The Last of the Just by Andre Schwarz-Bart (Vintage 1962 Hardcover)

The Last of the Just is a novel written by Andre Schwarz-Bart, first published in French in 1959 as “Le Dernier des Justes”. It tells the story of a Jewish family, the Lévy’s, over the course of eight centuries, from the 12th century in the Rhineland to the Holocaust in the 20th century.

The novel centers around the concept of the “Lamed-Vavniks”, a group of 36 righteous men in Jewish tradition whose presence in the world justifies its existence. The Lévy family believes that they have been chosen to produce the last of the Lamed-Vavniks, and the novel follows the lives of different members of the family as they struggle to fulfill this duty in the face of anti-Semitism and persecution.

The Last of the Just is a powerful exploration of Jewish identity, history, and faith, and is considered a masterpiece of Holocaust literature. It won the Prix Goncourt, one of the most prestigious literary awards in France, and has been translated into many languages. The novel is a poignant reminder of the horrors of the Holocaust, but also of the resilience and determination of the human spirit.