David Bendinger, a poor, young Yiddish writer wishes to emigrate to Palestine from Poland, and because married couples are given preference, he tries to arrange for a marriage certificate to be purchased for him by a wealthy woman whose fiancee lives in Palestine.

The narrative deals with the abject poverty of David, as well as his Jewish heritage, and details the rise of both Communism and Zionism.

[1] Publishers Weekly likewise gave a positive review, describing the book as "welcome addition to [Singer]'s oeuvre".

[2] Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, writing for the New York Times, gave a mixed review, writing "In the end you follow David Bendinger's adventures only halfway engaged...a certain detachment in Singer's prose always keeps you at arm's length.

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