Mildly interesting story. The stereotypical "Jewish" language (We should only...) rather detracts from the story - it may be accurate(ish, they weren't speaking English anyway) but it "others" the characters. I felt sorry for the golem - according to this version, he could feel and understand pride and shame and anger, but not love or mercy or justice. Which is...very convenient, for the story. Rabbi Loew blames himself for the golem's flaws, but it doesn't really follow. And the repeated omens warning of danger are, again, very convenient (the wrong words come out when someone's reading a familiar text, a candle blows out at the same point repeatedly...it makes things too easy, even if it's generally a warning of severe danger). The threats are severe, and really nasty (among others, three charges of murder, one of which actually includes the murder of a child to support the false accusation). But they come so quickly, and are so quickly dealt with, that they seem unimportant. It comes out really nasty, overall. The illustrations are well done, with an interesting discussion of them at the end of the book. I'm glad I read it, but I see no reason to reread. ( )

This is definitely a book for older children, not only in length; it’s 94 pages, divided into chapters, each one an individual story. But it’s quite dark and sad, dealing with themes of the extreme prejudice of Jews that prefigured the Holocaust. Hyman’s illustrations are detailed, beautiful, and appropriate to the complex subject matter. This is good stuff for older children, but too scary for young ones. ( )