The Chosen (Potok novel)
First edition cover
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| Author | Chaim Potok |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Novel |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster |
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Publication date
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1967 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 283 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | (first edition, hardback) |
| Followed by | The Promise |
The Chosen is a novel written by Chaim Potok. It was first published in 1967. It follows the narrator Reuven Malter and his friend Daniel Saunders, as they grow up in the Williamsburg neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York, in the 1940s. A sequel featuring Reuven's young adult years, The Promise, was published in 1969.
The Chosen is set in the mid-twentieth Century, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City. The story takes place over a period of six years, beginning in 1944 when the protagonists are fifteen years old. It is set against the backdrop of the historical events of the time: the death of President Roosevelt, the end of World War II, the revelation of the Holocaust in Europe, and the struggle for the creation of the state of Israel.
Reuven and Danny meet for the first time as rivals in a baseball game between their school teams. The game turns into a spiritual war between Danny's Hasidic and Reuven's Modern Orthodox yeshivas. Danny's batting style is such that the ball is sent speeding back up the middle of the field, and so he receives a reputation of trying to kill pitchers. Angered by unsuccessful attempts to hit Reuven's previous pitches, Danny hits a line drive toward Reuven, shattering his glasses and sending him to the hospital with an injured eye. While Reuven is recovering from his injuries, Danny visits him and apologizes; and the two become best friends over time, despite the difference in their upbringings. Reuven learns that Danny's father, a respected Rebbe, only talks to Danny during religious conversations - Danny is being brought up 'in silence'. Reuven also learns Danny's deepest secret: he wishes to become a psychologist rather than inherit the position as tzaddik as his father wants. The only people who know about this are Reuven, and a man who has been recommending books for Danny to read and later discussing them with him, who is later revealed to be Reuven's father.
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