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Rating: 
Summary: I learned something
Review: My gentile friends (and my less educated Jewish ones) occasionally ask me what Jews think about the afterlife. After reading this book, I know the answer. The answer is: there's no consensus. Certainly Jews don't have the precise picture of Heaven and Hell that some fundamentalists have. There is (outside the leftward fringes of Reform Judaism) a consensus that there is some sort of afterlife -- but no consensus (even within Orthodox, Conservative or Reform as far as I could tell) as to what that afterlife looks like, except for some vague notion of some sort of reward and punishment in the world to come.
Rating:
Summary: I learned something
Review: My gentile friends (and my less educated Jewish ones) occasionally ask me what Jews think about the afterlife. After reading this book, I know the answer. The answer is: there's no consensus. Certainly Jews don't have the precise picture of Heaven and Hell that some fundamentalists have. There is (outside the leftward fringes of Reform Judaism) a consensus that there is some sort of afterlife -- but no consensus (even within Orthodox, Conservative or Reform as far as I could tell) as to what that afterlife looks like, except for some vague notion of some sort of reward and punishment in the world to come.
Rating: 
Summary: A nice intro, brief and simple
Review: This book is obviously an attempt on the part of the Reform movement to correct the misconception, common among Reform Jews, that there is supposedly no Jewish belief in an afterlife. The authors explore a variety of beliefs about life after death from different periods and branches of Judaism. I was pleasantly surprised to see a section on reincarnation, acknowledging that Hasidim and some others believe in it. All in all, although the book takes a more rationalist approach than I would prefer, it does give the average reader a nice introduction to Jewish afterlife doctrines. Best of all, it's short and very reader-friendly.
Rating:
Summary: A nice intro, brief and simple
Review: This book is obviously an attempt on the part of the Reform movement to correct the misconception, common among Reform Jews, that there is supposedly no Jewish belief in an afterlife. The authors explore a variety of beliefs about life after death from different periods and branches of Judaism. I was pleasantly surprised to see a section on reincarnation, acknowledging that Hasidim and some others believe in it. All in all, although the book takes a more rationalist approach than I would prefer, it does give the average reader a nice introduction to Jewish afterlife doctrines. Best of all, it's short and very reader-friendly.
Rating:
Summary: Great perspectives and approaches to the afterlife
Review: This book's usefulness is certainly not limited to a Jewish audience. The wide range of essays included in Sonsino & Syme's book provide insight into the views of other faiths as well, especially Christianity. I was required to read this book as a college religion student to better understand Jewish views of the afterlife, but it is just as well suited for someone who wants to sort out their own personal views. I am confident that regardless of your own opinions and the level of your reflection on the afterlife, you will be moved by several of the included essays.
Rating:
Summary: Great perspectives and approaches to the afterlife
Review: This book's usefulness is certainly not limited to a Jewish audience. The wide range of essays included in Sonsino & Syme's book provide insight into the views of other faiths as well, especially Christianity. I was required to read this book as a college religion student to better understand Jewish views of the afterlife, but it is just as well suited for someone who wants to sort out their own personal views. I am confident that regardless of your own opinions and the level of your reflection on the afterlife, you will be moved by several of the included essays.
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