This Is My God: The Jewish Way of Life was published by Doubleday in 1959 and represents something unusual in American letters: a major popular novelist writing seriously and personally about his religious faith. Wouk, an Orthodox Jew who observed the Sabbath, kept kosher, and studied Torah daily throughout his career in secular publishing, wrote the book to explain Judaism — not as theology or history but as lived experience — to readers who knew nothing about it.
The book covers the fundamentals of Jewish belief and practice: the nature of God, the meaning of the Torah, the Sabbath, the holidays, the dietary laws, prayer, marriage, death, and the relationship between Judaism and modernity. Wouk writes not as a scholar or a rabbi but as a practicing layman — a successful American who has found that ancient religious discipline enriches rather than impoverishes modern life. His tone is warm, personal, and accessible; he uses anecdotes from his own life (including his experiences in the Navy during World War II) to illustrate abstract principles.
The book was a major bestseller and introduced millions of Americans — Jewish and non-Jewish — to the practices of observant Judaism. Its success reflected the religious revival of the 1950s but also Wouk’s particular gifts: the same narrative skill that made his novels compelling makes religious exposition vivid and engaging. The book has remained continuously in print and is still recommended as an introduction to Jewish practice.
Collecting This Is My God
First edition (Doubleday, Garden City, NY, 1959): Cloth binding, dust jacket.
Market values:
- First edition in dust jacket: $20–$50
- Without jacket: $5–$10