For me, this was a book of two parts. I adored the front cover and the wonderful illustrations inside, but didn't always 'get' all of the stories. Some I found much more enjoyable than others. Having read the background at the beginning of the book, I'm so very pleased that this work was rediscovered by the writer's family and to the Jewish world and it would make a great addition to any Jewish home library, my own included.

Many thanks to Netgalley who provided me with this ARC. I chose to read it and give a voluntary and unbiased review.

An interesting personal history presented in graphic novel form. I will be recommending it for my library to purchase!

Most of what I got from these pages was due to the visuals, and the many different monochrome drawing styles (love the nod to Will Eisner I found from Steve Leialoha). What that means is I didn't find much favour with the stories themselves, which is not to say they're bad, but they definitely had the air of meaning more to an actual Jewish audience.

'A Bunch of Jews (and other stuff)' by Trina Robbins is an adaptation of a book her father wrote in Yiddish in the 1930s called A Minyen Yidn.

An introduction by Robbins talks about how the book was found by her daughter. It is translated here in English and illustrated into graphic novel form by a series of artists including Ken and Joan Steacy, Jen Vaughn, Steve Lealoah, Anne Timmons and others.

Many of the stories are about a shtetl in what is Belarus called Duboy. The stories are about stern rabbis, devoted dogs and everyday life. There is food as women bake matzos and a young boy yearns for a chance to eat something called kotletn (the recipe is included after the story for those curious to know what it is).

The book finishes with a short Yiddish glossary and artist bios for all the creators. I really enjoyed reading this book adapted from another time and place.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Bedside Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

A most remarkable book.

Trina Robbins has indeed "atoned" for what she called her childish disinterest in her father's Yiddish writings.

The graphics in this book bring her father's stories and his life experiences to new generations.

It was a wonderful glimpse into what my grandparents life had been like.

This is definately a book to have in your library.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book which I received from Net Galley.

This book was written in 1938 by Max Perlson, (formerly known as Mutye) who came to America in from Duboy, Belarus at the age of 16. This book was first written in Yiddish and it was rediscovered sixty years after its publication by the author's granddaughter at ABE's books and the New York Public Library. Trina Robbins, Max's daughter had never read her father's book, as it was written in Yiddish, a language she was ashamed of as a child.
Trina finally read her father's book and she decided that it contained poignant and satirical stories that would be perfectly portrayed in a comic book format.
You will enjoy these whimsical portrayals of life in an 18th century shtetl where the characters are "bigger than life" and their good and bad character traits are exaggerated.
You will feel as if you are a bystander in the streets looking at other people's' lives and seeing your neighbors, friends and even yourself in these stories.

The story of Feydo almost made me cry!

I admit I didn't "get" all of these stories, I think they are very specific to Eastern European Ashkenazi Jewish culture/mindsets, which is not a problem, and they are definitely stories worth telling, but I think I need to expand my knowledge of 19th/early 20th century Jewish culture to fully understand and appreciate the stories. I am definitely not the target audience for this book, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

The artwork is great, and I really feel like each artist's style relates well to the story they're telling. Everything seems to fit quite nicely in terms of tone and whatnot.

The brief history (2 pages I believe) at the beginning of the book is also very interesting to me. It tells of the author's father's original book, the cultural context in which he wrote it, and the author's journey from being ashamed of her father's perceived "foreignness" to wanting to learn more and setting out to track down copies of his book, both originals and reprints, with the help of her daughter. As a recent student of history I am always interested in seeing peoples' journeys into trying to distance themselves from their own history or trying to embrace it, and often the transition from one to the other.

Overall this is a very interesting collection that acts as a snapshot into Jewish history.

If you are only familiar with Sholom Aleichem and Fiddler on the Roof, this might be a good book to expand your horizons on. This book was originally written in Yiddish, by the father of Trina Robbins, of Underground Comic and Wonder Woman fame. As she said in the introduction, when her father wrote this, she wanted nothing to do with the book, Yiddish was old-fashioned, and she wanted nothing to do with that world.

Than, years later, she not only embraced the book, got it translated, and heald a fundraising to get illustrators to bring the stories to life.

Some stories are better than others, but all have an old worldly sense of time and place, though a few do take place in the New World (New York).

A good addition to any library, be it personal or public, for people who want to hear the stories of a world long gone.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest reveiw.

Full review can be found here: https://bookspoils.wordpress.com/2017/06/22/review-a-bunch-of-jews-and-other-stuff-by-trina-robbins/

Some great stories in here. Love the alternating art style as well with this graphic novel.