Reviews

With the passing of Meir Shalev this year and A.B. Yehoshua last year, few stellar writers remain from the generations...

Set in San Francisco, “The Fitful Sleep of Immigrants” by Orlando Ortega-Medina is striking because the author manages to pack...

“The World and All That It Holds” is surely one of the more audacious titles of any book I’ve read....

Poland’s relationship to Jewishness remains a fraught issue that stimulates much debate. (I know, having witnessed some of those heated...

For those of us whose primary encounter with the text of the Torah is reading along in synagogue with the...

Unspooling long-held family secrets has become a specialty of Dani Shapiro’s. She has hosted the popular “Family Secrets” podcast for...

For those of us who have been shaped by the presence of Holocaust survivors in our families and communities, the...

By Howard Freedman, Director, Jewish Community Library As we approach the New Year, Abigail Pogrebin’s My Jewish Year: 18 Holidays,...

The short stories that make up Omer Friedlander’s “The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land,” this year’s selection...

It can be difficult to recommend books one finds deeply upsetting. But as I call attention to two new books...

For many of us, summer reading involves books that engage us but don’t feel like work to get through. One...

By Leah Strauss, Reader Services Librarian, Jewish Community Library Thoughts of Ukraine consume me these days. Even though my grandmother...

We asked the team at the Jewish Community Library to put together this summer reading list to help you find...

Perhaps the most notable Jewish literary event of 2022 has been the release of the English translation of “The Books...

The age of texting and tweeting has brought out the curmudgeon in me, in part because I sometimes feel as...

Although Argentina has long housed the largest Jewish population in Latin America, Jews in the United States tend to know...

It was reported on National Public Radio last year that the Covid-19 pandemic had witnessed a dramatic increase in interest...

Although few of us can relate to the rarefied worlds of wealthy Jewish art collectors during the French Third Republic,...

Jerusalem has a particularly fraught archaeological heritage, with the battle over the city’s present and future reflected in disagreements surrounding...

It’s always rewarding when a story collection feels like more than the sum of its parts, as is the case...

My father’s sister Sandra suffered terribly from lupus. After Sandra fell into a long coma as a teenager, my grandmother...

Nearly 70 years after their execution for having allegedly passed atomic secrets to the USSR, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg remain...

There is no shortage of fiction set in the Nazi era being written today, and most serious attempts sit atop...

The writings of the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors frequently convey not only the pain their grandparents endured but also the...

The writings of the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors frequently convey not only the pain their grandparents endured but also the...

One does not conventionally turn first to Jewish literature to satisfy a thirst for adventure stories. Nevertheless, the past few...

What makes books on family history so compelling for me is that they offer a fresh and personal lens on...

As languages have lives of their own, with arcs that dwarf the lifespans of their speakers, it feels fitting for...

While the short story is a classic literary form, it can also feel like a somewhat beleaguered one. A perusal...

‘The Lost Shtetl’ and ‘The Orchard’: 2 new novels of Jewish culture shock Books coverage is supported by a generous...

Gripping memoirs by writers who aren’t exactly famous – J. Books coverage is supported by a generous grant from The...

New Israeli novels explore the weight of memory – J. Memory informs every aspect of Jewish existence. The late historian...

On the Riviera, in Bolivia … Jewish historical fiction that travels – J. Two new coming-of-age novels set against memorable...

Secrets kept, secrets revealed in two debut novels Books coverage is supported by a generous grant from The Milton and...

New biographies paint portraits of two Jewish luminaries Books coverage is supported by a generous grant from The Milton and...

Daughters of the Holocaust uncover old stories in new memoirs – J. Jews place a premium on remembering, and particularly...

Two authors delight in the remnants of generations past – J. How can we draw meaning from the remnants of...

New Jewish poetry books to accompany you through isolation – J. Although one of the thrills of poetry is the...

Newly translated from French, these two Holocaust memoirs are at reasure Books coverage is supported by a generous donation from...

Leaving Orthodoxy: personal stories of gender and Hasidism – J. Books coverage is supported by a generous donation from Anne...

In the 2010s, Jewish children’s books diversified but emphasized classic values – J. Books coverage is supported by a generous...

Hanukkah gift guide to graphic novels, picture books and young adult novels – J. The books section is supported by...

Two Israeli novelists explore truth and integrity – J. The books section is supported by a generous donation from Anne...

New books: Detailed looks at WWII Jewish refugee crisis, and FDR – J. For students of American Jewish history, few...