It has been said that history is the story of the great people who make it. Much has been said about the resurgence of Torah life and learning in the second half of the twentieth century. The five subjects of this remarkable book carry a large share of credit for that success story.

These biographies concentrate on the personalities and character of their subjects. The carefully chosen anecdotes -- culled from interviews and a host of research -- present their subjects as teachers, guides, and role models, aside from their greatness in Torah.

We will be introduced to Rabbi Moshe Feinstein as the decisive and encyclopedic halachic authority with a heart as big as his infinite fund of knowledge and sense of responsibility for the nation and its individuals. We will see why Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky was described by his peers as the wise man of his generation, and how he had an uncanny ability to peer behind the question and recognize the needs of the person who came to him for guidance.

We will meet the Steipler Gaon, Rabbi Yaakov Yisroel Kanievsky, whose legendary devotion to learning and love for his people made his apartment a “must stop” for anyone seeking strength or advice. We will sit before Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, who was escorted to his final rest by 300,000 people, who knew him as a genius in Torah and in concern for every one of its people.

We will be transported to the home of Rabbi Yehudah Zev Segal, who demonstrated to the world that one can become a Chofetz Chaim in Manchester, as well as in Radin.

Rabbi Shimon Finkelman has produced a masterpiece. No, five masterpieces.