Dust to Dust

A revealing look at how death and burial practices influence the living
Dust to Dust offers a three-hundred-year history of Jewish life in New York, literally from the ground up. Taking Jewish cemeteries as its subject matter, it follows the ways that Jewish New Yorkers have planned for death and burial from their earliest arrival in New Amsterdam to the twentieth century.
Allan Amanik charts a remarkable reciprocity among Jewish funerary provisions and the workings of family and communal life, tracing how financial and family concerns in death came to equal earlier priorities rooted in tradition and communal cohesion. At the same time, he shows how shifting emphases in death gave average Jewish families the ability to advocate for greater protections and entitlements such as widows’ benefits and funeral insurance. Amanik ultimately concludes that planning for life’s end helps to shape social systems in ways that often go unrecognized.

“"Will be of interest to historians of Americans death-practices, and to students of American Jewish history. Yet it also should appeal to those who are themselves New Yorkers wishing to learn more of their citys past, and especially to the descendants of those many persons buried in the cemeteries described in the book."”

"Amanik has crafted a detailed, compelling study that uses the universal experience of death and dying to interrogate the transitions in New York’s Jewish community (16). His work invites scholars to see the deeply personal and human aspect of religious rituals behind and beyond more abstract theological arguments. In so doing, he shines a light on the struggles of generations of Jewish Americans to find a place they could call their own." Early American Literature
"Through meticulous research, Amanik has uncovered the intriguing story of how Jews in New York, over more than three centuries, have dealt with end of life concerns and dilemmas. Decidedly not a maudlin work on death and dying, this engaging book deepens our understanding of Jewish family life in Gotham and highlights tensions within the community over control of cemeteries the most basic Jewish institution. A notable contribution to the saga of the worlds largest Jewish community." -- Jeffrey S. Gurock,Author of Jews in Gotham: New York Jews and Their Changing City
"Dust to Dust does an excellent job showing how the desire for a Jewish burial continues to change as society changes… Anyone looking for a different take on Jewish American social history should enjoy this work." The Reporter
"Dust to Dust is a meticulously researched and solidly written study making the case for how powerfully end-of-life matters have continually molded the daily lives of American Jews. Throughout, New York City emerges as the cornerstone for related precedents and debates, setting the tone across Jewish communities in North America and beyond." AJS Review
"Amanik is a meticulous social historian adept at featuring individuals or events that illustrate overall trends or unique phenomena." The Journal of Interdisciplinary History
"Allan Amanik’s Dust to Dust will engage scholars of American Jewish history and institutions, as well as immigration and ethnic history more generally." Journal of American Ethnic History
-- Lucy Bregman,Temple University
"

The chronological presentation flows smoothly and the book is well written. In order to gain a better appreciation of the development and issues involved in cemeteries, the book should be read by a wide audience and especially by those interested in Jewish history and identity. I encourage ethnic historians, sociologists, and anthropologists to read the book because of the parallels in the evolution of their cemeteries from tight control by early merchants to the fight over cemetery lands and who and how one should be buried, especially when religious groups, fraternal organizations, and professional funeral services compete for “members.” This book is a gem among the few works available on cemetery studies.

Allan Amanik is Assistant Professor in the Judaic Studies Department at Brooklyn College, CUNY. He is co-editor with Kami Fletcher of Till Death Do Us Part: American Ethnic Cemeteries as Borders Uncrossed (2019).

A revealing look at how death and burial practices influence the living Dust to Dust offers a three-hundred-year history of Jewish life in New York, literally from the ground up. Taking Jewish cemeteries as its subject matter, it follows the ways that Jewish New Yorkers have planned for death and burial from their earliest arrival in New Amsterdam to the twentieth century. Allan Amanik charts a remarkable reciprocity among Jewish funerary provisions and the workings of family and communal life, tracing how financial and family concerns in death came to equal earlier priorities rooted in tradition and communal cohesion. At the same time, he shows how shifting emphases in death gave average Jewish families the ability to advocate for greater protections and entitlements such as widows' benefits and funeral insurance. Amanik ultimately concludes that planning for life's end helps to shape social systems in ways that often go unrecognized.

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