Summary of The GolemÂ
“The Golem” is a retelling of the Jewish folklore story about the Golem of Prague, a giant figure made of clay brought to life by a rabbi to protect the Jews of Prague. In Isaac Singer’s version, the Golem saves a banker and other Jews who have been falsely accused, but the rabi loses control over his creation.
Reasons to read The Golem
Isaac Singer’s retelling of the classic Golem story offers a perfect depiction of Jewish life in Prague in the 16th century. Isaac Bashevis Singer, a Polish-American writer, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1978. He wrote his works first in Yiddish and then translated them into English. Other notable works by Singer include the novel “The Magician of Lublin” and his childhood memoirs “A Day of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing up in Warsaw”.
Setting: Prague (Czech Republic)
Book set in Czech Republic: Prague – The legend of the Golem is often associated with Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezalel, who served at Prague’s Old-New Synagogue.
Original title: דער גולם
Year of publication: 1969
Nr of pages: 88
