The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Judaism

This is my absolute favorite book about Judaism. Rabbi Blech (OBM) is a delight. I buy extra copies and hand them out to family and friends who are interested in learning.

This book manages to explain the history and practices of Judaism in a way that can be understood by anyone. Not a dry commentary, this book provides solid information in a friendly, absorbing manner. This is one of the best resource guides on Judaism I've ever read.

I have not read it all but its def to the point so far, this goes along well with Judaism for dummies (i think, i have it somewhere)

As soon as I discovered this book, I immediately linked it to my homepage, as well as my Jewish resource menus and online FAQs. It fills a very real need for a user-friendly basic Judaism book that is "accessible" to the rank beginner, and I find myself recommending it a LOT to web surfers and readers of my own books who email me with their "Judaism 101" questions. This book is much, much better than Steinberg's old standby, "Basic Judaism," which is just too much stuffy academe for the average reader of today. Rabbi Blech's use of the familiar 'Idiot's Guide" format is non-threatening, and even uses some humor to make learning about Judaism easy and fun! I recommend this book to non-Jews who want the basics, to Jews who need to brush up on what they might have missed as kids in Hebrew school, and especially to school teachers and librarians as a quick reference to those common questions about what Jews believe in, what happens in a synagogue service, and "Why do they do that...?" Thank you, Rabbi Blech, for a great educational resource!

This book is in no form an "Idiot's" guide. Rabbi Benjamin Blech does an absolute brilliant job articulating some of the most difficult concepts in Jewish thought and Judaism today. Based on his book "Understaing Judaism" published by Jason Aronson, Blech touches on almost every aspect of Jewish life and for the right amount of time. Not too little, yet not too boring. After reading this book I realized that after years of study, I am still an "idiot".

This is a wonderful book. I've read it several times, trying to memorize every word of it. It is enjoyable to read, with humorous anecdotes and stories to explain Biblical stories. I am a Catholic, and this book has had an impact on my life. It has actually made me consider converting. This book is enjoyable to both Jews and gentiles alike.

This book is an asset to the bookshelf of both Jews and non-Jews; anyone seeking to learn or understand more about Judaism will love this book. It's more than a summary of basic Jewish belief, it is a fascinating look at main the aspects of Judaism in an enjoyable way. Rabbi Blech has a writing style that is both funny and amusing as well as informative -- this book will hold your attention and teach you something new. Even someone who knows a lot of Judaism is sure to still learn something new here.

This book was def an interesting read. I truly enjoyed reading it and would def recommend it to everyone. Worth checking out!

I find the book overwhelming. There are so many things mentioned, and so many little notes throughout to help keep it light, but it's confusing. With all the names of holidays, rules, and the basic words for stories being in the ancient language, it is easy to become very confused. I'd have. to take copious notes to keep everything straight. Although I'm not able to memorize these ancient language names, parts of it are enjoyable to read. I just believe they are trying to cover everything in one book. It is very thick, and would take months to read through it slowly. I just pick it up and read bits and pieces now and then. Otherwise I'd lose interest.