Publisher Description

First published in the late 1920s, The Island Within was Ludwig Lewisohn's first novel to focus on a Jewish theme. Emerging from the experience of World War I and the 1920s, this novel on alienation and mixed marriage (and much more) addresses itself with undiminished power and relevance--and poignancy--to the peculiarities of American Jewish life that continue through to this day.

Author Biography

Ludwig Lewisohn (1883-1955) was an outstanding twentieth-century American Jewish writer and man of letters. His books include The Case of Mr. Crump and The Last Days of Shylock.

Review

Beautifully written, beautifully designed and proportioned . . . . The thesis is that a Jew cannot forget his origin, his heritage, his racial culture, and still live a full contented life. All of which may or may not be true in general, but the point here is that it is true for Arthur Levey, the young psychoanalyst, who leaves an American wife to journey on some obscure mission to eastern Europe in behalf of his race . . . . A sympathetic, admirably paced account of the prenatal making of an American.-- "The New York Times Book Review"
The story . . . is worth reading and even re-reading.-- "Times Literary Supplement"

Details