Jewish Book Month is celebrated in November – perfectly scheduled just before the winter holiday shopping season! There is nothing like curling up with a good book and a hot drink on a chilly evening, and books make wonderful gifts as well.
If you’re looking for a gift idea or a reading suggestion, the Hampton Synagogue is the place for you! For the past 28 years, we proudly present a summer Author Discussion Series that is a Westhampton Beach cultural highlight, as we welcome a series of award-winning and New York Times best-selling writers. Our beautiful sanctuary is transformed into a studio for these events, so that each November and December, we can share them on nation-wide television. Some of the best we saw this year include the following:
A Selection of Great Jewish Books
Long Island Compromise, by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
The much-anticipated second novel by the best-selling author and Emmy Award-winning creator of Fleishman Is In Trouble, a bawdy, biting, and often hilarious intergenerational comedy. The book’s central themes of family, money, and problems, though set in “Middle Rock,” will feel right at home in the Hamptons! (NOTE: It was so much fun discussing the book with Taffy on stage at the synagogue, but this one is definitely not for the kids)
The Last Politician: Inside Joe Biden’s White House and the Struggle for America’s Future, by Franklin Foer
From the former Editor-in-Chief of The New Republic and current staff writer for The Atlantic, a meticulously well-reported and dramatic account of President Joe Biden’s first 100 days in office. On the eve of another dramatic presidential transition, this very readable account will refresh our memories as to what the world looked like four years ago – and what we may expect beginning in January.
Profiles In Mental Health Courage, by Stephen Fried (with Patrick J. Kennedy)
A eye-opening series of meticulously-reported and moving stories of people from all walks of life dealing with mental health challenges. This is the second book Kennedy, who has emerged as America’s leading advocate for mental health policy reform, has written with Fried, and the passion and empathy they model comes through on every page.
Judaism Is About Love, by Rabbi Dr. Shai Held
This magisterial work by one of America’s leading religious scholars and theologians makes the argument that love is a foundational principle of Judaism. As a work of scholarship, it is a response to the often-cited misunderstanding that Christianity is about love while Judaism is about law. As a work of theology, it presents a moving picture of what it means to center empathy, concern, and care for others at the heart of one’s religious faith – and society.
When Women Ran Fifth Avenue: Glamour and Power at the Dawn of American Fashion, by Julie Satow
The follow-up from the author of The Plaza: The Secret Life of America’s Most Famous Hotel, a compelling biography of three women who emerged as visionary leaders of the golden age of Manhattan retail shopping. As Satow vividly describes, men owned the buildings, but inside, women ruled, creating a world of glamour and big business and paving the way for the generations who followed.
Money Kings: The Epic Story of the Jewish Immigrants Who Transformed Wall Street and Shaped Modern America, by Daniel Schulman
The first-ever biography of Joseph Schiff who, along with his associates and friends, emerged as the most powerful of the Gilded Age financiers, creating the foundations for both American high finance and the American Jewish communal institutions. The intersection of big money and political power, immigrant communities trying to achieve the American Dream, and the dark forces of racism and xenophobia are all relevant and timely, and Schulman tells the story with flair.
Avraham Bronstein is a rabbi of The Hampton Synagogue in Westhampton Beach and the moderator of its Author Discussion Series, which takes place each July-August and is then televised on JBS-Jewish Broadcasting Service. For more information, visit thehamptonsyangogue.org or jbstv.org.
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