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The Joys of Yiddish (Mass Market Paperback)

by Leo Rosten (Author)

5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Product details

Mass Market Paperback: 592 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; New edition edition (28 Oct 1971)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0140030689
ISBN-13: 978-0140030686
Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 12.8 x 2.7 cm

Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 252,643 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Popular in these categories:

#3 in	Books > Languages > By Language > Other European Languages > Yiddish
#3 in	Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > R > Rosten, Leo
#3 in	Books > Languages > Grammar, dictionaries & phrasebooks > Dictionaries

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Product Description

Book Description

Do you know when to cry Mazel tov -- and when to avoid it like the plague? Did you know that Oy! is not a word, but a vocabulary with 29 distinctvariations, sighed, cried, howled, or moaned, employed to express anything fromecstasy to horror? Here are words heard 'round the English-speaking world: chutzpa, or gall, brazen nerve, effrontery, "...that quality enshrined in a man who,having killed his mother and his father, throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan." Then there's mish-mosh, or mess, hodgepodge,total confusion...and shamus, or private eye.

They're all here and more, in Leo Rosten's glorious classic The Joys of Yiddish, which weds scholarship to humor and redefines dictionary to reflect the heart and soul of a people through their language, illuminating each entry with marvelous stories and epigrams from folklore and the Talmud, from Bible to borscht belt and beyond. With Rosten's help, anyone can pronounce and master the nuances of words that convey everything from compassion to skepticism. Savorthe irresistible pleasure of Yiddish in this banquet of a book! --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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	74% buy the item featured on this page: The Joys of Yiddish 5.0 out of 5 stars (2)
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Customer Reviews

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5.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars hilarious informative book on Yiddish words and Jewishisms, 6 Dec 1999

By A Customer

Whether you want to know the tonal permutations of Oy!, or need a couple of good Jewish jokes for a wedding/ barmitzvah, this is the place to swot up. Leo gives us some insight into the Jewish mentality through its phrases and anecdotes - great for anyone trying to make their way into that world - or for one who's been there for years without knowing their ogerke from their pupik.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Joys of Yiddish by Leo Rosten, 12 Aug 2002

By	Mr. John Griffiths - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Joys of Yiddish (Paperback)

A fair overview of common words and phrases in the (mainly Poilisher dialect of) Yiddish. This book won't teach you to speak Yiddish, but is invaluable in understanding and appreciating Jewish humour, some of which features even in Gentile American comedy. Rosten illustrates the majority of the entries with anecdotes and jokes, most of which are very funny indeed.

One thing though; if it's Hebrew you want to know about, well, it's an entirely different language and, as a hebraist myself, I have to say that some aspects of Rosten's notes on Hebrew are rather troubling. But his Yiddish seems sound, and that is, after all, what I bought this book to sample. I did so in 1980, and still dip into it on occaision.

Enjoy!

Aleichem (or, dear Ladies, Aleichen) Shalom,

John Griffiths RGN BD(hons.)

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