December was an extremely busy month for me, as I am sure it was, and still is, for many of you. I didn’t read as much as I would have liked. A few of the books were started months earlier, and I finally managed to finish them in December.

Here is a list of the books I have read, so far, in December. It will be updated if I finish any others before 2010. Some I have reviewed, but most I haven’t had the opportunity to write a review of, yet.

Anne Frank: The Book, the Life, the Afterlife, by Francine Prose
In America, by Susan Sontag
Rachel Sarai’s Vineyard, by Deborah Rey
Clara’s War, by Clara Kramer
Chains Around the Gates, by Naomi Ragen
Year of Wonders, by Geraldine Brooks
Total Immersion: A Mikvah Anthology, by Rikvah Slonim
Light the Candles, by Joan Holub
Dinosaur on Hanukkah, by Diane Levin Rauchwerger
The Coffee Trader, by David Liss

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Jew Wishes…Peace to you all.
© Copyright 2007 – All Rights Reserved – No permission is given or allowed to reuse my photography, book reviews, writings, or my poetry in any form/format without my express written consent/permission.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009 – 6th of Tevet, 5770

I am going to take the lead from Ilana Davita, and post a listing of my favorite books that I read in 2009. The ones I am posting, I have also reviewed. I think it is an excellent idea!

If you choose to participate, leave a link in the comment box. While you are at it, why not leave a link in Ilana Davita’s comment box, also.

Here are my lists, in no particular order:

Non-Fiction:

My Father’s Paradise, by Ariel Sabar

The Journal of Helene Berr, by Helene Berr

Kahn & Engelmann, by Hans Eichner

Hunting Eichmann, by Neal Bascomb

Gertruda’s Oath, by Ram Oren

To Heal a Fractured World, by Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks

Fiction:

Wandering Stars, by Sholem Aleichem

City of Thieves, by David Benioff

The Cellist of Sarajevo, by Steven Galloway

The Town Beyond the Wall, by Ellie Wiesel

Snow in August, by Pete Hamill

Rashi’s Daughters, Book III: Rachel, by Maggie Anton

The Polski Affair, by Leon H. Gildin

The Jewish Husband, by Lia Levi

Rachel Sarai’s Vineyard, by Deborah Rey

Friendly Fire, by A.B. Yehoshua

Siddurim/Prayer Books

The Koren Sacks Siddur, by Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks

A Jewish Woman’s Prayer book, by Aliza Lavie

In essence the majority of the books I read are ones I enjoyed for one reason or another. There are a small percentage of them that I haven’t entirely enjoyed, or haven’t garnered something from.
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Jew Wishes…Peace to you all.
© Copyright 2007 – All Rights Reserved – No permission is given or allowed to reuse my photography, book reviews, writings, or my poetry in any form/format without my express written consent/permission.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009 – 5th of Tevet, 5770

The Festival of Lights begins at sundown tonight. For those of you who would like a book on the celebration of Chanukah-Hanukkah, I recommend these books:

When I was at the Skirball Cultural Center on Sunday, I bought two children’s Hanukkah books for my grandchildren Emily and Logan.

Light the Candles: A Hanukah Lift-the-Flap Book, by Joan Holub is an excellent book and resource for children.
Emily and Logan have not seen this book yet, as Sarah is waiting until the first night to read it to them.

Dinosaur on Hanukkah, by Diane Levin Rauchwerger is a wonderful children’s Hanukkah book!

Hanukkah Lights: Stories of the Season, by Harlan Ellison, Anne Roiphe and Elie Wiesel

Festival of Lights: The Story of Hanukkah, by Maida silverman (Author), Carolyn Ewing (Illustrator)

Hanukkah Moon, by Deobrah Da Costa (Author), Gosia Mosz (Illustrator)

Hanukkah at Valley Forge, by Stephen Krensky (Author), Greg Harlin (Illustrator)

Chanukah Lights Everywhere, by Michael J. Rosen (Author), Melissa Iwai (Illustrator)

All About Hanukkah, by Madelie Wikler

My First Menorah, by Salina Yoon

Where is Baby’s Dreidel?, by Karen Katz

My friend, Mike at With Intention, recommended Hanukkah books by Eric A. Kimmel

A Different Light: The Hanukkah Book of Celebration, by Noam Zion

Hanukkah, 2nd Edition: The Family Guide to Spiritual Celebration, by Ron Wolfson

Most of these books are geared towards children, but adults will certainly enjoy them, too.

Don’t forget, because Shabbat is tonight, to light the first candle on the menorah just before sunset, and then light the two Shabbat candles as normal.

Chag Hanukkah Sameach! Shabbat Shalom!

Update: I found this article to be an inspiring story, and wanted to share it with everyone. It is an illumination to me, and so fitting to read just before the first night of Hanukkah and Sabbath eve begins.

After 107 years, the Congregation of Jacob, Stepney, East End of London, has been restored, and work has been completed on the restoration of “one of the last three synagogues in the East End still functioning“.

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Jew Wishes…Peace to you all.
© Copyright 2007 – All Rights Reserved – No permission is given or allowed to reuse my photography, book reviews, writings, or my poetry in any form/format without my express written consent/permission.

December 11, 2009 – 24th of Kislev, 5770

When I was at the Skirball Cultural Center on Sunday, I bought two children’s Hanukkah books for my grandchildren Emily and Logan.

I read them, right then and there, in the Skirball Cultural Center’s gift shop, to see if they were books that would be age appropriate (especially for 2 1/2 year old Emily who has a passionate love of books that is comparable to mine).

I knew once I had finished them that they would be great books for Emily and Logan to have in their Jewish holiday book collection.

Light the Candles: A Hanukah Lift-the-Flap Book, by Joan Holub is an excellent book and resource for children. From dreidels and latkes to lighting the candles on the Menorah and opening gifts, Light the Candles is a wonderful learning tool for children. Each page that is turned shows another candle on the menorah. Lift the flap and the children will see Hanukkah displayed in varied ways.

Emily and Logan have not seen this book yet, as Sarah is waiting until the first night to read it to them.

Dinosaur on Hanukkah, by Diane Levin Rauchwerger is a wonderful children’s Hanukkah book! Just ask Emily! She loved it, according to my daughter, Sarah.

I loved it too, and thought the illustrations were fantastic. They were very appealing, and I could see how children of all ages could fall in love with the book (including me). I let my inner child out while reading it.

Who doesn’t love a cute, smiley dinosaur?

From decorations to latkes, and all the traditions in between, Dinosaur on Hanukkah is an excellent Hanukkah book for children.

If you are looking for a compelling novel, and one that will keep you emotionally involved from the first page to the last, then Rachel Sarai’s Vineyard, by Deborah Rey is a book you should read. Ms. Rey sent me a copy of her novel as a gift, to read (not necessarily review), so I could gain a better insight into the plight of abused and misused children during World War II (WWII).

What I have grasped from this compelling novel is difficult to articulate. I don’t want to write too much and give the majority of the story line away, and/or spoil it for others. Suffice it to say that child abuse is a prevalent theme within the novel, not only physical abuse, but emotional abuse also. Within the confines of the abusive situation that Rachel Sarai was forced into is the fact that she was used (after her father went into hiding), beginning at the age of five, as a messenger, guide, and smuggler during WWII for the Dutch Resistance. That she was given tasks to do that many adults would refuse enhances the fact that her childhood was lacking in the ethical and moral structure that every child deserves. She had no childhood, she was trained in thievery, lying/deceit, and smuggling, and was manipulated into situations beyond belief.

The woman who seemingly was her mother was a belittling, coarse, brutal woman, who thought little, if anything, of the child she molded to suit her own needs and agenda. Rachel Sarai’s formative years were less than happy and desirable, and included not only extreme situations, such as being dragged to witness scenarios that would make adults feel nauseous, and bring chills up and down their spines, but also the demeaning and degrading abuse of the mind and emotions.

Rachel Sarai’s life was controlled insidiously, manipulated to the extreme by the woman she knew as her mother. She was put into situations at a tender young age, situations such as guiding others to a safe spot during WWII. She delivered messages for the Dutch Resistance, taking over where her deceased father left off. She did this under extremely adverse conditions, risking her own life in order to fulfill the desires of a desperate woman seeking power and recognition.

Did Rachel Sarai truly understand what she was ordered to do? Did she comprehend the inner workings of the Dutch Resistance? Was her youthful naivete an asset? How did she manage to survive the emotional and physical abuse she was thrust into? Question upon question entered my mind while reading Rachel Sarai’s Vineyard.

The novel depicts a strong Rachel Sarai, and how she was able to conquer the evil forces within her life, and overcome the devastation, horrors and abuse. For a short period of time, she had a mentor, a mother figure and person who treated her with love and respect.

Rachel Sarai’s Vineyard is not a pretty story, not a sugar-coated story, and not one to read if you are prone to having a weak stomach and/or dislike harsh language. But, for those who can persevere through the emotional content, you will finish the story with an education of how some children were abused and misused during World War II, to suit the goals of adults. You will come away appalled at how children could be forced into the workings and hold of the Resistance. Deborah Rey’s writing is vivid and compelling, and she paints pictures that boggle the mind.

Will you understand the reasoning behind the abuse, or the abuse, period? I didn’t. For the life of me I can’t fathom anyone treating a child with such moral, emotional and physical debasement. Will you cry for Rachel Sarai? Possibly. Will you become angry at the way she is treated? Yes. Will you be appalled at the circumstances she is forced to deal with? Yes. Will you be inspired by her will to survive and stamina? Yes!

Thank you, Deborah, for the gift copy you sent me of Rachel Sarai’s Vineyard.
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© Copyright 2007 – All Rights Reserved – No permission is given or allowed to reuse my photography, book reviews, writings, or my poetry in any form/format without my express written consent/permission.

Tuesday December 8, 2009 – 21st of Kislev, 5770

I was touched and was impressed by William Styron’s novel Sophie’s Choice, a Holocaust novel that portrayed a Roman Catholic, Sophie, her Holocaust experience, and her later love relationship with a Jewish man. When I saw the new release, Letters to My Father, in the book store a while back, I just had to buy it.

I wanted to learn more about the man who could author a book like Sophie’s Choice, a book that was heart-wrenching, not only for the Holocaust and post Holocaust aspect, but for the choice that Sophie was confronted with, and had to make on a moment’s notice. When reading it, I felt the devastation and despair, and was stunned that it was written so sensitively.

I became thoroughly involved in the book from the first page to the last. It is fascinating on many levels, insightful, poignant, and filled with the stuff that inspirational memoirs are made of. The father-son relationship reigns supreme within the pages of this beautifully composed book of over one hundred letters plus additional content. The letters were written by Styron to his father, William C. Styron, Sr.

That Styron was able to openly pen them and discuss his feelings and thoughts to his father is a testament to the both of them and their strong father-son bond. From his insecurities to his personal life, Styron speaks to his father through the letters quite frankly and without fear of negative feedback. The closeness he felt to his father is extensively exhibited within the correspondence.

The reader sees the emotional growth developing in Styron, as he moves through his early years. From serving in World War II to his university studies, to marriage and living abroad, the documentation of his life is forthright and fascinating. He speaks to his father in a candid manner, holding nothing back. The content is intense and compelling, and offers a look into not only the mindset of Styron the author, but is also a psychological study as to the inadequacies that Styron felt about his writing, recognition for his work, and the difficulties confronting him as a writer.

That he felt insecure about himself, in his younger years, belies the maturity with which he wrote his novels. We are given glimpses into an author’s thoughts, emotions and relationship with his father like no other book I can think of. It is a beautiful volume, filled with copies of some of the correspondence. The book also contains some of Styron’s earliest writings.

This reader was completely taken in from page one, and finished Letters to My Father, basically nonstop. I came up for air to eat, but the book was beside me while I did. It lingers with me, as I write this. It is one of those books that are difficult to let go of because of the emotional involvement of the reader. It is an extremely inspiring book. I highly recommend Letters to My Father to everyone, not only to fathers and sons.
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I personally own and have read this book.
© Copyright 2007 – All Rights Reserved – No permission is given or allowed to reuse my photography, book reviews, writings, or my poetry in any form/format without my express written consent/permission.

Thursday December 3, 2009 – 16th of Kislev, 5770