THE LAST OF THE JUST

by Andre Schwarz-Bart ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 24, 1960

This first novel, the 1959 Goncourt prize, has had an impressive success all over Europe and the strength of the book, a chronicle of the persecution of the Jews from a 12th century massacre at York to the concentration camps of World War II, is not to be questioned. It is from this first incident, when a Rabbi Levy slaughtered some 200 of his flock rather than submit, that the legend of the Just (or Lamed-Vov) originated. One from each generation of the descendants of the Rabbi would be the chosen of the chosen people and the symbol of their suffering in the centuries to come. From the ghettos of Poland, down to the present time, this traces individual stories of the Just-often unaware of their special designation. The heart of the book is centered on the ""last of the just"", an ""Inconsolable"", Ernie, who as a small boy is already a somewhat sorry figure, slight, sensitive, and seemingly unfit for the ordeal of ridicule, calumny and brutality he will ultimately experience. There are many shattering scenes from his childhood in Poland on to his escape to France, his tender love affair with a crippled girl, and finally his voluntary entry into a concentration camp. It is here as he goes to find his kingdom of the Jews in the gas ovens of Auschwitz that Ernie fulfills his destiny... Schwartz-Bart handles his tragic theme without sentimentality, with an often unbearable realism which includes irony and does not preclude humor. To assess its appeal for a general market, one must allow for not only the will to forget but also for the very particular inflection here of the Eastern European Jew -singularized not only by their background but by their enclosed, orthodox faith. Critical response- in addition to strong publisher enthusiasm-may override this; it is a powerful book- an eloquent and enduring testament of the calvary of the Jews.

Pub Date: Oct. 24, 1960

ISBN: 1585670162

Page Count: -

Publisher: Atheneum

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1960

Categories: FICTION