Welcome!

Welcome to the Jewish Book Council blog. We hope you’ll join us as we venture into the world of Jewish books, exploring questions related to what makes a book Jewish, trends in the Jewish literary scene, interesting new books to come across our desk, emerging authors, interviews, and more. Feel free to write to us with your opinions and ideas. We’d love to hear from you! Happy reading…

17 responses to “Welcome!”

Simon Schatzmann | November 27, 2008 at 4:37 am | Reply

Have you seen Mort Gerberg’s new book – The All-Jewish Cartoon Collection – it’s hilarious, Check it out out at booksbyzeus.com
Marc Chapman | November 27, 2008 at 5:03 am | Reply

I was sent an advance copy to review and I think its one of the funniest book dipicting Jewish themes I seen in years.

I know Mort does great work for The New Yorker, but his book connects and resonates “Jewishness” in a warm fun loving way. Great book!
Ellen Beller | February 27, 2009 at 11:28 am | Reply

Loved the utube section on the books will they be available for our website? Is it possible to get them at the conference??
- jewishbooks | February 27, 2009 at 11:38 am | Reply
  
  Dear Ellen,
  
  You can create youtube videos on your site by copying the embed link to the right of any youtube video and pasting that into your website!
  
  Best,
  Naomi Firestone
Jon Bernstein | March 24, 2009 at 4:00 pm | Reply

Hi!

My name is Jon Bernstein; I’m a community manager for Barnes&Noble.com

I wanted to let you know that we just opened a new area in our community for discussion of religious and spiritual books, both fiction and non-fiction.

This is part of the Book Clubs, our online messageboards. Registration is completely free and everyone is welcome to join in.

The board is located here: http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com/bn/board?board.id=religion

I thought that you and your readers might like to know about this board. Please come join us and share your thoughts and experiences on religion and spirituality in literature.

Hope to see you there!

Jon
Howard Salmon | March 25, 2009 at 9:04 pm | Reply

Do you have a section for Jewish graphic novels? I’d like to get mine included in the discussion;the “Comic Book Siddur”
http://www.comicbooksiddur.com
I’m interested in the ethical considerations involved in making a comic book styled translation of sacred literature
michel | August 17, 2009 at 11:07 am | Reply

Shalom
Do you have a section for Jewish art?
Visit my gallery :
http://www.script-sign.com/pressebook/calligraphie.php
Brooke Rothman | January 26, 2010 at 11:14 pm | Reply

Dear The Book of Life,

I am writing you today to suggest a new memoir about the Vienna of Kristallnacht and the Middle America of Jewish refugees who lived beyond New York City. Objects of Remembrance: A Memoir of American Opportunities and Viennese Dreamsis published by Monroe E. Price, Director of the Center for Global Communications Studies at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania and Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University.

The gifted author, Bernhard Schlink, who gave us The Reader, calls Monroe Price’s Objects of Remembrance, “An intimate and provocative meditation on Jewish life between the old and the new world.”

Schlink joins a chorus of readers and supporters for this carefully thought through reflection on the power of Jewish American assimilation and opportunity in the face of persisting refugee realities. Like Isaac Bashevis Singer, Price recounts the continuing impact of European identities as families, cast from their homes by the rise of Hitler and the Third Reich, struggle to find their way in a new and challenging environment.

I could tell you more about the book, but the author’s story is best relayed personally. I encourage you to watch his video discussion below.

Video of the Author: http://www.youtube.com/annenbergschool#p/a/u/0/qEBw-vB88DA

I would be happy to send you a press release or a copy of Objects of Remembrance. The author is available for guest blogging, interviews and guest articles.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at 609-217-7231 or brookerothman@gmail.com.

Sincerely,

Brooke Rothman

Publicist
Beth Bay | March 11, 2010 at 11:52 am | Reply

I am new to this site. Visions Communications, an independent publishing house, has just published a book by a New York author, Robert Newman, entitled “Hey, You Never Know: Three Jewish Families in the Twentieth Century, Stories of Struggle and Love.” Its style is crisp and unadorned, carrying emotional weight and the feel of life in all its shades and colors, from bleak sorrow to absurdity and joy. I would like to speak to the Jewish Book Council Blog community. Anyone who has guidance or comments, please reply.
Phil Jason | May 5, 2010 at 12:01 pm | Reply

I’m happy to be reviewing for Jewish Book World and looking forward to participating on this blog. My own website, technically also a WordPress blog, contains a section with my reviews of book of Jewish interest. One thing this blog could do is provide book group discussion outlines for important titles that do not get this kind of attention from their publishers.
- jewishbooks | May 6, 2010 at 11:27 am | Reply
  
  Hi Phil-
  
  Have you seen our book group guides here?
  
  http://www.jewishbookcouncil.org/page.php?189
Marie | June 9, 2010 at 2:02 pm | Reply

Hi, I work for the Association of Jewish Libraries and I’d like to talk to someone at JBS about an initiative that AJL is starting with our blog. Who should I contact? If possible please reply via email to me at mcloutier at jewishlibraries.org. Thank you!
Donald Michael Platt | August 5, 2010 at 2:37 pm | Reply

Good afternoon.

How do I let your site and readers know about my novel, ROCAMORA, set in 17th century Spain and Amsterdam. It fills in the wide gaps of the amazing Vicente de Rocamora (1601-84) who went from Dominican royal confessor and spiritual director for the Infanta of Spain, to Jewish physician in Amsterdam at age 46 when he married 25 year year old Abigail Toura, sired nine children and established a dynasty of physicians.
Giusi Meister | January 11, 2011 at 12:21 pm | Reply

Hi!I’m writing from Rome! I opened my own blog on wordpress one year ago, and this is dedicated to Israeli culture, even if I mainly talk about books and poems, it is called The library of Israel and here’s a sample of my posts:

http://bibliotecadisraele.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/intervista-a-ron-leshem-interview-with-ron-leshem/

People are very interested to Israeli authors in Italy, and as I’m a keen on Jewish literature in general, I’m also going to add a specific section soon (I’ll use a yiddish expression for it, I love Yiddish).
This blog of yours is AMAZING!! Thanks a lot for your work!:)
ciao! Giusi
Tema Merback | March 15, 2011 at 3:31 pm | Reply

I have written and just published a novel: In the Face of Evil: Based on the Life of Dina Frydman Balbien, which is based on my mother’s survival of the Holocaust.
My reviews have been incredibly encouraging:

“This book is the outcome of three miracles. First, the mother Dina Frydman, lived through the Holocaust, surviving an unbelievable, all too true set of tragic experiences that wiped out her entire family: occupation, ghetto, work camp, slave labor, Auschwitz, Bergen-Belsen (in its final stage of total collapse and chaos). Miraculously, she came through with her goodness, honor and affirmation of life intact. This book reflects those qualities.”

“Second miracle: for decades, in an incredible feat of memory, Dina relived and told her stories, recounting them with pitch perfect recollection, including a vivid gallery of portraits of friends, family, victims, persecutors, and with vital scenes of the kindness and cruelty of strangers, the love and incapacity of family, the support and saving help of friends.”

“Third miracle: Dina’s daughter, Tema Merback, absorbed these stories and reproduced them in this authentic, gripping, moving account. What the mother could not do – put her testimony in a book – the daughter has done and without losing any of the fire, or the suffering, or the heartbreak or the moments of relief and of despair. In the end this book communicates an irrepressible, overflowing life force and decency and hope in the face of the most inhuman crimes ever.”

“As authentic, as compelling, as devastating as a survivor’s account written at first hand, this book snatches memory and life from the jaws of oblivion and gives them as a gift to its readers. This book was a mitzvah to write and mitzvah to read.”

Rabbi Irving (Yitz) Greenberg, Founding President, Jewish Life Network; Founding President, CLAL: The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership; Chairman, United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 2000-2002.

I am a first time author and I would very much appreciate any direction that you can provide to help me submit my novel for review.
Bob Bahr | August 22, 2011 at 11:13 am | Reply

Just saw your book give-away for young Jews in NYC, where Jewish books are more available than anywhere else in the world. What about encouraging Jewish literacy in those areas of the country that are not awash in it. Why not give a book away from your stash (which you would choose) with every new subscription?
Barry Friedman | December 31, 2013 at 4:16 pm | Reply

Hello Everybody,

I just want you to know about a Jewish novel written by my son:

http://www.amazon.com/Memoirs-Generation-Screwed-David-Friedman/dp/1482563983/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1388524300&sr=1-12&keywords=David+F+Friedman

I am sure you will enjoy reading it.

A shaynem dank………..