Rating: 
Summary: A Touching Tale of Passionately Conflicted People
Review: Many reviewers have been offended by this book, possibly because it disturbs them that a person raised Catholic would want to convert out. But that's really not the point of this story.Really, the author paints a very touching picture of his parents' passion for Catholicism. Clearly, these were not people flailing around for a convenient way out of Judaism, which is the way we Jews like to portray converts to Christianity. Dubner's parents were truly drawn to the beauty, philosophy, and faith of Christianity -- specifically Catholicism -- and I am impressed with his ability to portray that truth of his parents' lives. (Portraying ANY truth of our parents' lives is a challenge!) I am also touched by the reaction of Dubner's mother to his pursuit of his Jewishness -- clearly she was uncomfortable and put off, but she did not turn faith into a litmus test for loving him, which I greatly admire. All parents should have that kind of loving fortitude! This was a good read, and I recommend it.
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Summary: COMING FULL CIRCLE
Review: Paul and Veronica Dubner were the perfect Catholic couple. Paul was handsome and Veronica beautiful. Both were devoted to their faith and were blessed with eight children. But beneath that veneer of the happy Catholic couple was a secret. You see Paul and Veronica were actually Sol and Florance first generation Jews born into America. Their conversion to Catholicism and denial of their faith and heritage is the story of a generation of Jews trying to come to terms with their religion, heritage and country. For many of them the answer was conversion. Their youngest son, Stephen Dubner, in this sweeping memoir tells their story as well as his own as a young man returning to his Jewish faith that his parents abandoned. This saga of renewal and return will captivate you on every level and raises numerous questions regarding Jewish assimilation into a Christian culture in particular a Catholic culture. Stephen is very straight forward in his telling of the story but at times you can feel his resentment and anger at his parents for keeping their heritage a "secret". Upon converting to Catholicism, Paul and Veronica not only changed their names and faith. They insulated and isolated their children in a world devoid of Jews and created their own reality. Perhaps their greatest sin was not their conversion but their cutting themselves off from their heritage but most importantly their family. The Dubners could be seen as a classical case of converts who become fanatics in their new faith. They will deny everything in order to belong. Most disturbing is Veronica's inablity to come to terms with the anti-semintism found in her new faith. This story is a serious one but not full of to much doom and gloom. Stephen's parents were deeply in love with one another and their children. The couple were staunch in their support of social justice and their faith. However their duplicity of denial is painful. I enjoyed this book because you see a son trying to understand the dynamics of his parents faith (Jewish and Catholic) that impacted upon his life. On discovering his Jewish family, Stephen was not only reclaiming his father (who died when Stephen was a young boy) but also the meaning of faith. Like his father and mother he had to go on his own spiritual walk that led him back to Judism which makes him all the richer in the fullness of the faith. Turbulent Souls is an excellent memoir in dealing with the questions of family estrangements, the conversion process, support systems and the need for one's faith to address the deeper issues in your life as you go through the dark journey of the soul. Unfortunately the faith of Sol and Florance didn't answer their personal needs but the beauty of their son coming full circle was worth their struggle.
Rating: 
Summary: Super !
Review: A wonderful and pleasant book. I highly recommend this if you had a similar circumstance or upbringing.
Rating:
Summary: Can I Give It Ten Stars?
Review: A wonderful, extremely well-written book about a fascinating family.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful Jewish Journey
Review: This is one of my favorite books and I've recommended it to many people. I had the pleasure of hearing Stephen Dubner speak soon after I read the book and his personal words confirmed my feelings about the book. So many people in America "choose" their religion. Dubner's story personalizes the lack of knowledge and ambivalence of many American Jews since WWII. He brought to life his own parents' remarkable story away from Judaism and his own ability to explore and learn what Jewish life truly has to offer.
Rating:
Summary: Turbulent and Soulful Writing
Review: In this age of tell-all memoirs about dysfunctional families, I was happy to read this great story that treats its subjects with dignity and humor and mystery. The writing is great and the story is unbelievable. I heavily recommend.
Rating:
Summary: Edifying and thoughtful account of a spiritual journe;y
Review: Laced with humor and wit, this professionally written memoir of a spiritual journey back to dormant but familiar roots is an inspiration to all who have explored or crossed the great, absurd, and fascinating religious divide that, like the jetty at a beach I once visited in New Bedford, Massachusetts, separates Jew from Christian, Protestant from Catholic, Montagu from Capulet. If, as Bob Jones professes to do, you embrace the belief that those misguided or ignorant souls who fail to share your particular apocalyptic vision are doomed to damnation, you won't like this book, which documents the plurality and endorses the validity of the many and varied ways in which God speaks to each of us and in which we severally commune with God.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible Book
Review: I was shocked to actually read comments by people on here who stated that the book was not interesting. I realize people are entitled to their opinions, if you pictures of naked women to make books interesting, then I suggest you grab a copy of Playboy or Penthouse. This book was absolutely incredible. My mom nagged me for over a year to read it, and of course I did not want to. I finally gave in, and this is the only book I have ever read that I could read in one sitting. I was upset that it actually had to end. It was so easy to put yourself in the place of any of the people portrayed in the book, that it seemed that you are actually living his story while reading it. I would recommend this book to everyone, and don't worry, Dubner is not trying to sell religion. He still questions it, for the books goal is not to try to convert anyone, it just tells the fascinating story of his family, and his conversion from catholicism to judaism.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing, parts were too tongue in cheek
Review: Being a Catholic raised male dating an orthodox Jewish female, I was introduced to this book by her in hopes of stirring a conversion in me. Perhaps she thought I would fall in love with the way the protagonist made his *rightful* return home to Judaism. The truth is, I felt much more sympathetic for the parents who found each other through Christianity than I did in his return to Judaism. I was not moved by the main character's conversion and I was more appalled by the hatred initially shown the two young converts. In the end, I did like that the book turned out to be about how good it felt that he was able to salvage his family, not how good it felt to finally be Jewish again. Kind of generic heart-string tugging, but nice to read. I guess this turned more into a personal anecdote than a review. For all those disappointed, both for my lack of a review and my lack of a conversion, sorry.
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Summary: this is not a review but i need to ask a question
Review: do you have a way that i can contact stephen j. dubner either an e mail address or through the new york times magazine if he is still a writer and editor there? thanks ps sorry to use this as the way to get to you, but i couldn't find any other link to use
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