of support groups and organizations for various disorders. With over a hundred specific ailments common in people over 50 this is an important reference text for any home.

A terrific guide to all of the major medical disorders for people who reach a certain age! Easy use A to Z format, colorful illustrations, and written in clear language, this is a must-have medical book for yourself, or for a loved one. It is ideal for people caring for their elderly relatives as well.

This book is excellent. It covers a wide variety of topics and areas of interest, including the theory about finance and development, econometric evidence, and institutional issues. It is a great service to the economic profession and to any one interested in what a growing financial system means to the developing world. Unfortunately, it does not cover the important topic of financial crisis, which is clearly relevant to the developing world today; but it offers a solid and broad look at the arguments and issues of financial development in tranquil circumstances.

99

For a first edition this book is amazing. As a medicine intern going on to second year, I too find it more useful than the Washington Manual, though the two books clearly have different purposes. As I said in the title, I wish this book were more pocketable (it fits, but is heavy). The first thing I would get rid of would be the formulary. I understand that the formulary is part of what has made the Harriet Lane book so successful, but it is a waste of space to put a formulary in a handbook of Internal Medicine.

*Amin Sabet

What a fantastic book! Similar to the Harriet Lane handbook for kids, this book has useful differentials, management plans, and treatments for the comprehensive evaluation of adults. Great coverage with useful algorithms. Also summarizes common errors or pitfalls. Many chapters with a heavy evidence-base when available. Formulary not as useful as Harriet Lane.
Overall, FAR superior to the Washington Manual. Strongly recommended for students and all residents (not just internal med) caring for adults.

An incredible piece of work! I want to congratulate the authors for this work of art. Well-chosen words, self explanatory equations. Great, great! I encourage these authors to write more books like this.

Dude, I LOVE this book. I couldn't put it down...this is a MUST-READ! If there's one thing I want for Christmas, it's this work of art. Superbly written and well-executed...it just keeps getting better.. GOOD JOB BOYS!