Starred review from August 12, 2002
Rubin's loving tribute to his paternal ancestors—"a remarkable group of people"—is as close to perfect as a family story gets. In gentle, matter-of-fact prose, Rubin, now 77 and one of the great lights of Southern letters, tells the stories of Hyman and Fannie Rubin, his grandparents, and their seven children. "What happened to them and to their parents must have been so distressing, so painful to remember, perhaps so deeply humiliating, that doubtless there was little incentive on their part to relive the memories of that time," he writes. "What happened" was that in 1902, 16 years after settling in Charleston, S.C., Hyman suffered a heart attack and became unable to support his family. Harry, the eldest child, was old enough to work. But Dan, Manning and Louis, 10, eight and seven, were sent to the Hebrew Orphans' Home in Atlanta for several years. Dora, Esther and Ruth stayed home. Eventually, Hyman was able to reunite the family. "hey were a brave band, and what they did with their lives deserves to be recorded." Daniel became a successful playwright, Manning a newspaper editor. Years after illness robbed Louis of his ability to make a living in business, he became celebrated for his ability to predict the weather. Rubin's descriptions are affectionate, yet he doesn't gloss over their flaws, and as a result, those he knows best come alive for readers. 18 b&w photos. (Oct. 1)Forecast:This should have appeal beyond the substantial population of Southern Jews and their descendants. But those interested in Southern Jews (particularly in South Carolina) may also want to know about the exhibition catalogue
A Portion of the People: Three Hundred Years of Southern Jewish Life, edited by Theodore Rosengarten and Dale Rosengarten (Univ. of South Carolina, $34.95 288p ISBN 1-57003-445-1).

June 27, 2011
This brief book is a collection of quotes from one of the great political, social, and humanitarian figures in history. With his brilliant mind and eloquent way of speaking, Mandela has certainly provided a wealth of material for a project such as this. Unfortunately, his insight is not done justice. South African radio host Crwys-Williams organizes the quotes alphabetically by subject, i.e., "On Goals," followed by "On the Future." Most quotes are just one sentence long, many fewer than twenty words. These snippets sometimes lose their poignancy when taken out of context and feel contrived to fit into a particular category. In the "On Love" section, for instance, readers will find "I'm in love with a remarkable lady. She has changed my life," with the commentary following running longer than the quote itself. Other categorizations are downright odd: "Men must follow the dictates of their conscience irrespective of the consequences which might overtake them for it" is the sole member of the unlikely category called "On Men." Where this book does succeed is in making the reader want to go straight to the source, and look up Mandela's great speeches—un-excerpted.