Books of Interest: Jacob’s Family Dynamics by Gad Dishi

Gad Dishi, Jacob’s Family Dynamics:  Climbing the Rungs of the Ladder, Devorah Publishing/Urim Publications, 2010.

This is an impressive first work on the story of Yaakov, focusing on the life and development of Yaakov and the central characters in his life.  Drawing upon a range of commentators – old and modern alike – as well as contemporary methods of literary analysis, Dishi attempts to provide deep emotional insight into the story of this central forefather.  As with all modern psychological interpretations, I found some of the insights to be more conceptually compelling and well-grounded in the text, and others to be decidedly less so.  This, however, is to be expected from any such undertaking, and those looking for a probing analysis of Yaakov’s psychological and spiritual development will certainly enjoy this work.

Recently Received:  Reasonable Doubts  by Cheryl Berman

- Shlomo Brody

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