Book Blurb: The Chosen

This is definitely a literary book, so if that's not your thing you may not like this book. But if that is your thing, check this one out because it's brilliant. I love the writing, I love the characters, I love the story. I'm also fascinated by different religions, so I liked the learning about the background of Hasidic Judaism.

As an aside, the author is an Hasidic Jew who pretty much went against his religion by writing books at all. The main character in My Name is Asher Lev (another great book by Potok) is also an Hasidic Jew who is an artist and struggling with what that means within the confines of his upbringing. I loved that one too, but I'm highlighting The Chosen because I thought it was even better. I'm also wanting to read Davita's Harp by this author. Has anyone read it?

Here's a blurb for The Chosen:

Few stories offer more warmth, wisdom, or generosity than this tale of two boys, their fathers, their friendship, and the chaotic times in which they live. Though on the surface it explores religious faith--the intellectually committed as well as the passionately observant--the struggles addressed in The Chosen are familiar to families of all faiths and in all nations.
In 1940s Brooklyn, New York, an accident throws Reuven Malther and Danny Saunders together. Despite their differences (Reuven is a Modern Orthodox Jew with an intellectual, Zionist father; Danny is the brilliant son and rightful heir to a Hasidic rebbe), the young men form a deep, if unlikely, friendship. Together they negotiate adolescence, family conflicts, the crisis of faith engendered when Holocaust stories begin to emerge in the U.S., loss, love, and the journey to adulthood. The intellectual and spiritual clashes between fathers, between each son and his own father, and between the two young men, provide a unique backdrop for this exploration of fathers, sons, faith, loyalty, and, ultimately, the power of love.