The Red Magician

by Lisa Goldstein

Book Overview

Winner of the 1983 American Book Award, The Red Magician was an immediate classic. On the eve of World War II, a wandering magician comes to a small Hungarian village prophesying death and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 076535912X
• ISBN13: 9780765359124
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: Starscape Books
• Length: 205 Pages
• Weight: 1.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.1" x 7.6"
• Age Range: 9 to 11 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 6

Customer Reviews

World War II and the Holocaust

The author of this book was my store clerk in Cody's Book Store. When she told me that she had written a book, I decided to buy it despite the fact that I am not a fan of fantasy books. In a nutshell, this is a fantasy about World War II and the holocaust. I think that it will appeal to anyone interested in Jewish theology or fantasy writing.

My second read 20 years later was much better ....

Can you believe it? I'm actually giving 5 stars to a book I used to hate. When I first read "The Red Magician" 20 years ago (it was first published in 1982) I was deeply offended by the harsh way in which the rabbi is portrayed. In the very first chapter he curses the Jewish school for teaching Hebrew as a secular language, because "Hebrew will only be spoken when the Messiah comes and we return to the Holy Land." OK, there were (and still are) Jews who believe that way about Hebrew. To this day, the Satmar Hasidim do not speak Hebrew as a secular language. But to curse a Jewish school and all the children in it? Not likely. Not long after that, the rabbi threatens Voros, the Red Magician, with death if he ever enters the village again. This didn't strike me as authentic, either. Jews do not kill Jews, at least, not in pre-Holocaust Eastern Europe. Excommunicate, banish, shun -- maybe. But to actually kill somebody? Because these events occurred in the very beginning of the book, they colored my whole negative reaction to it. I found myself thinking that this was going to be some sort of polemic against "backward" religious Jews who didn't fight against the Nazis, or didn't support Zionism, yada, yada, yada. Had I reviewed this book back then, I would have trashed it for orthodox-bashing. Upon re-reading it this weekend, I had a different reaction. Oh, the rabbi still comes across as harsh, but I was able to see that this was his own problem, rooted in his own lack of faith (to say more would be a spoiler.) The book is not a polemic against religious Jews per se. Rather, it is a fantasy exploration of the themes of guilt, revenge, misuse of power, letting go of anger, moving on with one's life, etc. The rabbi has genuine mystical powers, but he had become harsh and unforgiving because he has allowed his own desire for vengeance to destroy his sanity. This places him in the genre of black magicians everywhere, in every culture, real or imagined. The magical details in this book are very accurate in terms of Jewish mysticism. Lisa Goldstein really did her homework. I could not find a single blooper -- and readers of my reviews know how much I just LOVE to nitpick mistakes in Judaica! In this case, however, the rules of magic and the details for using it are perfectly in accord with kabbalistic legend(s). Yashar koach -- well done! Readers should keep in mind that all the main characters are Jewish: Kicsi, Imri, Voros, Erzebet -- all are Jews, not just the rabbi. The names they use, however, are Hungarian, rather than the Hebrew/Yiddish names that usually appear in stories about Eastern European Jews. This use of secular names fits with the way magic works in the plot. The point is very clearly made that to know a person's true name is to have power over that person. Voros will not give his true (Hebrew) name to the rabbi for that very reason. We can safely assume that everyone is using their Hungarian names as n

Surprisingly realistic fantasy

Picked this up on a whim--I think it won a children's book award--and read it in a day. Nice little contemporary (20th Century) fantasy about a Jewish girl in Hungary before, during, and after WWII. "Fantasy" may be the wrong word, for while there are some fantastic things going on, the happenings are startingly realistic. In some worlds, this one might be considered magic realism, except that the characters are surprised and awed by the fantastic. They seem to accept it as natural, however. The really surprising thing about this book, though, is the changes of the lead character and the time scale. I didn't expect the character to "grow up"; I didn't expect a lot of what happened. A non-predictable fantasy? Yes. How rare.

Magical and wonderful

I picked up a copy of this book from our employee book swap for something to read on the train home and, in the process, have discovered a new "favorite author". This is a compelling tale of a young girl (Kisci) coming of age during the Holocaust. Her life intersects with that of a mysterious red-haired stranger (Voros)who seems to have the ability to predict the future. Although her relationship with the stranger creates turmoil within her family and town, the bond between Kisci and Voros eventually saves both of them from death. Laced with magic, this tale can also be seen as an allegory for the importance of finding strength within yourself and going on with life even when it seems impossible.

A wonderous novel of a horrific time.

Lisa Goldstein's first novel came out of nowhere and won the American Book Award. Compelling and heartrending, with beautiful prose and a wonderous, magical story, *The Red Magician* captures readers into the life of a Jewish girl, Kisci, coming to adulthood in preWWII Poland, detailing her friendship with the Red Magician--the truly magic magician--who tries to warn those around him about the coming horror he has forseen. The novel follows Kisci through the Camps and to the point where, as a DP, she embarks for America. This novel is possibly the best realization of Magical Realism I have ever read, blending Jewish Kabbala mysticism with the events of the time with the intimate story of Kisci with such a grievous beauty that even after many readings I cannot pick up the book just for a moment: the novel almost forces me to finish it in one sitting.