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THE HOLY THIEF: A Con Man's Journey from Darkness to Light

From Publishers Weekly (starred review):  Borovitz started with petty thievery --baseball cards, candy, marbles-- at age eight. By 14, shortly after the death of his father, he became a middleman, and at 25, he beat two middle-aged men at their own scam. Through most of this he maintained a second life as a nice Jewish boy who went to shul, said kaddish everyday for a year for his father, looked out for his sister and turned over much of ill-gotten gains to his mother to support the family. The scams got bigger, the trail got hotter and eventually he was caught. It took two stints in jail for him to learn that crime doesn't pay, but Borovitz attacked his reformation with the same zeal he once applied to intricate cons. His decision to become a rabbi at age 50 seems nothing less than natural. Borovitz is a storyteller at heart, so it's easy to see how he conned so many for so much. Just as natural is his commitment, with his wife, to Beit T'Shuvah, House of Return, a place for souls lost to addiction and themselves. Heart-wrenching but hilarious, raw but refreshing, this everyman tale reminds us that even nice Jewish boys can go bad, but they can also be redeemed.  
From The Washington Post: "This warts-and-all memoir charts Borovitz's journey from shul-goer to shyster to prison inmate and back... compelling secondary characters and a spine-tingling spiritual awakening."

From Nextbook: "A blustering and grandiose book. Perfectly conveys the hustler, the tough Jew who turns his talent for persuasion to better ends. Not just likeable but important."

From The Jewish Journal of Los Angeles: "A colorful tale for a colorful character who has turned his life around. An amazing and highly unusual journey."

From Booklist: "Reading like fiction, it's nevertheless a true story."

From The Jewish Press: "Very intriguing. A can't-put-it down book."

From JTA News:  "In the world of unusual life stories, Rabbi Mark Borovitz's ranks near the top... a thoroughly unique blend of soulful insight mixed with a dose of street-smart profanity."

From New Jersey Jewish News: "... a most unusual autobiography... both the book and the life it describes so well are truly inspirational."

From The Jewish Week:  "THE HOLY THIEF is told with candor and insight... inspiring reading."