The Blind Angel

Book excerpt: For twenty-five years, Rabbi Tovia Halberstam, a scion of leading Chassidic dynasties, told riveting Chassidic tales to an audience of thousands on the Yiddish radio in New York. These legends, as precious and rich as family heirlooms, were known to millions of Jews before the Holocaust. Preserved today in their original Yiddish by the Chassidic community, the tales capture a vibrant culture with animated characters, humor, wisdom, human struggle, and moral lessons. In The Blind Angel, Rabbi Halberstam's son, Joshua Halberstam, renders these tales for a contemporary audience while maintaining the full charm, rhythm, and authenticity of the original tales. As the author retells his father¿s stories, he opens a window to a world that is unfamiliar and intriguing to many. Readers will smile in appreciation of the rebbe's wit, cherish a surprising Chassidic teaching, find themselves moved by a protagonist's challenge, and delight in the sheer pleasures of storytelling.