Book Review: The Will To Live On

"And so the Melting Pot is beginning to work on Jewry," writes Herman Wouk in The Will To Live On.

The book promises to be a prognostication on the likelihood of the survival of American Jewry, at least according to the jacket, and in this respect, I was a bit disappointed, because I didn't feel like I got any new insights into our chances.

What I did walk away with was a newfound appreciation for my faith, its origins, and its richness. An octogenarian writer with a vast set of experiences and an eloquence of magnificent proportions, Wouk proceeds to break down Judaism and Jewish history into its component parts and ultimately relate how it all ties together. In each part, however, he provides the basics so that the novice can understand it, but in "going back to basics" in a different way, he inspires the long-time (jaded, perhaps?) believer to rediscover some of the allure and excitement that was initially (and hopefully, continually) inspiring.

Wouk often references and hints that, in some ways, this is a sequel to This Is My God, a book I first read in Japan and was tremendously inspirational in my own journey of self-discovery.

I wouldn't call this one a page-turner, but it was a solid read. And, it's possible that in the voyage of Jewish history, he offers the possibility of long-time survival against the wave of assimilation.

Wouk basically says, "with a heritage as rich as this, there will be many who realize it foolhardy to toss it away."

Let's hope he's right.