Unchosen: The Hidden Lives of Hasidic Rebels

By Hella Winston

A “complex and heart-wrenchingly compelling” exploration of Hasidic Jews struggling to live within, or outside, their restrictive communities—for viewers of Unorthodox and One of Us (Boston Globe)

When Hella Winston began talking with Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn for her doctoral dissertation in sociology, she was surprised to be covertly introduced to Hasidim unhappy with their highly restrictive way of life and sometimes desperately struggling to escape it. Unchosen tells the stories of these “rebel” Hasidim, serious questioners who long for greater personal and intellectual freedom than their communities allow.

She meets is Malky Schwartz, who grew up in a Lubavith sect in Brooklyn, and started Footsteps, Inc., an organization that helps ultra-Orthodox Jews who are considering or have already left their community. There is Yossi, a young man who, though deeply attached to the Hasidic culture in which he was raised, longed for a life with fewer restrictions and more tolerance. Yossi's efforts at making such a life, however, were being severely hampered by his fourth grade English and math skills, his profound ignorance of the ways of the outside world, and the looming threat that pursuing his desires would almost certainly lead to rejection by his family and friends. Then she met Dini, a young wife and mother whose decision to deviate even slightly from Hasidic standards of modesty led to threatening phone calls from anonymous men, warning her that she needed to watch the way she was dressing if she wanted to remain a part of the community. Someone else introduced Winston to Steinmetz, a closet bibliophile worked in a small Judaica store in his community and spent his days off anxiously evading discovery in the library of the Conservative Jewish Theological Seminary, whose shelves contain non-Hasidic books he is forbidden to read but nonetheless devours, often several at a sitting. There were others still who had actually made the wrenching decision to leave their communities altogether.

In her new Preface, Winston discusses the passionate reactions the book has elicited among Hasidim and non-Hasidim alike.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Nov 15, 2006
• ISBN: 9780807036280

Hella Winston

Hella Winston is a sociologist and investigative journalist. She has held postdoctoral fellowships in sociology at Princeton and Johns Hopkins universities and is currently a Senior Fellow at the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism at Brandeis University. She is the author of Unchosen: The Hidden Lives of Hasidic Rebels (Beacon Press, 2005). She lives in New York City.

Reviews for Unchosen

[bachrach44 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Although the topic of the book has great potential, the book really didn't go in depth into the issues or stories surrounding the people they dealt with. Just when I thought the book was getting interesting and was done with the introductory work, the book ended. The non-linear storytelling and jumping back and forth between different people's stories also didn't help the readability.The author, who is clearly not a religious Jew, spends a lot of time verbally gawking at the chasidim, and explaining foreign concepts like shabbat and tzniut as best she can. I found the funniest line of the whole book to be when the author comments that even though this was not her first trip to Williamsburg, somehow all the chasidim could tell she was an outsider.If you're either not religious or not Jewish and slightly curious about some of the tenants and practices of chasidic Judaism in the US, then this book might be interesting to you. Other than that, I can't say that I got a lot out of it.

[skinglist · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The reviews for this book are all over the map so I went into it with minimal expectations. Although I skimmed some chapters, I found it quite the compelling read. I wanted to know more about Malkie's work (at the time of her work with the author, she hadn't officially founded Footsteps), about Yossi's progress and how Dini was managing. WHo else has Chaim (appropriate pseudonym!) helped? Not the read for people looking for scholarly research into those leaving the fold, but a good inside look at the people behind the stories.

[drinkingtea_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

If you are taking it with you on an airplane, it will get you most of the way from ATL to ORD.

[jbfrank_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The book Unchosen is a lucid and interesting read about Hassidic youth on the fringe. A lot is still to be learnt by the parents who obviously are so unaware of the world around them as to have no clue how to deal with this matter.Intimadation and suppression often ensues, driving the person away even more. The emotional turmoil drips from every page.Positive points:- An important book that should be read by all who deal with kids at risk (I can also recommend the book "Off the Derech")- Pleasant style- Interesting- Many anecdotesNegative points:- Not the final book on this issue, needs scientific research. As a PHD, I expected the writer to deal with the subject more thoroughly than merely case studies.I heard some criticism about the fact that it shows mostly people that have some serious issues, especially the story of Yossi that takes up several chapters, who is mentally instable and actually mainly needs medical and psychological help.I would reply to this criticism by saying that it could very well be that this may very well be somewhat common. Just imagine: a person is ostracized by his family and community for doing what he thinks is right and dives into a world that is totally foreign to him/her. He/she expects the secular world to be the answer to all questions, the cures to all ailments and gets disappointed again...Can we expect these people to come out mentally balanced?

[bookish59 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Unchosen is based on Winston’s in-depth interviews with many Chasidim; those in the community and others who have opted out. It provides sensitive coverage of men and women in turmoil, living restrictive lives within their insular communities. They tried their best to fit in by following the prescribed commandments and social mores expected of their particular Chasidish sects. But their emotional and intellectual curiosity and innate smarts put them on the path to learning about the larger world. They found libraries, discovered tv, the internet and were stunned by all the information out there. They read voraciously and learned about … other people, life choices, religions, cultures which prompted them to take additional steps out of their world into the outside world. They met non-religious Jews, non-Jews and realized how little they knew and wanted / need to know. Some were fortunate enough to depend on supportive family members or modern extended family to help while they attended college to gain employable skills. Others struggled for years, becoming depressed and resorting to drugs and alcohol. Many are living hellish secret double-lives, half in their Chasidish community and half out, frightened the community will find out the truth and exact punishment on their spouses and children. Caring individuals and groups have formed to help many of these people deal with the challenging logistics of transitioning out of their communities. Excellent and touching read! Flows smoothly, describes people, their feelings and stories warmly and humanely, never vilifying anyone.