From Central Park to Sinai: How I Found My Jewish Soul

Despite his privileged upbringing as the son of the founder of a thriving Wall Street investment firm, Neuberger grew up wondering why he felt continually lost and afraid. Raised to appreciate all religions except Judaism, he began to search for God at the age of 23: ""all of a sudden I let God enter my soul and the sun came up."" He investigated Eastern religions and Christianity, but it was not until he met Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis, whom he describes as the ""Jewish Billy Graham,"" that he embarked on the path to spiritual peace. He sold the newspaper he owned in Cornwall-on-Hudson and moved to her community on Long Island, plunging full force into a life of Torah. ""God runs the universe in the intricacies of every detail,"" he states, encouraging readers to listen for the moment when God's voice enters their lives. Neuberger's honest, inspirational, but clumsily written memoir is filled with clich s such as, ""Oh G-d, there was so much we didn't know!"" When he travels to Israel and observes Orthodox men putting on phylacteries, he comments, ""Where am I? Did we land on Mars?"" Though Neuberger asserts repeatedly that his book is not meant as propaganda for Jungreis's Hineni outreach organization, his stories often read that way. Readers who can overlook Neuberger's simplistic style and who are in search of spiritual discovery may find value in this book. (Nov.)