I just finished listening to this book on audio. Some of you may have already read this book as it was published in 2005. The subtitle of the book tells it all, “The Amazing Adventures of a Man Who Rescued a Million Yiddish Books”. Aaron Lansky chronicles his adventures of saving Yiddish books, and simultaneously saving a language and culture that was disappearing.

You could read this book but listening to it gives a much richer experience. The book is read by a man fluent in Yiddish. Yes, the book is in English but Yiddish words and phrases are integrated seamlessly. I wouldn’t have know how to pronounce the Yiddish words without hearing them first. I gained a much greater appreciation for the language and the culture. Who knows, I may start saying “schleping” books instead of shelving them.

This book would appeal to librarian types and book lovers. As a librarian, I loved hearing about a man’s crusade to save books from certain destruction. It is full of dumpster diving, near misses, and lots of interesting adventures. I wish he had delved more into what happened to the books after they were acquired, but I am sure only library geeks would appreciate cataloging details… He describes the decision to digitize the collection (the first serious project to do so). Even so, his interactions with the elders of his culture were the most interesting.

The book made me think of special collections unique to Idaho. How are they being preserved? Sure, many of Idaho’s libraries are small, but they contain some hidden treasures that should be saved for posterity.

This audio book is available from NetLibrary.