We asked the team at the Jewish Community Library to put together this summer reading list to help you find some new titles for the coming months. The list includes some short and engaging books perfect to unwind and reflect, and some longer books ideal to captivate your imagination for days. Whatever you choose, we’re certain you will dive into an exploration of Jewish ideas and perspectives, as well as history, culture and tradition!
All the books listed can be borrowed from the Jewish Community Library, many are available as ebooks, and half of them have been reviewed by Howard Freedman, Director of the Jewish Community Library.
We hope you find something to enjoy!
Short Fiction
- The Netanyahus, by Joshua Cohen (Winner of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize)
- Burning Girls, by Veronica Schanoes (read Howard Freedman’s review here)
Poems
- Wolf Lamb Bomb: Poems, by Aviya Kushner (read Howard Freedman’s review here)
Memoir and Nonfiction
- Nobody Will Tell You This But Me, by Bess Kalb
- Golem Girl, by Riva Lehrer (read Howard Freedman’s review here)
- Letters to Camondo, by Edmund deWaal (read Howard Freedman’s review here)
- Chaver Up! 49 Rabbis Explore What It Means to Be an Ally through a Jewish Lens, ed. by Rabbi Sharon A. Kleinbaum and Rabbi Mike Moskowitz
Graphic Novel / Memoir
- Tunnels, by Rutu Modan (read Howard Freedman’s review here)
- When I Grow Up: The Lost Autobiographies of Six Yiddish Teenagers, by Ken Krimstein (read Howard Freedman’s review here)
Novels (Long)
- The Magician, by Colm Tóibín
- The Orchard, by David Hopen (read Howard Freedman’s review here)
For a Deep Dive Into Jewish Texts
- The Hidden Order of Intimacy: Reflections on the Book of Leviticus, by Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg
- Lamentations: Faith in a Turbulent World, by Yael Ziegler