âA nostalgic pastiche of fiction, memoir, photography, art, postcards, menus, etc., celebrating Jewish resort life in the Catskills.ââProvidence Journal  With selections ranging from literature to song lyrics, this book highlights the Catskills experience over a century, and assesses its continuing impact on American music, comedy, food, culture, and religion. It features selections from such fiction writers as Isaac Bashevis Singer, Herman Wouk, Allegra Goodman and Vivian Gornick; and original contributions from historians, sociologists, and scholars of American and Jewish culture that trace the history of the region, the rise of hotels and bungalow colonies, the wonderful flavors of food and entertainment, and distinctive forms of Jewish religion found in the Mountains. What was lifeâthe work, the play, the food, the romanceâlike at Catskills Mountains resorts? These very personal recollections capture the special sense of community and freedom that developed among Jewish families leaving the city behind for a summer vacation and enjoying a cultural space of their own. From âBingo by the Bungalowâ by Thane Rosenbaum to âYoung Workers in the Hotelsâ by Phil Brown to âShoot the Shtrudel to Me Yudelâ by Henry Foner, this charming anthology captures an era that has had enormous impact on the Jewish experience and American culture as a whole. âA warm, charming, and valuable work. Much of the writing is simply gorgeous.ââContemporary Sociology
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