Started off interesting but unfortunately did not keep me engaged enough to finish reading. I wish the story had been a little bit more interesting as it went along, I had been excited to read this book due to it's interesting description.

this book has been done ever and over again. sisterhood of the traveling pants anyone? its a typical and less then climactic book

I love to read, which is a given since I maintain a blog that is about book reviews. I also like to read books that other people might pass up. I have found a few hidden gems by doing that. I also like not to turn down books. I very rarely turn down a request for review. So when the publisher emailed me about Love, Faith and a Pair of Pants…I accepted the invite. I wasn’t sure if I would like to read the book but was willing to give it a try.

I am not going to say that I didn’t like the book. I thought that it had a great messages in each section. There were fascinating insights into a rabbi’s life. But this book wasn’t for me.

For one, I couldn’t connect with the main character. Ben attracted drama like honey attracts bees. No matter where he went, drama followed. From his first funeral to the end of the book, it didn’t stop. His obsession with finding a nice Jewish girl did make me laugh a little. By the time Eden came around, I was no longer amused. I thought he was desperate.

I will admit that I was fascinated by the inner workings of being a rabbi. I grew up in a city with a huge Jewish population (the city had 6 temples). Some of my best friends were Jewish. I also dated a guy, for a few years, who was Jewish. So I was familiar with most of what was being talked about in the book. Except when it came to Ben’s duties as a rabbi. I was fascinated and I wish that more time had been spent discussing it.

I lost my focus several times during the book. The book was split into sections and I felt that I was missing out on what happened between the stories. Not something that I usually complain about when writing a review. But I felt that there were gaps. The only section that I didn’t feel that was Eden and that was because, well, I can’t say.

Like I mentioned above, the book did have some redeeming qualities. The messages in each section were great. The lessons that the sections taught were good. I also thought that the other characters (besides Ben) were vividly written. They brought an extra depth to the book.

Would this be a book that I would return to read, probably not. But, I tell people to read it. The messages in each section and the lessons that were taught in them are worth reading.

I would give Love, Faith and a Pair of Pants an Adult rating. There is no sex (there are sexual situations and kissing). There is no language. There is mild violence. There are triggers. They would be the loss of faith, the death of a spouse, the death of a sibling, cancer and estrangement from a parent. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I am on the fence if I would reread this book. I would recommend it to family and friends.

Love, Faith, and a Pair of Pants by Herb Freed is a journey of faith, humor, love, and forgiveness. It reminded me that even when at our worst points, we can still hold on and survive. A young rabbi finds his way through indecision and finds the rewarding life of being a Jewish rabbi. He journey starts out like any other journey. One of worry, indecision, and loss. But he keeps on moving, praying, and hoping for the best. He meets all kinds of people. From the most unChristian like to other Jewish people. Ben treated all of the different people with respect. At first, he felt angry and confused. But he grew as a man and as a young rabbi. Wisdom is something we learn from experiences and not just from books. His Jewish faith kept him going forward. His future not set in stone. I enjoyed his journey. It was entertaining. The pages showed loss, grief, love, and healing. Overall, I would recommend this story to all readers.

This is a series of (fictional) short stories about Rabbi Ben Zelig. In the first story, we meet Ben as a rabbinical student. In the last one, he is a middle-aged man. Each story touches on love and loss and how Ben’s faith informs his feelings and decisions. The author is a rabbi and I appreciated learning more about the Jewish religion, which often gets obscured in media by Jewish culture. Most of the stories hit home, a few didn’t grab me.

I certainly will keep the phrase “A dollar’s worth of grace for a nickel’s worth of faith” with me.

DNF at start of second story. Rabbi was not very likable. He seemed shallow and lacking any kind of sensitivity of empathy. Then at the start of the second story nothing was of interest.

I liked the style of this book. It was five short stories at the various defining stages of the life of the main character, Ben - from a rabbi student to a rabbi, through all life's experiences. Together the short stories gave Ben's life story. I thought the concept was nice. It was also nice to get a glimpse into American Jewish culture (the book was also written by a rabbi - it is fiction though). There was also a lot of dry humour which I appreciated.
Where it fell short for me: there were a lot of Hebrew words with no explanation so I had to keep searching for the meanings (thanks kindle for that feature). Also I kept getting distracted while reading it - its a short book but didn't always hold my attention if that makes sense. Id still recommend.

I couldn't stand this.
I can't stand word, this character was hardly real and the treatment of everything around was bizarre and childish. Again, I couldn't stand his voice. Girls are objects to fulfil a part of life. Although the Jewish perceptive was interesting and is absent nearly otherwise, we weren't given much of an insight into it. Typical college boy book.

A wonderful collection of stories to savor.

I was very interested when I read the blurb for Herb Freed's Love, Faith and a Pair of Pants. I realized from the start I couldn't read this book like I would the novels I usually read. Instead I found I needed to read the stories individually, taking the time to really absorb the nuances. I do think the last story "Blood" was my favorite, Ben's journey touched something in my heart. The twists in the story were really unique. This was a different but satisfying read.
I received an advance reader copy from Netgalley.

I received a copy through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. Love, faith and a Pair of Pants! First of all, I just love the title and reading about the various stages in the life of Ben (the Rabbi) was a fun journey. We follow him from when he is just finishing up his studies and all that goes with being Jewish and having not only a proud mama but also other Jewish mother's who consider him a good catch. I found this to be a well written and often amusing story. I loved his Uncle and his wise ways the most and found myself falling into reading his parts 'with an accent'. At times it went deep but not enough to bore me, it only hooked me to read further. It is not often we view a Rabbi from this point of view and I felt it be was both informative and poignant. A Rabbi is a man with feelings after all and has many of the challenges most people face every day, only he has to be strong for his congregation. All in all, this is a good read and I would recommend it.

What a gem! It was such a privilege to follow Ben throughout his life of becoming a Rabbi and past that. Loved the stories so much. The writing was beautiful and the story is so well told. Highly recommend.

Love, Faith and a Pair of Pants is a collection of five tales that span throughout the life of Ben Zelig, a Jewish Rabbi. From learning to be a Rabbi and a respected man in the society, to romance, to understanding and acceptance, to crying over his daughter while she goes off to college; Ben's story has something profound and deep to impact the readers.

I was glad to have this opportunity to explore Judaism, which I have no idea about. However, I found the book rather emotionless. The religious and spiritual talk often came off as preachy and overdone. Ben's character wasn't relatable in the smallest sense, nor was he well-developed enough for us to love him. I loved his Uncle Joe and mother. Uncle Joe's business advice was savage, and his mom's chatter was fun. What I loved the most was the writing - it was spotless. Freed is a gifted author. His way with words is incredible, but I wish the story had more of an impact on me than it did.

On the whole, it felt like just another preachy novel trying to combine Judaism, romance and faith (where's the pair of pants?) with a vain attempt at humor.

An interesting arc, these short stories follow the life and faith of Ben from when he is about to become a rabbi through his daughter going off to college and his crisis of faith. I enjoyed the final story the most, but all are different and thoughtful.

The first book I read of this Author and such a pleasure! I loved the way he has written about the protagonist’s life but cut it down to stories which seamlessly blend together. Each story stands well alone and yet comes together to create one simple life story. The humour in the writing kept me smiling and the quiet emotions pulled at the heart. Many takeaways from this book about life and values too. An absolutely wonderful experience reading the book which I finished in one sitting. Thank you to the publishers and #Netgalley for the ARC.

A poignant and significant novel that reads like a memoir, it is filled with humor, pathos, and the struggle to find meaning in life. I did not plan to like this book as much as I did. As life is bound to do, it kept throwing left hooks to the young Rabbi Ben Zelig who kept bobbing and weaving to ward off the blows. Characters so real, you'll think you know them. When his faith finally fails him, he is shown the deepest meaning and God's mysterious ways. My favorite quote, "A dollar's worth of grace for a nickel's worth of faith." I thought, "just another Jewish book of platitudes," but it turns out to be deeper and more significant than I ever expected.