Product Description: At last a great American Hanukkah story! This very funny, very touching novel of growing up Jewish has the makings of a holiday classic.One lousy miracle.  Is that too much to ask?Evidently so for Joel, as he tries to survive Hannukah, 1971 in the suburbs of the suburbs of Los Angeles (or, as he calls it, “The Land of Shriveled Dreams”)...read more

"Wonderful!” (Grace Paley). “Heartwarming and smart and wonderfully written” (Detroit Free Press). “Provides edifying advice, intimately given, like the best-selling Tuesdays with Morrie” (the Dallas Morning News). “Altogether original” (Dr. Laura Schlessinger). “This story will speak to the humanity of the reader” (Jewish Book World). The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness is that rare, magical book—a book that tells a good story but also shows us how the tales we learned when we were children shed light on our adult lives. Joel ben Izzy had the unusual opportunity to relive those lessons when he lost his voice and reconnected with his old teacher, Lenny, a retired storyteller. Through his meetings with Lenny, Joel rediscovers the wisdom of ancient tales and takes us on a journey into a world of beggars and kings, monks and tigers, lost horses and buried treasures—and in the end tells us the secret of happiness.

A professional storyteller journeys inside the world of stories to examine the lessons that they offer through their timeless wisdom, chronicling the events of his own life against the backdrop of some of the folktales, fables, riddles, and stories that he has collected around the world--including 'The Lost Horse,' 'The Beggar King,' and 'The Secret of Happiness.'