A History of the Jews

Excellent education that you won't get from anyone in the world of media or college. It is a must read for those who wonder, why can't they all just get along?

a gift from a wonderful professor...I read the entire book and it opened my eyes to the middle east and the conflicts. America is not so innocent!

As usual, Paul Johnson provides a veritable surfeit of information packed into every single sentence. There is more information in this book than the OED. Johnson does not allow this information to bore or even to dictate the direction of the book. He paints a fascinating portrait of the development of Jewish intellectual and social culture through the centuries overcoming many difficulties and emerging God's people on the other side. His overall themes seem a bit facile when compared to the subjects that he usually chooses, but definitely a book worth reading.

I was looking for a book that could give a broad overview of Jewish history. I think this book achieved that well. One can't expect in a book with such a broad scope that scholarship will be entirely thorough. I was disappointed by Johnson's scholarship in the portion I am most capable of checking his references on (biblical era). Some of his assumptions seemed to contradict the very evidence he presented as support. I can only assume such would continue to be the case throughout the book. I was also a little baffled as to how not even one word about Rashi graced his pages. Overall, though, a very good surface overview and introduction to Jewish history.

it was a little bit boring at first. But then, I found it interesting. Anyway, It´s not one for the collection.

Simply brilliant. This book should be read by anyone with an interest in the hstory of one of the world's most misunderstood and persecuted religion

Excelente libro! La historia de los judios es una de las más fascinantes por ser una cultura tan antigua pero que aún se mantiene muy similar a sus origenes y definitivamente su esencia es la misma.

Have a notebook handy as you read this; you'll need it to keep track of all the characters you come across. It's incredible dense but reasonably engaging. A definite must-read if you are studying the subject or simply interested in Jewish history.

read it as a primary text in a college history course. something i'd recommend to anyone. johnson's books are very read-able.

Should be called "Paul Jonson Is a Goy". I wanted to like this book, but the author makes me a little uncomfortable when he gets all warm and fuzzy about the ancient Hebrews. It's a little too much "rah-rah!" and not enough critical analysis, a little too much religion and not enough historical context. An American can write a history of Britain or an Englishman a history of China, but a self-conciously Christian historian may be a little too close to the history of the Jews, and Johnson states in the prologue that his reasons for writing this book are in part to explore the roots of his own Christianity. Sometimes this makes the book feel like an extended thank-you note and apology to the Jews.

Uh... You're welcome, Paul.