The Penguin Book of Jewish Short Stories

These stories, deeply rooted in Jewish life and consciousness, reflect authentic, often funny, images of Jewish people in the modern world. Many literary figures are featured including I.L. Peretz, S.Y. Agnon, Saul Bellow, Isaac Badel and Muriel Spark. Contents: The Golem ; Bontsha the silent / I.L. Peretz -- Hodel / Sholom Aleichem -- White Chalah ; Smoke / Lamed Shapiro -- The recluse / Abraham Reisen -- Friendship ; First kiss / S.Y. Agnon -- The story of my dovecot ; The journey / Isaac Babel -- A friend of Kafka / Isaac Bashevis Singer -- Fanya / Emanuel Litvinoff -- Badenheim 1939 / Aharon Appelfeld -- The Zulu and the Zeide / Dan Jacobson -- The conversion of the Jews / Philip Roth -- The old system / Saul Bellow -- The pagan Rabbi / Cunthis Ozick -- Setting the world to rights / Amos Oz -- Man in the drawer / Bernard Malamud -- The gentile Jewesses / Muriel Spark.