In this cynical take on 1960s race relations by Bernard Malamud, a Jewish-American shopkeeper turns the traditional racial discrimination debate on its head. Claiming to be open-minded and desirous of not only integrating with his local African-American community but also marrying into it, he finds himself shunned, vilified, beaten and rejected for his efforts. Some reviewers suggest that he has brought these problems upon himself by trying to be “too kind” and unintentionally coming across as privileged and condescending towards those he tries to help. Themes include racial inequality, racial and religious discrimination, interracial relationships, violence. More…

The major theme of this story from Bernard Malamud, with its allusion to the biblical tale of Jacob and Rebecca, is materialism vs. spiritualism. An aging, ailing shoemaker is excited to identify a potential suitor with good financial prospects for his nineteen-year-old daughter. His dreams are shattered when the girl, an avid reader of the classics, rejects the man as being a materialist with “no soul”. He later experiences an epiphany upon learning that she already shares a romantic interest… with his equally sensitive but poorly educated, much older workshop assistant. Other themes: insensitivity, independence, self-learning, worldliness vs. love. More…

In this humorous story from Bernard Malamud a rabbinical student, a matchmaker, and an errant young woman with “desperately innocent” eyes are all potential winners. The story is as much about the young, introverted rabbi-to-be’s spiritual emptiness as it is his desire to find a wife. His first meeting with a potential match reveals an embarrassing truth: he can’t explain the reason for his calling. He feels a need to re-invent himself, and finds a path to possible redemption in the photograph of a woman whose face carries an “impression of evil”. Themes: tradition, materialism, loneliness, identity, religion, love, redemption. More…