THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Friday, October 26, 1984 BOOKS iā–ŗ Author's allegory written for kids carries a message for everyone BY JEFFREY GUYER Staff Writer Over the years, our sages and N, rabbis have often told stories or parables to explain concepts from the Torah or Judaic lore. They have used various components of their stories, including the char- acters, incidents, names and other , details, to refer to those very con- cepts which need elaboration. Every so often, a good book comes along which does the same thing. The King Who Came Back is a story told in this classic Chasidic genre. Avraham ben Yaakov has woven a clever fantasy for young readers and uses it as an allegory, teaching the basic tenets of faith in God. That faith is a concept thought to be most inherent to our culture. The King Who Came Back _suc- cessfully- puts the concept of faith into a perspective which children can understand and from which they may learn a valuable lesson. The story is about the Jewish people, whose king ā€” our God ā€” has given them wise rules and wise advisers. He then asks the people to choose between wisdom and foolishness. The catch is that they have to make their choice without his help; he has taken an indefinite leave of absence from his kingdom, leaving the choice completely in their hands. After all, choices influence faith and faith is what The King Who Came Back is all about. Reading it as only a story of faith, however, does not tell the whole story. In addition to teaching or ex- pounding, a story may go a bit further and attempt to portray a society or group, or describe the mind or soul of a single person. This narrative does both. In a natural progression, the story seeks to paint a picture of our society and how it came to its cur- rent state. The King Who Came Back," by Avraham ben Yaakov, Feldheim Publiikeri The progression begins with the king leaving for an unspecified length of time. The faith, which until now had been so strong, dwindles and eventually dies. Enter David, who, helps lead the people back to their faith. It is a story of their quest for truth. The King Who Came Back is also an attempt to look into the minds of individuals. Faced with choices every day, we are always trying to choose between the good choice and the bad choice. Ben We urge you to RE-ELECT ALL FIVE JUDGES of the Circuit Court on November 6. Their experience, sound decisionS, common sense, and dedication to public service demonstrate that they merit retention as Judges of the Circuit Court. We urge your support. Alan E. Schwartz Victor J. Baum Gordon Gold David Lebenbom Jeffrey M. Leib Stuart A. Gold Dr. John Alter Howard B. Abrams Alan T. Ackerman Elliott Parr Denise Parr Abraham Seleskny Marvin Shwedel Arnold Gordon Paul Groffsky Richard L. Groffsky Martin J. Leavitt Sheridan V. Holzman Jerome B. Greenbaum Richard S. Victor Peter L. Wanger Norman Sommers Robert S. Rollinger Howard Rosenberg Richard E. Segal Joel Serlin Peter Alter Louis E. Barden Herschel P. Fink Marsha Fischer Betty Lowenthal Eugene Lumberg William C. Edmunds Harry S. Ellman Joyce E. Rosenthal Jerry D. Luptak Frank T. Mamat Robert B. Weiss Jimm F. White Ronald P. Sandler Sheldon M. Scharg Denise Alexander Norman N. Robbins Harvey Babcock Robert M. Carson Stephen C. Cooper Dr. Mark Diem Noel Gage Edward Gold Michael Pianin Balfour Peisner Robert Goldschmid Stuart Goldstein Howard Silver Elaine Grand Stulberg Bernard N. Portnoy Dr. Harold D. Portnoy Irving Tukel Lee I. Turner Joseph M. Fischer Dr. Paul Forman Gerald L. Portney Wendy Potts Stanley S. Schwartz Steven J. Schwartz Hanley Gurwin Gregg E. Herman Joel Hoffman Robert L. Biederman Stephen L. Redisch Arthur H. Rice Susan Feldstein Michelle Friedman Anne Gonte Silver Elizabeth A. Silverman Helene B. Simon Barry L. Howard Norman Hyman Paul D. Sherr Jeffrey N. Shillman Joseph Shulman Roger J. Siegel Leslie H. Kutinsky Sheldon Larky Yaakov teaches this lesson and the need to make that "right choice" through the people of his mythical kingdom, who must choose between the Wise and Foolish advisers. The advisers be- come tangible substitutes for the good and bad inclinations in man. the King Who Came Back is a fine attempt at teaching young readers both the how and the why of faith. Written with children in mind, the narrative carries an important message for adults as well. This "how-to" book about faith by Avraham ben Yaakov is one of the good choices. HUD administrator is ā€” Judith Brachman, manager of the HUD Columbus, Ohio, field office, has been ap- pointed acting regional administrator-regional housing commissioner for HUD's Region V. The region includes Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Mrs. Brachman was a trustee of Heritage Village, a model non- profit community organization providing housing for the elderly, and a trustee of the Columbus Jewish Federation. KEEP THE BEST PLAYERS ON THE BENCH. 17..?"412'Nk.k.. t RE-ELECT THE. OF THE CIRCUIT COURT. PAID FOR BY THE COMMITTEES TO RE-ELECT JUDGES TEMPLIN, ANDREWS, SCHNELZ, La PLATA AND MESTER, Fi0. BOX 12304, BIRMINGHAM, MI 48012 J. Leonard Hyman John D. Lazar David Haron Harvey I. Hauer Harvey Heller Dr. Norman J. Rotter Marc Schulman Leonard B. Schwartz Max E. Klayman Sheldon S. Toll Dennis F. Tomorsky Marvin I. Wolf Harvey J. Zameck Rob Zinkel Les Greenwald Howard Gurwin Murray Weintraub Scott F. Smith Edward Sosnick Lee Stein Alan Finer Doreen Finer Robert G. Portnoy Mark Reizen Shelley D. Roberts Linda Munson Stuart Sinai Stuart Small Martin Doctoroff Jeffery Appel Donald R. Epstein Eugene Epstein Morris Brandwine Stuart V. Rice Michael A. Robbins Warren Kifferstein Lawrence A. Kilgore Stephen Bernstein Marvin L. Berris Dan Berry Alan Greenberg Fenei Greenwald Asher N. Tilchin Michael Alan Schwartz Steven L. Schwartz Robert Z. Feldstein Robert A. Fineman Bruce F Rosenthal David K. Page Alvin Sallen Jeffrey Ehrlichman Michael H. Fabian Jeremy L. Winer David J. Winter Pat Orloff Edward H. Pappas Robert Orloff Alan Gorosh Samuel Graber Richard K. Graham Rhonda Klein D. Michael Kratchman Franklin D. Gettleson Gail Gettleson Jack Milen Minna K. Katz Herbert L. Kay' Leon M. Schurgin Leonard Schwartz Howard Weiner Lisa S. Miller David Muscovitz Lawrence G. Kaluzny Alan Jay Kaufman Bart Feinbaum Marla E. Parker Joseph S. Rodd Steve Munson Frederick D. Steinhardt Cary A. Storchan Burton Farbman Arnold M. Gordon Henry S. Gornbein David R. Kratze , Gary A. Krochmal Samuel J. Bienenstock Solomon Bienenfeld Lawrence J. Breskin Harvey D. Geller Sandor M. Gelman Irving Kroll Stephen N. Leuchtman Stewart C. Weiner Louis L. Weinstein Mark Grant Beverly Scharg Harriet Rotter Theodore Sallen Shirley A. Saltzman William J. Weinstein Robert Weisberg Gerald A. Freedman Diane M. Freilich Steven A. Menken Mayer Morganroth Barbara Cohn Norman Norman D. Tucker Allen J. Wall Lawrence Warren Melvin R. Schwartz Stuart H. Teger 31