Thomas Cahill, author of the bestselling How the Irish Saved Civilization, continues his Hinges of History series with The Gifts of the Jews, a light-handed, popular account of ancient Jewish culture, the culture of the Bible. The book is written from a decidedly modern point of view. Cahill notes, for instance, that Abraham moved the Jews from Ur to the land of Canaan "to improve their prospects," and that the leering inhabitants of Sodom surrounded Lot's lodging "like the ghouls in Night of the Living Dead." The Gifts of the Jews nonetheless encourages us to see the Old Testament through ancient eyes--to see its characters not as our contemporaries but as those of Gilgamesh and Amenhotep. Cahill also lingers on often-overlooked books of the Bible, such as Ruth, to discuss changes in ancient sensibility. The result is a fine, speculative, eminently readable work of history.


From Library Journal
Cahill argues that the greatest gifts of the Jews are the linear theory of history (vs. the cyclical theory of other ancients), with its implication that life can get better and avoid decline and the idea of the equality and dignity of each individual that culminated in the declaration that "All men are created equal." Other gifts include the concepts of universal brotherhood, peace, and justice. (LJ 3/15/97) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


The New York Times Book Review, Susan Shapiro
He stumbles on the odd aside and occasionally is surprisingly insensitive.... Still, his passion and breadth of knowledge are admirable.


The New York Times, Christopher Lehmann-Haupt
...he writes in an easy, relaxed vernacular. And he enjoys himself.... the reader enjoys himself, too, happy to have gaps filled in, amused to read the author's snappy summaries of obscure occurrences, edified by his straightforward interpretations of much-debated episodes.


From AudioFile
Cahill's historical studies enthrall us as, reaching back in time, he introduces an ancient Semitic race of nomads and relates their saga, which we then recognize as the Old Testament. This audio representation is blessed with the voice and talent of Bloom. The biblical stories are ever dramatic, humorous and instructive, and Bloom enhances them with her own passion, wit and seriousness. Her reading conveys the lovely sense of each word, and she renders Cahill's witty commentary with wry humor. Isaac's obedient sacrifice becomes almost excruciating. David's lament for Jonathan confounds any common pity. Have we really heard all this before? Old stories, old words--many known by rote--impose their marvels on us anew. S.B.S. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Booklist
Cahill, the author of How the Irish Saved Civilization (1995), turns his attention to how the Jews' concept of one God changed world culture forever. Setting the scene, he offers an extended tour of the Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament), looking at the stories and characters found there with a keen and often-amusing eye. He begins with Avraham (Abraham), who heard a voice and was willing to follow it, and explores how that voice made Avraham's descendants think and believe in ways that were so radically different as to change even the concept of time. When Cahill directly addresses the thesis of his subtitle--the Jews' contributions to the evolution of society--his book is at its most interesting. Particularly insightful is his discussion of the Ten Commandments and how they changed the hearts as well as the behavior of humankind. Although there are numerous points here with which readers may disagree, they will enjoy the thought-provoking and spirited (in both senses of the word) discourse. Ilene Cooper


From Kirkus Reviews
An engrossing overview of the values and sensibilities of the Hebrew Bible, and of how decisively they have influenced our own. The second (after the bestselling How the Irish Saved Civilization, 1995) of a projected seven-volume series on the evolution of human sensibility shows how the ancient Israelites transformed the idea of religion by gradually introducing monotheism, and equally transformed our sense of time and history. Beginning with Abraham's departure from his Sumerian homeland, the ancient Hebrews broke with the repetitive cyclical image of history assumed by most ancient religions to forge what Cahill terms the ``processive'' worldview. In this perspective, the present and future become more important than the past, for they are open to change, progress, and hope. Cahill also credits the Hebrew Bible with bequeathing to Western civilization such seminal ideas as the interior self (e.g. in David's Psalms), the universal commonalities of all peoples, and, more dubiously, a focus on interpersonal relationships (e.g. in the Song of Songs). He often manages to turn many a beautiful phrase while being forthrightly colloquial. Occasionally, however, he overdoes the plain talk, missing more profound dynamics, as in noting that he's willing to give God ``the benefit of the doubt'' for commanding Abraham to sacrifice Isaac (Gen. 22) because ``He had to jump-start this new religion and he didn't always have the best material to work with.'' But he occasionally overstates his case--surely the ancient Greeks were as significant an influence on our values and worldview as the ancient Israelites. Nonetheless, in an age crowded with bloated, pedantic tomes, Cahill offers a refreshingly succinct, illuminating, and readable summary of the Hebrew Bible's enduring wisdom and influence. (Author tour) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

ANNOTATION

The Gifts of the Jews is the latest exploration of the historical foundations of Western civilization from Thomas Cahill, author of the bestselling How The Irish Saved Civilization. Cahill's premise is simple but bold: to show how the religious, moral, philosophical, and political systems developed by the Jews -- descendants and followers of Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Saul, and David --profoundly shaped the world we know today.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Taking us first to Sumer in the third millennium, Cahill explores a civilization in which life is seen -- as it was in all ancient societies -- as part of an endless cycle of birth and death: time perceived as a wheel, spinning ceaselessly, never altering its course -- until the ancient Jews dramatically change that perception. When Abraham hears the Voice of God speaking the unexpected words 'Go forth,' the concept of an unknown future takes hold and Western civilization is born. From this insight the Jews evolve a new vision of men and women with unique destinies -- a vision that thousands of years later will inspire the Declaration of Independence and our hopeful belief in progress and the sense that tomorrow can be better than today. Thomas Cahill narrates this momentous shift with compelling stories, insights, and humor, and draws us closer to such powerful biblical personalities as Abraham and Sarah, Moses and Miriam, David, Amos, Isaiah, Naomi, and Ruth.

SYNOPSIS

The Gifts of the Jews is the most recent exploration of the historical foundations of Western civilization from Thomas Cahill, author of the bestselling How the Irish Saved Civilization. The second book in "The Hinges of History" series, The Gifts of the Jews extends Cahill's scope back to the dawn of recorded history and across a broader geographical plain. The premise is simple but bold: to show how the religious, moral, philosophical, and political systems developed by the Jews -- descendants and followers of Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Saul, and David -- profoundly shaped the world we know today. Concepts as basic as personal freedom and charity derive from their adaptations to and interpretations of their experiences. To anyone with even a basic knowledge of Western history it is clear that Judaism influenced Christianity and Islam. And it is equally clear that these three great religions (or, if you prefer, societies) formed, over centuries, the central tenets of European thought. But to have a historian as skilled at narrative and thematic synthesis as Cahill take a reader back to the beginning of these thoughts and walk through the very first expressions of free will, or a relationship with a singular god greater than the sum of the earth, or an innate responsibility to care for the weak and poor, provides a depth of understanding of the Western tradition more accessible than most scholarship or philosophy permits.

FROM THE CRITICS

Prager - Commentary

. . .[W]ritten with humor, whimsy, and an engaging sensitivity to literary nuance. But. . .aims for more than entertainment. . . .what is desperately needed is an articulation of Jewish distinctiveness. . . .Cahill. . .misleads those who may be truly seeking to understand where the Jews come from and how, as Jews, they can best carry their traditions forward into the future.

Chicago Tribune

He exalts his ancient subject; their hearts, minds and experienes resonate in hsi compelling contemporary narrative.

Sarah Horowitz

Thomas Cahill looks at history with the rigor of a scholar but explains it simplywith the skill of a gifted teacher. . .He conveys with a fresh lens a legacy 'so much a part of us' that we scarcely recognize it. —The Jewish Bulletin

Diane Zaga

Thomas Cahill places the spiritual journey of biblical-era Jewry firmly in a historical context while simultaneously making it come alive in a way that is almost sensory in its immediacy. —Jewish Journal

Library Journal