The King Of Schnorrers; Grotesques And Fantasies — Israel Zangwill / I. Zangwill

Author Israel Zangwill best typifed the comic spirit of London's Jewish ghetto by immortalizing the schnorrer (beggar) -- in particular, the character of Manasseh Bueno Barzillai Azevedo da Costa, a Sephardic panhandler who developed begging into a fine art. The robust and often hilarious tale tells how Manasseh combines insolence with resourcefulness to reduce London's best-known philanthropist to a fish handler; how he reacts to his daughter's love for a socially inferior beggar; and how he manages to parlay her marriage into a life-time pension for himself from his synagogue. Brimming with wit and wisdom and widely regarded as one of the author's most enduring works, The King of Schnorrers is a literary gem offering hours of entertaining humor and satire.