When a critic derisively exclaimed that Reb Shraga Feivel Mendlowitz was not living in the 20th century, he replied mildly, “You are right. I am a man of the 21st century.” How true! At a time when hardly a soul believed that Orthodoxy had a future in America or that a great yeshivah could rise in the New World, Reb Shraga Feivel was a dreamer, a builder, a teacher, a leader, the man who single-handedly created the unique blend of intense Torah study, broad knowledge of hashkafah and chassidus, and dedication to Klal Yisrael that characterized his students in Torah Vodaath and revolutionized American Jewish life. Only a great biographer could capture the essence of this hidden man who insisted on being called “Mister,” but was one of the most outstanding Torah figures of the century. That’s why this magnificent book had to be written by Yonoson Rosenblum -- an author worthy of his subject. To understand today’s Torah community and to thrill at the achievement of impossible dreams, this superb book is must reading.
