These 14 stories, first published in Yiddish in 1942, link us to a vanished world, reviving the Jewish folklore of the fools of Helm, a mythic town set deep in the forests of Poland. There Jews had long beards and black coats that reached their ankles--but were not quite like other Jews.

In the spring after a very hard winter, they built a wall around their town to keep the cold out. Later, they invited an organist to play for the town--although there was not a single organ in Helm.

The world came to regard them as fools. An angel had been flying over Helm en route to heaven with a sack full of fools in need of repair when the bottom caught on a treetop and all the fools fell into the valley town of Helm, where they remained. The Helmites insisted that they were not the fools. "It's just that foolish things are always happening to us," explained Mottel.

For example, since thieves always steal at night, the Helm shopkeepers kept their stores open at night and slept by day. When no one came to their stores, they decided instead to hire a night watchman--who wore an inside out fur coat to be recognized, sat on a horse and guarded the shops.

But one fine morning, the watchman woke the townspeople. Their shops were emptied in the night. Furious, they dragged him to the Rabbi. He said, "I admit I saw the thieves break the locks. With my own eyes I watched them carrying the wares out of the shops. But I could do nothing." Why? Because his horse was tied to the post near town hall, far away from the shops, and untying it was too risky. The horse might gallop off and kill him.

With thieves in town, the Helmites decided there was no justice, and sent two messengers to buy some and bring it back to Helm, for rich and poor alike. The Helmites rode all the way to Warsaw, searching all the stores.

"Look no further," two rogues told them, "We'll sell you as much justice as you want." For 2,000 pieces of gold, the rogues a few hours later delivered a full barrel of justice, nailed tight and sealed all around, warning the Helmites, "More sure not to jostle it on your way. You know how hard it is to get justice these days."

When they got back to Helm, however, and reverently lifted the cover on the barrel, they smelled bad fish. "Justice of the world smells bad," they cried. "Woe! What shall we do?"
Whereupon Gimpel exclaimed, "That is the kind of justice you have in the rest of the world!"

After a great fire in Helm, the Rabbi consoled the people with the news that they could now expand their Synagogue, making it as large as Gimpel's potato patch. The Warsaw Jews gave money to their Helm brothers to fund the construction. But, carrying a great fortune, and convinced by scoundrels that they would be robbed on the road, the Helmites decided to buy feathers--which are light. And feathers, if stolen, could unlike money not be concealed by the thieves. Once back in Helm, they would sell the feathers and use the money to rebuild their Synagogue.

They set out back to Helm, and when a favorable wind arose, they reasoned that by releasing the feathers they could save themselves the trouble of carrying them. They let the feathers fly. Once back in Helm, the people cheered their heroes' return. And what of the feathers? "When you grow up," Gimpel told a saucy lad, "you'll understand that if a man can sometimes be late, surely feathers can also be late."

When after weeks the feathers had still not arrived, the Helmites decided to seek them in the larger world. And that is how the fools came to live among us.

If you think you might be one of them, read the book to verify their traits. Alyssa A. Lappen

I was originally lent this book and after the rave reviews of my 10 year old boy, I bought our own copy. The stories are well-translated from the Yiddish and represent a small review of the better stories of the "wise men and women of Chelm". From the search for the wisest youth in Chelm (Q. "Why is herring salty" -- A. "Because it comes from the sea!") to the construction of the magnificent water mill on a mountaintop these stories gently, wisely and humorously look at humans in all their foolish charm.

My father introduced this book to me by reading me stories from it. The stories are clever (unlike the wise men!) and well worth reading again and again. These stories have a gentle type of humor all too seldom seen. I love this book!

This wry 1965 collection of 14 Helm stories returns readers to that delightful fantasy town in Eastern Europe. You know, that place all the world's fools dropped when an angel flying over it accidentally tore the sack in which he was transporting them? From that day to this, we have heard of their foolishness, um, excuse me, their wisdom.

It's hard to say which of the 14 stories is the funniest. I like "The enchanted goat" (don't worry, he isn't really) and "Because of a blintz" in which Yossel and his silly wife Sossie run into some trouble over little rolled pancakes filled with sour cream.

But my favorite (and I think my children agree) is "The holes in the bagels." Mayor Gimpel, his grandson Abba and another Helm worthy travel from Helm to Vilna, the capital of Lithuania. After a night in a fine hotel, the three men assemble to discuss the fools in this city. (Now remember, this is in the Jerusalem of Lithuania, famed for its scholars and rabbis.)

"One is more stupid than the other," says Abba. "Worst of all, they have no sense of humor. As I wandered through the city, all I found was noise, hurry and bustle. There is not a shred of reason or logic in their behavior."

Needless to say, the wise men of Helm prove themselves foolish several times over. But the funniest idiocy in this tale follows their first encounter with bagels.

"Look at them," said Shloime. "Did you ever see baked goods like this? It is shaped like a millstone, with a hole in the middle and a ring of dough around the hole. But never mind the shape. Taste it!"

The next day, all three Helmites went back to the bakery and ate a dozen bagels each. When they could eat no more, they asked the baker to teach them how to make them. Rueben turned to Shloime and asked, "I'd like the baker to go over it again from the beginning. Especially, I'd like to know how he gets the hole in the middle."

Well those holes cause more fun before the tale is done. But to find out how, and a lot more besides, read a story a night. They'll last for two weeks. Then, like a good man of Helm, you can start over again. Alyssa A. Lappen

My grandfather wrote this book-I was raised on these stories, and loved them as a child. I now read them to my children and love to share all the morsels of a distant jewish culture, my roots, and theirs. I encourage all who wish to infuse a flavor of the world of the shtetl and the lives of Eastern European jews of past to read thos and his others, including my favorites, The wise Men of Helm, and the Wandering Beggar.

WOW! It's great to learn that this beloved book from my childhood is now available to my children via the Internet. I can't wait until my book arrives. I'm looking forward to reading to my children how the Wise Men captured the moon in a bucket of beat borsch, and all their other wonderful adventures that I remember fondly from my childhood!

I'm really tired of e-business people coming to me with comments like "I can't see why we can't do ..." and other comments which reflect the absolute lack of technical interest e-business people show for what should be their profession. This book continues this sad tradition. I imagine its effect is to fire up over-enthusiastic MBAs to make XML programmers lives misery.

Especially if you're in the IT field or seeking to break into it (lots of interview fodder here). Most books start with the differences between XML and HTML, how to create a valid XML document, intro the DTD, etc. Simon explains why we need XML! In clear, concise, readable prose, the author explains XML's practical applications. He does an admirable job of conveying XML's importance in terms of ecommerce and B2B applications.

If you are in business and IT, read this book. Go elsewhere to learn how to program XML. Read this to learn WHY you need to understand XML, its applications, its potential -- make a wise, informed business decision (and if you don't use it, be prepared to explain why not).

Why is everyone giving this book such high marks? SQL 7.0 unleashed is a decent reference which covers the basics but not much else.

The SQL unleashed series took a step back. I'm very disappointed that this incredible reference has now become simply average. Don't get rid of your SQL 6.5 unleashed...you'll still need it! The 6.5 edition was a masterful tome which included all kinds of wondeful info that couldn't be found anywhere else. The 7.0 book is sparse on the very details that made the 6.5 version so endearing.

By the way...David Soloman is not an author on this book (as listed above). In fact this is an entirely different team of writers than were on 6.5. Two of the heros of 6.5 edition, Spenik and Sledge are the authors of the top SQL book on my desk: SQL 7.0 DBA Survival Guide.

This was my first Unleashed series book. I was studying for my MCP in SQL Server 7, Using the Microsoft Official Curriculum. I decided to purchase this book in order to fill in the gaps. I a great book. No doubt about it. Chapters on Transactions, Locks, Indexing, VLDBS etc.. were great. I think I am an MCP in SQL Server today because of this book. Even though this book is written by many authors, you don't feel it. Buy it now.

Does this book have every answer to every question about SQL Server 7.0? No. However, if you need more information than the Books Online provide on just about any topic, this book delivers.