To the Editor:

. . . I was quite disappointed in the shabby, careless treatment Chaim Potok’s novel, The Chosen, received from your reviewer, Baruch Hochman [September].

In the same issue your reviews of the secular books were handled seriously and at length, but this delicate, respectful, uniquely Jewish work was dismissed . . . in a casual, offhand manner.

This superb novel and its gifted author deserve better at the hands of your otherwise exceptionally talented book reviewers. I urge all your readers to ignore your hasty criticism and discover for themselves . . . the pleasure to be derived from Chaim Potok’s novel, The Chosen.

Rena Blumberg
Shaker Heights, Ohio

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To the Editor:

. . . Mr. Hochman failed to grasp the nature of the relationship between Reb and Dan Saunders throughout The Chosen, though it was obvious to most readers, I’m sure. He also failed to recognize a comprehensive and authoritative essay on mysticism vis-à-vis modernism skillfully packaged in a compelling novel. For these blind spots, Mr. Hochman has my condolences.

M. E. Robbins
Danville, Illinois