Reviews for Jews of Spain: A History of the Sephardic Experience

The average rating for Jews of Spain: A History of the Sephardic Experience based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-06-08 00:00:00 Bob Smith This is not a well-written book (the author struggles to write a clear sentence) but it is well worth reading. The post-explusion coverage is better than the descriptions of what came before in Spain. Although here in America our Jewish community was founded by the Sephardim, the coming of the Ashkenazi Jews has eclipsed these beginnings. It's almost as if the Sephardic experience is perceived as peripheral to the main course of Jewish history. As Gerber points out, nothing could be further from the truth. The Jews of Spain and their far-flung descendants built a rich and vibrant culture across and beyond the Mediterranean basin. It is an ultimately tragic story. Although modern Israel has become the new center of this civilization, it cannot replace what has been lost.

Review # 2 was written on 2014-08-31 00:00:00 Irina Degtyareva Fascinating! The Jews of Spain details the history of Jews in Spain for that past 2,000 years, beginning with the Jews who came with the Romans to the Iberian Peninsula. There is rich detail about the flowering of science and Jewish literature during the 800 year Moorish occupation of the peninsula during the Umayyad Caliphate in Cordoba, and the tragic expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492 by Ferdinand and Isabella right after the Moors were finally defeated in the Battle of Granada. Gerber continues her history by following the dispersion of Sephardic Jews all over the globe and relating what became of them -- up until the present. I loved this book because it was about not only the Jews, but also about the politics of Europe and the Middle East during the entire period. One of Gerber's theses is that the Expulsion from Spain foretold and provided a model for the extermination of Jews by the Nazis during World War II. It is a fascinating account that is also haunting, and it makes one realize how easily history has repeated itself. It is a cautionary tale that is also frightening. I heartily recommend this book.