Treyf: My Life as an Unorthodox Outlaw
In her memoir, Treyf: My Life as an Unorthodox Outlaw (New American Library), food writer Elissa Altman, who also wrote Poor Man’s Feast, deftly uses kashrut – Judaism’s dietary laws – to portray, both literally and symbolically, the toxic relationships in her dysfunctional Jewish family.
The House by the Lake: One House, Five Families, and a Hundred Years of German History
On the outskirts of Berlin lies the charming lakefront community of Groß Glienicke, where locals and summer visitors enjoy swimming, boating and fishing. Nestled among the medieval village’s structures is the lake house where author Thomas Harding’s grandmother once lived.
Zionism: The Birth and Transformation of an Ideal
Author Milton Viorst wants to know how Theodor Herzl’s vision of a Jewish refuge for a beleaguered people became “a military power where peace and security was thought about exclusively within a military framework.”
The Dollmaker of Krakow
Young adult Holocaust narratives aren’t too hard to find. Prisoner B-3087, Refugee, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas are among the many novels striving to broach a challenging subject for a teen or tween audience. Because children and teens were profoundly impacted by the events leading up to and during World War II, sharing a story from their point of view is a natural entry point for a reader of the same age.
Pirkei Avot: A Social Justice Commentary
Pirkei Avot (Ethics of Our Ancestors) stands out among the 63 tractates of the Mishnah as a treatise devoted to ethical exhortation and guidance. Some scholars claim it was originally a manual directed at rabbi-judges.
The Lions' Den: Zionism and the Left from Hannah Arendt to Noam Chomsky
Sometimes a book arrives at a necessary moment, a moment in which it can become part of the public conversation and help set the stage for political arguments to come. The Lions’ Den: Zionism and the Left from Hannah Arendt to Noam Chomsky is such a book.
...And Often the First Jew
Rabbi Stephen Fuchs and his wife, Victoria, had a choice to make, a choice that would transform their lives. Should they cut all ties with Germany, where their parents were born and survived the Holocaust, or should they begin a positive dialogue with Germans?
The Art of Leaving: A Memoir
Ayelet Tsabari’s beloved father died suddenly shortly before her tenth birthday. She cites this traumatic event as the reason for her quest to find a permanent home and to find herself – the life journey she describes in this compelling memoir.
Wholly Jewish: Grace: Breaking Down the Gates of Queer Judaism
Soviet Judgment at Nuremberg
The four power International Military Tribunal (IMT) took place in Nuremberg, Germany between November 1945 and October 1946. Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union joined the United States in bringing 24 Nazi leaders to justice after the end of World War II.