Books by Melvyn R Werbach

In the second half of the 19th century, two brothers living in Ukraine, both Hasidic rabbis, became fabulously wealthy within a short time period. They and their families were celebrated by the Jewish population in numerous folk tales. Even Sholom Aleichem, the great Yiddish storyteller, wrote a short tale about them. Today, however, they had been all but forgotten until the publication of this book.Based on many years of extensive research, including interviews with descendants and research at the Ukrainian Archives, Sons of the Lion's Cub tells the story of these Horenstein brothers from multiple perspectives. It reviews the life of their father (named "the lion's cub" in Hebrew) and the 1000-year history of their distinguished ancestors. It also proposes a new theory of how they were able to acquire their remarkable wealth.