Book Group

Thursday, June 25 at 7:00pm

Join in a discussion of The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon by Richard Zimler
The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon, an international bestseller, is an extraordinary novel that
transports listeners into the universe of Jewish Kabbalah during the Lisbon massacre of
April 1506.

Gripping, richly written and overflowing with historic detail, the book tells the story of a
young and passionate Jewish manuscript illuminator, Berekiah Zarco, who hunts down his
beloved uncle's killer. Abraham, a prominent kabbalist and manuscript illuminator, was
found dead in the secret basement of the family home in Lisbon on the first day of Passover,
with a murdered young woman sprawled alongside him.

Like a layered kabbalistic text, the story obscures and unfolds with symbolism and
hidden signs as Berekiah, who is trained in making interpretations, hunts down the
murderer. Yet unlike most whodunits, the climax is not the discovery of the identity of
the killer but the translation of the entire episode. Berekiah's central question: ''What is the
meaning of my uncle's death and the 2,000 people burned at the central square?" New York Times
Winner of the Herodotus Award in the USA for best Historical Novel
Discussion led by Linda Cedarbaum

A Zoom link to the discussion group will be emailed to the congregation in advance..