Isaac Stern: My First 79 Years, written with Chaim Potok, Alfred Knopf Publisher, 1999 By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — On any list of the outstanding violinists of the twentieth century, one would surely find the name of Isaac Stern. Born in 1920, in the city of Kreminiecz, which, as he states in this […]
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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts
Karen Levine, Hana’s Suitcase: The Quest to Solve a Holocaust Mystery; © 20r Te02, 2012; Random House Children’s Books; ISBN 978-1-101-93349-7; 135 pages, $9.99. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Perhaps because I’m in the process of researching a local biography, I’m all the more impressed by the resourcefulness and stick-to-it-iveness of Fumiko Ishioka,
Biographers can be inspired by Fumiko Ishioka Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish HistoryLet There Be Water: Israel’s Solution for a Water-Starved World by Seth M. Siegel, St. Martin’s Press, New York; ISBN 978-1-250-07395-2 ©2015, $27.99, p. 252, plus eight color photos, appendices and; an index By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. “Water, water, everywhere, and all the boards did shrink; Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” WINCHESTER,
Book tells how Israel solved its water crisis Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & EducationI Don’t Know What to Believe: Making Spiritual Peace With Your Religion by Rabbi Ben Kamin; Central Recovery Press, © 2016; ISBN 878-1-942094-04-3; 224 pages; $16.95. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO –Rabbi Kamin’s columns appear regularly on San Diego Jewish World. In fairness to those reading this review, it should be noted that we
Take from Bible what’s best, leave the rest Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish ReligionEleanor of Aquitaine, A Life by Alison Weir, Balantine Books, 1999 By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — In a time when chivalry placed women on a pedestal, knights fought for ladies faire and troubadours sang their praises, the reality of existence was quite different, even for a queen. This is the time from whence many legends
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Books, Poetry & Short Stories
Love in a World of Sorrow by Fanya Gottesfeld Heller, Gefen Publishing House © 2015, ISBN 9780965-229-839-3l 252 pages. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO –There are many authors like Fanya Gottesfeld Heller who tell their survival stories from the Holocaust at school assemblies and other forums. In San Diego County, the names of Gussie
Did Holocaust survivor love or just use her protector? Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish HistoryBy Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — Most families have some cousins they would rather not think about. Our Crowd: The Great Jewish Families of New York, by Stephen Birmingham (Syracuse University Press, 1996) and Poor Cousins by Ande Manners (Putnam Publishers Group, 1972) relate the stories of the powerful Jewish families of New York and
That ‘Other’ Part of the Family Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish History, USA
Scattered Among the Nations by Bryan Schwartz, Joy Sand and Sandy Carter; Weldon Owen publisher, Visual Anthropology Press, 251 pages, cover price $60. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO –I’m going to rearrange the sequence of Bryan Schwartz’s narrative and photography book so that we can always travel toward the east, almost around the world,
Yes, Rebecca, Jews live there too! Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Jewish ReligionUnlikely Soldier: A Jewish Soldier in Hitler’s Army by Georg Rauch, Publisher: Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2006, 2015 By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — As a nineteen year old male living in Vienna during World War II, there was no way Georg Rauch could escape being conscripted into the Nazi military machine. At first he thought
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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Jewish HistoryBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — The TV series, Call the Midwife, which is based on Jennifer Worth’s book of that name about her own experiences of working as a midwife in the impoverished East End of post-war London, has aroused widespread interest and enthusiasm, first in Britain and subsequently all over the world.
Book tells how ‘Call the Midwife’ became a TV series Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Theatre, Film & BroadcastBy Dan Bloom CHIAYI CITY, Taiwan — With the Paris climate talks concluded, and with most climate commentators agreeing that the COP21 ”agreement” still needs some fine-tuning and follow-up, things are looking good for the future of humanity. For Sarah Newman, a 50-something Jewish writer in Cincinnati, this is is also a time to start
Young adult cli-fi book hopes to shape values Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish Religion, The World We ShareBy Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — Neil Folberg’s And I Shall Dwell Among Them: Historic Synagogues of the World, Aperture Book Publisher; 1st edition, September, 1995, is a very special treasure. Each of the almost two hundred large color photographs is an individual work of art about Judaism’s places of worship. Folberg brings expertise and
Photo book of synagogues deeply touching Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish History, Jewish Religion
By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — For many of us (of a certain age) the Settlement Cook Book was the first cook book we bought or received as a wedding gift. I bought my copy, 4th edition, published in 1910, with over 600 pages, within weeks of getting married and used it until it fell
Settlement Cook Book helped immigrants Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short StoriesThe Weekly Mitzva by Binyamin Tabory, Maggid Books, Jerusalem; ISBN 978-1-59264-435-24 ©2015, $24.95, p. 228 By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California–A mitzva is a religious commandment. Traditional Judaism expects that each person will, to the best of his or her ability, fulfill in letter and spirit the 613 commandments identified in the Torah, the Five Books of
How to interpret, understand the mitzvot Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish Religion