The 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour

The Sydney Taylor Book Award will be celebrating and showcasing its 2010 gold and silver medalists and with our special Notable Book for All Ages with a Blog Tour, February 1-5, 2010! Here is a celebratory video for your enjoyment, and the schedule for the Blog Tour is posted below.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2010

Monday, February 1, 2010
April Halprin Wayland, author of New Year at the Pier: A Rosh Hashanah Story
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Practically Paradise

Monday, February 1, 2010
Stephane Jorisch, illustrator of New Year at the Pier: A Rosh Hashanah Story
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Frume Sarah's World

Monday, February 1, 2010
Margarita Engle, author of Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at bookstogether

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2010

Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Robin Friedman, author of The Importance of Wings
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Little Willow's Bildungsroman

Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Jacqueline Davies, author of Lost
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at Biblio File

Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Jonah Winter, author of You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Get in the Game: Read! and cross-posted at Examiner.com

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2010

Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Elka Weber, author of The Yankee at the Seder
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at BewilderBlog

Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Adam Gustavson, illustrator of The Yankee at the Seder
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Great Kids Books

Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Judy Vida, daughter of the late Selma Kritzer Silverberg, author of Naomi's Song
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at The Book Nosher

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2010

Thursday, February 4, 2010
Jacqueline Jules, author of Benjamin and the Silver Goblet
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at ASHarmony

Thursday, February 4, 2010
Natascia Ugliano, illustrator of Benjamin and the Silver Goblet
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at The Book of Life

Thursday, February 4, 2010
Deborah Bodin Cohen, author of Nachshon, Who Was Afraid to Swim
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Ima On and Off the Bima

Thursday, February 4, 2010
Jago, illustrator of Nachshon, Who Was Afraid to Swim
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Jewish Books for Children

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2010

Friday, February 5, 2010
Annika Thor, author of A Faraway Island
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Teen Reads

Friday, February 5, 2010
Ellen Frankel, author of The JPS Illustrated Bible for Children
Sydney Taylor Notable Book for All Ages
at Deo Writer

New Holocaust Books for Youth

Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers

Roaring Brook Press

Imprints of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group

Jeanne McDermott • Director of Marketing • 646-307-5756 • Jeanne.Mcdermott@fsgbooks.com

From the Anne Frank House

ANNE FRANK: HER LIFE IN WORDS AND PICTURES,

A FAMILY SECRET, and THE SEARCH

“Heartbreaking . . . the medium’s intimacy and immediacy help boil down a vast subject to a few lives that young readers, and old ones too, can grasp.” – The New York Times

“A must for the Holocaust curriculum.” – Booklist, starred review

“[The Search and A Family Secret] are must-haves.” – Kirkus, starred review

It is through the narratives of victims, perpetrators, bystanders, and survivors that we become aware of the human side of the Holocaust. Every person who lived in Europe during that terrible time has a unique, personal story. Statistics tell us what happened, but the stories let us know how it felt.

Fortunately, these stories survive, thanks in part to museums, archives, libraries, and more.

We’re proud to publish for the US market three books developed by the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam: Anne Frank: Her Life in Words and Pictures is a book to read and pore over as it includes many photographs of the Frank family never published before. In A Family Secret, we read about the experiences of a fictional Dutch family during World War II. Powerful storytelling, combined with the narrative energy of the graphic novel format, convey the details of this horrific moment in world history. In another equally powerful graphic novel, The Search, the main facts about the Holocaust are revealed through the eyes of another fictional family affected by the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Each of the latter books presents information related by eyewitness accounts.

These meticulously researched visual books bring a new accessibility to this moral turning point in modern history and forge a connection to the events of the past for children living in today’s very visual culture. In addition, children will be aware of a new Disney film project: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/08/12/2009-08-12_the_diary_of_anne_frank_to_return_to_the_big_screen_david_mamet_will_write_direc.html#ixzz0NzSVSoWN

If we may provide more information about the books or provide review copies, please let me know (see contact information above).

And please see our free, downloadable guide, TEACHING THE HOLOCAUST: http://us.macmillan.com/annefrank-2#guides

The Anne Frank House is an independent organization entrusted with the care of the Secret Annex, the place where Anne Frank hid during World War II and where she wrote her diary. It brings her life story to the attention of people all over the world to encourage them to reflect on the dangers of anti-Semitism, racism and discrimination, and on the importance of freedom, equal rights and democracy. Their American partner organization is The Anne Frank Center USA.

Anne Frank: Her Life in Words and Pictures • by Menno Metselaar and Ruud van der rol; translated by Arnold J. Pomerans

Roaring Brook Press • HC: 978-1-59643-546-9 •PB: 978-1-59643-547-6

A Family Secret • by Eric Heuvel; translated by Lorraine T. Miller

Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers • HC ISBN: 978-0-374-32271-7 • PB ISBN: 978-0-374-42265-3

The Search • by Eric Heuvel, Ruud van der Rol, and Lies Schippers; translated by Lorraine T. Miller

Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers • HC ISBN: 978-0-374-36517-2 • PB ISBN: 978-0-374-46455-4

On Sale October 2009

JPS Bible Guide Named "Best"

LIBRARIANS SELECT JPS BIBLE GUIDE AS “BEST OF THE BEST”

Philadelphia, PA - The Jewish Publication Society (JPS) is proud to announce that The Jewish Bible: A JPS Guide, has been recognized by the Association of American University Presses (AAUP) as one of the “Best of the Best” books in its 19^th edition of University Press Books Selected for Public and Secondary School Libraries, showcased at this summer’s American Library Association conference in Chicago.

According to AAUP, “Some of the most significant and thought-provoking books… are published by scholarly presses” and represent major contributions to important library collections. The volumes singled out this year for excellence as “Best of the Best” were selected from a list of 400 by active librarians who work with high school students and the general public.

Bruce Feiler, author of Walking the Bible and Abraham, noted: “Whether you study the Bible every day or are just returning to it after many years away, this book offers a gentle hand and a comprehensive eye that can help you get more out of the text. The Jewish Bible will quickly become the go-to book for casual and devoted students alike.”

The Jewish Bible: A JPS Guide was edited and published by JPS with advisors Shalom Paul, Fred Greenspahn and Ziony Zevit. Featuring contributions by leading Bible scholars, it has been heralded as an outstanding resource for anyone engaged in Bible study. This invaluable guide covers everything from the origins of the Bible to chapters on commentaries, distinctions between the Jewish and Christian Bibles, storytelling and poetry in the Bible, law, prophecy, wisdom literature, and a glossary of Bible terms. This volume is part of the highly acclaimed JPS Guide series, a collection of concise, authoritative reference books on key Jewish topics. Colorful graphics, including maps, charts, tables, timelines and family trees, also provide quick, easy access to an abundance of information.

For more information on The Jewish Bible: A JPS Guide, visit http://www.jewishpub.org/product.php?id=102.

A History of the NCSY

If you are interested in Jewish youth movements, you might want to check out the new book Living from Convention to Convention: A History of the NCSY, 1954-1980 (NCSY, or National Conference of Synagogue Youth, is the international youth organization of the Orthodox Union.). Written by Yeshiva University student Zev Eleff and published by KTAV, the book fills a gap in American Jewish history. Eleff used archives from across the country in his research.

According to the Orthodox Union web site:

Zev only wrote about the history of NCSY through 1980, and when asked why, he says, “After NCSY took off and became the multi-service movement spread across the American forefront that it is today, it became nearly impossible to write a concise history of its efforts and programs. To document its history after 1980 would require a volume for each of its 18 fully-operational regions, rather than one comprehensive work.” Zev ... said he does not have plans to undertake that daunting project (“a challenge for some other historian,” he says) but is happy with his effort to record the early makings of NCSY.

A review of the book can be found on the Jewish Book News site here and the book may be purchased here.

AJL Goes Print-on-Demand

The Association of Jewish Libraries has begun publishing materials using the CreateSpace print-on-demand service from Amazon.com. This allows AJL to offer high-quality professionally printed and bound monographs. To kick off AJL's relationship with this service, they offer two important titles:



Creating a Collection
The newly-revised fifth edition of Creating a Collection: A Resource Booklist for a Beginning Judaic Library by Merrily Hart is now available for purchase. This very useful annotated subject bibliography is a guide to developing a core collection in a synagogue, school, or community center library.





Jewish Classics for Kids
This annotated bibliography of Jewish children's classics by expert Linda R. Silver is a compilation of classic titles from biblical to modern times, organized by subject with a glossary, and title and author indexes.




Both monographs may be ordered through Amazon's web site.

Creating a Collection on Amazon
Jewish Classics for Kids on Amazon

The list price is $20.00 plus shipping. Both titles are eligible for Amazon's Free Super Saver Shipping program if included in an order totaling over $25.00.

The Sun's Special Blessing

At the March 25 SFAJL chapter meeting, member Loreli Ennis told us about a new book written by her cousin, Sandy Wasserman: The Sun's Special Blessing. Below is the information supplied by Sandy about her book:

The Blessing for the Sun - on Pesach, This Year!

Why is this year different from all other years? Because this year, Birkat HaChamah, the blessing for the sun, takes place and falls on the morning of the first seder, April 8, 2009. It's been 28 years since the blessing of the sun; Birkat HaChamah was last recited in 1981.

New York children's author and teacher, Sandy Wasserman, has written a new picture book, The Sun's Special Blessing, just published by Pitspopany Press. The story, for children in grades 2-5, takes place in a classroom, where the children are learning the blessing. Mr. Jacob, their teacher, invites them to share his own 1981 experience with the blessing, when he was their own age. Shovels in hand, they unearth a time capsule from that year, remark about the secular and Jewish objects, learn the blessing and then build, and bury their own 2009 time capsule filled with their own memorabilia and artifacts, so that those who find it in 2037 will know about our lives today.

It's both a Pesach book, and a Birkat HaChamah book!

Contact Sandy Wasserman in New York directly if you wish to order: sandyfw@gmail.com.

Author Event: My Father's Final Journey

Ideas Through Books: March 22, 2009, 10am
Temple Beth Am of Miami, in the Chapel

My Father’s Final Journey: A Heart Surgeon’s Memoir by David L. Galbut, MD

Dr. Galbut, a world renowned heart surgeon, traces the last months of his father’s life, revealing the role a vibrant Jewish identity played in solidifying a family that is about to lose their patriarch. Dr. Galbut’s father enjoyed life without taking it for granted. His ability to face adversity with dignity, and the way his family stands by him, will serve as a fitting example for families everywhere.

Temple Beth Am's Ideas Through Books events are free and open to the public. Please call Judy or Etta in the Temple Beth Am library (305.666.6756 ext. 128), or email egold3@earthlink.net to rsvp. Info and directions to Temple Beth Am are at www.tbam.org.

Very Short List's Jewish Gems

I subscribe to an e-newsletter called Very Short List, self-described as "a collection of distinct, free, daily e-mails that each recommend one must–see gem a day." Every now and then they turn up an item of Jewish interest. Below are two recent entries that caught my eye.

THE BELIEVERS

The Believers by Zoe Heller follows her 2003 novel Notes on a Scandal. Here's how Very Short List describes the new book:

"The believers in question are the Litvinoffs — an unhappy Jewish family like the kind you’d meet in certain Woody Allen films. When the family’s patriarch, a radical left-wing lawyer named Joel, suffers a stroke, the group’s established dynamic comes unglued. Suddenly, the poison-tongued wife, the holier-than-thou daughter, the fat ignored daughter, and the adopted dope-fiend son have to confront the fraying veneers of their own, imagined righteousness."

HIDDEN MELODIES REVEALED

The Sway Machinery includes members from other bands, including Jeremiah Lockwood from Balkan Beat Box. Sway Machinery has just released its first album, Hidden Melodies Revealed. Very Short List says:

"Hidden Melodies Revealed features Lockwood singing the Hebrew verses he learned from his grandfather, a famous cantor named Jacob Konigsberg. (Lockwood’s pedigree also includes a stint in the New York City subway system supporting bluesman Carolina Slim.) But if Lockwood’s inspirations are rooted in the past, the album itself is emphatically forward-looking, fusing elements of Afropop, blues, jazz, and post-rock, and capturing the sweep and intensity of the Sway Machinery’s high-energy stage shows."

Watlz With Bashir: Movie & Book

I'd heard about the award-winning animated film Waltz with Bashir, but until I read the piece below in the Shelf Awareness e-newsletter, I did not know there was also a book version available!

Waltz with Bashir: A Lebanon War Story by Ari Folman and David Polonsky (Metropolitan Books/Holt, 9780805088922/080508892X, $18 trade paper, February 2009)

Adapted from the Academy Award-nominated animated film, Waltz with Bashir stands by itself as a brilliant graphic memoir in its own right, just as thrilling, gorgeous, thought-provoking and humanitarian as the movie. Using the framework of the original storyboards but with stills from the final art of the film, frame for frame the book is a production of love, a moody masterpiece of art styles and narrative sophistication.

It's the true story of Ari Folman's attempt to regain lost memories. When a friend tells him about a recurring war nightmare, Folman realizes that he's forgotten his role in the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon. He begins searching for fellow classmates who might remember what he did there.

His journey back into his own past leads him, one by one, to six other men haunted by memories, men who were once well-meaning young soldiers uncertain who they were fighting against, who they were shooting at or what city they'd landed in, but not daring to stop firing. The soldiers' stories within stories slowly lead Folman to remember what really happened, to memories he's kept buried for 20 years of the day the Israeli troops began to realize they were participating in a genocide.

Waltz with Bashir is a visually rich, harrowingly honest look at Folman's re-discovery of his traumatic past. It grapples not only with enforced military participation in evil and its psychological after-effects but also with memory and its devious betrayals.

Besides which, the book is simply gorgeous, a visual feast, every bit as full of impact as the film. All it lacks are the film's haunting musical score and the visceral impact of the film's opening 3-D sequence, the attack of the 26 dogs, certainly one of the most electrifying credit sequences in years. In all other respects, the excellent book and movie complement each other perfectly; you'll want to experience both.--Nick DiMartino

Shelf Talker: A brilliant graphic memoir, thought-provoking and humanitarian, by an Israeli who took part in the 1982 Lebanon invasion.

2009 Sophie Brody Medal Winner

From an ALA press release:

The Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) of the American Library Association has announced its selections for the 2009 Sophie Brody Medal. The award, which consists of a medal for the winner and citations for honor books, is funded by Arthur Brody and the Brodart Foundation, and is given to encourage, recognize and commend outstanding achievement in Jewish literature.

This year’s winner is Peter Manseau for Songs for the Butcher’s Daughter (Free Press). The narrator of this book, an American Catholic translator, tells the colorful story of an elderly Yiddish poet, covering a century of events in Israel, Poland, Russia and the United States. The interwoven stories are a tour de force of writing styles demonstrating the power of passion and commitment to Jewish culture.

Three books received honorable mentions:

Beaufort by Ron Leshem (Delacorte Press), winner of Israel’s highest literary award, the Sapir Prize, depicts a group of young Israeli soldiers occupying an ancient Crusader fort in Lebanon. The dialogue of these young men engaged in a battle against an unseen enemy depicts the absurdity and futility of war in a very real way.

Friendly Fire by A.B. Yehoshua (Harcourt), one of Israel’s best known novelists, has given us a beautifully written portrait of a close-knit Israeli family. The slice of daily life in contemporary Israel, the issue of identity raised by a character’s rejection of all things Israeli and Jewish and the imagery of “friendly fire” make this a compelling story.

From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books by Arie Kaplan (Jewish Publication Society) recognizes that the “story of Jews’ involvement in comic books is a reflection of Jews’ changing status in American society.” Kaplan’s illustrated history details the ways in which Jews—and traditionally Jewish beliefs—contributed to what is now called the graphic novel. “From Krakow to Krypton” is engagingly written, a popular history whose readability often conceals a wealth of original research.

Authors of these selected titles will be invited to speak at the Literary Tastes Breakfast, a ticketed RUSA event at the ALA Annual Conference. Find out more about RUSA events at the conference—scheduled for July 9-15 in Chicago—at www.ala.org/rusa.

The Reference and User Services Association, a division of the American Library Association, is the foremost organization of reference and information professionals who make the connections between people and the information sources, services, and collection materials they need.

Cookbook Sale

The bookstore at the National Yiddish Book Center is offering all cookbooks at 15% off. They also have an overstock sale on some titles of 40-50% off. If your library offers cookbooks, this is a good opportunity to stock up. Visit NYBC's online bookstore now!

From NYBC's website:

Our featured selections include these recent releases: Arthur Schwartz's Jewish Home Cooking, Jewish Holiday Cooking by Jayne Cohen, and Healthy Cooking for the Jewish Home by Faye Levy and many other classics. We also are featuring a great publisher overstock sale including these titles: The New York Times Jewish Cookbook, Classic Italian Jewish Cooking, and Jewish Food: World at the Table at 40 to 50% off list prices . Quantities are limited, so order today!

Sami Rohr Prize Finalists

The Sami Rohr Prize is a relatively new Jewish literature prize, established by the Jewish Book Council. Here's a press release I received from them about the finalists they've named this year.

Five Fiction Authors Selected as Finalists for $100,000 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature

New York, NY – The Jewish Book Council, administrator of the Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature, is pleased to announce the selection of five finalists for the prestigious Sami Rohr Prize. This year, the $100,000 prize will be awarded to an emerging writer of fiction. This is the largest prize of its kind in the Jewish literary world, and one of the largest literary prizes worldwide. In 2006, in celebration of Sami Rohr’s 80th birthday, his children and grandchildren inaugurated the Sami Rohr Prize to honor his lifelong love of Jewish literature.

Previous winners of the Sami Rohr Prize are Lucette Lagnado in 2008 for her non-fiction work The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit: My Family's Exodus from Old Cairo to the New World (Ecco) and Tamar Yellin in 2007 for her work of fiction, The Genizah at the House of Shepher (Toby Press). The Sami Rohr Prize considers fiction and non-fiction in alternating years, honoring an emerging author in the field of Jewish literature who has written a book of exceptional literary merit that stimulates an interest in themes of Jewish concern.

THE 2009 FICTION FINALISTS:

Elisa Albert for The Book of Dahlia (Free Press)

Sana Krasikov for One More Year (Spiegel & Grau)

Anne Landsman for The Rowing Lesson (Soho Press)

Dalia Sofer for The Septembers of Shiraz (Ecco)

Anya Ulinich for Petropolis (Viking Penguin)

The five finalists for the 2009 Sami Rohr Prize have been selected by a panel of distinguished judges drawn from the literary and academic community. Authors were selected based on their demonstration of a fresh vision and evidence of future potential to further contribute to the Jewish literary community. “This year’s finalists reflect the complexities of the collective Jewish experience through different cultural lenses and illustrate the varied and changing nature of the American Jewish tapestry,” said Geri Gindea, Director of the Sami Rohr Prize.

A Winner will be named in the spring; a Choice Award winner who will receive a $25,000 award will also be announced at that time. A gala awards ceremony will be held in May, 2009 at The Museum of Jewish Heritage in Lower Manhattan.

ABOUT SAMI ROHR:

After spending his early years in post-WWII Europe, Sami Rohr moved to Bogota, Colombia, where he was a leading real estate developer for over 30 years. He currently lives in Florida and continues to be very active in various business endeavors internationally. His philanthropic commitment to Jewish education and community-building throughout the world is renowned. This Prize is a gift by his family to honor his love of Jewish literature, and to help encourage the continuation of the magnificent legacy of the People of the Book.

ABOUT THE JEWISH BOOK COUNCIL:

The Jewish Book Council is a not-for-profit organization devoted exclusively to the promotion of Jewish-interest literature. Through an ever-growing list of projects and programs, including the National Jewish Book Awards, the Jewish Book NETWORK, and the quarterly publication Jewish Book World, the Jewish Book Council serves as a catalyst for the reading, writing, publication, distribution and public awareness of books that reflect the rich variety of the Jewish experience.

Press Contact:

Adam Teeter, Publicist, 404-409-4103, adam@jewishbooks.org
Geri Gindea, Director, Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature, 212-786-5158, geri@jewishbooks.org

National Jewish Book Awards

The winners of the 2008 National Jewish Book Awards have been announced by the Jewish Book Council. Click here for a printable press release.

And the winners are:

Everett Family Foundation Jewish Book of the Year Award
The Torah: A Women's Commentary by Dr. Tamara Cohn Eskenazi and Rabbi Andrea L. Weiss (URJ Press and Women of Reform Judaism)

American Jewish Studies Celebrate 350 Award
Winner: Exiles on Main Street: Jewish American Writers and American Literary Culture by Julian Levinson (Indiana University Press)

Finalists:

The First to Cry Down Injustice?: Western Jews and Japanese Removal During WWII by Ellen M. Eisenberg (Lexington Books)

From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books by Arie Kaplan (Jewish Publication Society)

Biography, Autobiography, and Memoir, In Memory of Simon & Shulamith (Sofi) Goldberg

Winner: Marie Syrkin: Values Beyond the Self by Carole S. Kessner (Brandeis University Press/University Press of New England)

Finalists:

The Journal of Hélène Berr by Helene Berr (Weinstein Books)

Benjamin Disraeli by Adam Kirsch (Schocken Books/Nextbook)

Children’s and Young Adult Literature

Winner: The Diary of Laura's Twin by Kathy Kacer (Second Story Press)

Finalists:

Checkpoints by Marilyn Levy (Jewish Publication Society)

Memories of Babi by Aranka Siegal (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

Torah and Commentary: The Five Books of Moses: Translation, Rabbinic and Contemporary Commentary by Sol Scharfstein (KTAV Publishing House)

Contemporary Jewish Life and Practice

Winner: Conscience: The Duty to Obey and the Duty to Disobey by Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis (Jewish Lights Publishing)

Finalists:

Inspired Jewish Leadership: Practical Approaches to Building Strong Communities by Dr. Erica Brown (Jewish Lights Publishing)

The Book of New Israeli Food: A Culinary Journey by Janna Gur (Schocken Books)

Cool Jew: The Ultimate Guide for Every Member of the Tribe by Lisa Alcalay Klug (Andrews McMeel Publishing)

Education and Jewish Identity

Winner: What We Now Know About Jewish Education: Perspectives on Research for Practice
by Roberta Louis Goodman, Paul A. Flexner, Linda Dale Bloomberg, eds. (Torah Aura Productions)

Finalists:

Family Matters: Jewish Education in an Age of Choice by Jack Wertheimer, ed. (Brandeis University Press/University Press of New England)

Back to School : Jewish Day School in the Lives of Adult Jews by Alex Pomson and Randal F. Schnoor (Wayne State University Press)

Ten Days of Birthright Israel: A Journey in Young Adult Identity by Leonard Saxe and Barry Chazan (Brandeis University Press/University Press of New England)

Fiction

Winner: Songs for the Butcher’s Daughter: A Novel by Peter Manseau (Free Press)

Finalists:

Light Fell by Evan Fallenberg (Soho Press)

Memory: A Novel by Philippe Grimbert (Simon & Schuster)

People of the Book: A Novel by Geraldine Brooks (Viking Adult)

History, Gerrard and Ella Berman Memorial Award

Winner: 1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War by Benny Morris (Yale University Press)

Finalists:

The Lost Spy: An American in Stalin's Secret Service by Andrew Meier (W. W. Norton)

Holocaust

Winner: The Holocaust by Bullets: A Priest's Journey to Uncover the Truth Behind the
Murder of 1.5 Million Jews by Father Patrick Desbois (Palgrave Macmillan)

Finalists:

Dominican Haven: The Jewish Refugee Settlement in Sosua, 1940-1945 by Marion A. Kaplan (Museum of Jewish Heritage)

Ghettostadt: Lódz and the Making of a Nazi City by Gordon J. Horwitz (Harvard University Press)

Illustrated Children’s Books

Winner:

The Mysterious Guests: A Sukkot Story by Eric A. Kimmel; Katya Krenina, illus. (Holiday House)

Finalists:

As Good as Anybody: Martin Luther King and Abraham Joshua Heschel's Amazing March Toward Freedom by Richard Michelson; Raul Colon; illus. (Knopf Books for Young Readers)

Hanukkah Haiku by Harriet Ziefert; Karla Gudeon, illus. (Blue Apple Books)

Jewish Family Literature, In Memory of Dorothy Kripke

Winner: Genesis-the Book with Seventy Faces: A guide for the Family by Esther Takac (Pitspopany Press)

Finalists:

A Time to Every Purpose: Letters to a Young Jew by Jonathan D. Sarna (Basic Books)

Modern Jewish Thought & Experience, Dorot Foundation Award In memory of Joy Ungerleider Mayerson

Winner: Emil L. Fackenheim: A Jewish Philosopher’s Response to the Holocaust by David Patterson (Syracuse University Press)

Finalists:

Rabbi and the CEO: The Ten Commandments for 21st Century Leaders by Thomas D. Zweifel and Aaron L. Raskin (Select Books)

My People's Passover Haggadah: Traditional Texts, Modern Commentaries by Rabbi Lawrence A. Hoffman and David Arnow, eds. (Jewish Lights Publishing)

The Beast That Crouches at the Door: Adam & Eve, Cain & Abel, and Beyond by Rabbi David Fohrman (Devora Publishing)

Scholarship, Nahum M. Sarna Memorial Award

Winner: The Kuzari and the Shaping of Jewish Identity, 1167-1900 by Adam Shear (Cambridge University Press)

Finalists:

Created Equal: How the Bible Broke with Ancient Political Thought by Joshua A. Berman (Oxford University Press)

Sephardic Culture, Mimi S. Frank Award in Memory of Becky Levy

Winner: Greece: A Jewish History by K.E. Fleming (Princeton University Press)

Finalists:

Iraq's Last Jews: Stories of Daily Life, Upheaval, and Escape from Modern Babylon by Tamar Morad, Dennis Shasha, Robert Shasha, eds. (Palgrave Macmillan)

Memories of Eden: A Journey Through Jewish Baghdad by Violette Shamash; Mira and Tony Rocca, eds. (Forum Books)

Women’s Studies, Barbara Dobkin Award

Winner: A Jewish Woman’s Prayer Book by Aliza Lavie, ed. (Spiegel & Grau)

Finalists:

New Jewish Feminism: Probing the Past, Forging the Future by Rabbi Elyse Goldstein (Jewish Lights Publishing)

Writing Based on Archival Material , The JDC-Herbert Katzki Award

Winner: Robbing the Jews: The Confiscation of Jewish Property in the Holocaust, 1933-
1945 by Martin Dean (Cambridge University Press)

March Meeting Date Changed

Our next SFAJL Chapter meeting date has been changed from Wednesday March 4 to Wednesday March 25. The location remains the same: Orloff CAJE in Davie. Our speaker will be Eric Brown, editor of Defying Gravity, a biography of prominent Jewish composer Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Godspell, etc.).

The Full List of 2009 Sydney Taylor Book Award Winners

GOLD MEDALISTS

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers:

As Good As Anybody: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Abraham Joshua Heschel’s Amazing March Toward Freedom by Richard Michelson with illustrations by Raul Colon (Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers:

Brooklyn Bridge by Karen Hesse (Feiwel & Friends, an imprint of Macmillan)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers:

A Bottle in the Gaza Sea by Valerie Zenatti (Bloomsbury)

SILVER MEDALISTS

Sydney Taylor Honor Award Winners for Younger Readers:

Engineer Ari and the Rosh Hashanah Ride by Deborah Bodin Cohen with illustrations by Shahar Kober (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner)

Sarah Laughs by Jacqueline Jules with illustrations by Natascia Ugliano (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner)

A is for Abraham: A Jewish Family Alphabet by Richard Michelson with illustrations by Ron Mazellan (Sleeping Bear Press, an imprint of Gale)

Naming Liberty by Jane Yolen with paintings by Jim Burke (Philomel Books, an imprint of Penguin)

Sydney Taylor Honor Award Winner for Older Readers:

Memories of Babi by Aranka Siegal (Farrar Straus and Giroux)

Sydney Taylor Honor Award Winner for Teen Readers:

Freefall by Anna Levine (Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers)

NOTABLE BOOKS OF JEWISH CONTENT

Notable Books for Younger Readers:

Mysterious Guests: A Sukkot Story by Eric Kimmel with illustrations by Katya Krenina (Holiday House)

Jodie’s Hanukkah Dig by Anna Levine with illustrations by Knesia Topaz (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner)

Harvest of Light by Allison Ofanansky with photographs by Eliyahu Alpern (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner)

Sammy Spider’s First Shavuot by Sylvia Rouss with illustrations by Katherine Janus Kahn (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner)

My Tzitzis Book by Elisheva Schreiber with clay creations by Batsheva Ravad (Feldheim)

Hanukkah Haiku by Harriet Ziefert with illustrations by Karla Gudeon (Blue Apple Books)

Notable Books for Older Readers:

The Boy Who Dared: A Novel Based on the True Story of a Hitler Youth by Susan Campbell Bartoletti (Scholastic Press)

The Walls of Cartegena by Julia Durango with illustrations by Tom Pohrt (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

Capturing the Moon by Rabbi Edward M. Feinstein (Behrman House)

Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass: Igniting the Nazi War Against Jews by Stephanie Fitzgerald (Compass Point Books)

My Chocolate Year by Charlotte Herman with illustrations by LeUyen Pham (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

The Mozart Question by Michael Morpurgo with illustrations by Michael Forman (Candlewick Press)

Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman by Marc Tyler Nobleman with illustrations by Ross McDonald (Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books)

The Bat-Chen Diaries: Selected Writings by Bat-Chen Shahak (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner)

Keeping Israel Safe: Serving in the Israel Defense Forces by Barbara Sofer (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner)

Honey Cake by Joan Betty Stuchner with illustrations by Cynthia Nugent (Random House, a Stepping Stone Book)

Notable Books for Teens:

Nothing by Robin Friedman (Flux)

Rutka’s Notebook: A Voice from the Holocaust by Rutka Laskier (Time, Inc. Home Entertainment)

Gravity by Leanne Lieberman (Orca Book Publishers)

The Freak by Carol Matas (Key Porter Books)

Notable Books for All Ages:

Genesis—the Book with Seventy Faces: A Guide for the Family by Esther Takac with illustrations by Anna Pignataro (Pitspopany Press)

Celebrating with Jewish Crafts by Rebecca Edid Ruzansky with photographs by Roberto Zeballos-Peralta (self-published)

2008 Goldberg Prize for Emerging Writers of Jewish Fiction

I just got word from the Foundation for Jewish Culture that Anya Ulinich is the 2008 winner of the Goldberg Prize for Emerging Writers of Jewish Fiction.

Last year, Anya was one of the National Book Foundation's "5 Under 35," meaning she was recognized as a promising young writer bursting upon the literary scene. FJC says "Critical praise for Anya's first novel, Petropolis, has surfaced in publications as diverse as USA Today, the Boston Globe, and Ms. Magazine-and we're delighted to recognize her as a vibrant addition to the cultural landscape. With Channukah not so far away, I'd highly recommend this delicious, painterly (Anya was trained as a visual artist), brilliant first novel (I couldn't put it down) as a gift for someone you love (and it just came out in paperback). And if you'll be in DC in December, please join us as we present Anya with her award." The reception will be held on Monday, December 22, 2008 at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Washington DC. The reception will be held in conjunction with the Association for Jewish Studies annual conference and is open and free to the public. For more information or to RSVP, please contact grants[at]jewishculture[dot]org.

The Goldberg Prize was established in 1999 and supported through a generous grant from the Samuel Goldberg & Sons Foundation, the Goldberg Prize for Jewish Fiction by Emerging Writers is among the very first of its kind to highlight new works by contemporary writers exploring Jewish themes. The prize spotlights promising new talent, and is awarded to an American fiction writer for a first or second full-length work that was published in the previous calendar year. Submissions must be made by the publisher. The award includes a prize of $2,500, as well as a one-week residency at Ledig House International Writers Colony in New York’s Hudson Valley.

Local Appearance by Author Seth Bramson

Not only is this a local appearance, it's a local author too, with a book on a local topic! On Monday, October 27, 2008 at 7:30, Seth Bramson will appear at Books & Books in Bal Harbour Shops. His book is L'Chaim: The History of the Jewish Community of Greater Miami. According to the notice from Books & Books:

Beginning with the arrival of Miami's first Jewish settler, Isidor Cohen, in 1896, Bramson's exciting story takes us through Miami's early days to the present and includes the years of "restricted clientele," as well as the Jewish-owned buildings, businesses, stores, clubs, hotels, restaurants, schools, temples and philanthropic organizations.

Bramson's unique writing style, coupled with a host of never-before-published photographs and a website of special features, invites the reader to take a historic look at the people and places that have made the Jewish impact and influence on the area such an important part of the fabric of the community. [Note: I tried to find this "website of special features" so I could provide a link to it, but couldn't locate it. If you find the URL, please post a comment!]

Also at Books & Books/Bal Harbour next week, author Harold Kimmel will speak about his book I'd Bark But You Never Listen: An Illustrated Guide to the Jewish Dog, Tuesday October 28, 2008 at 7:30pm.

Author Double Feature

November's chapter meeting will be held on Monday, November 17 at the new Hagen Ranch Road branch of the Palm Beach County library system. At this meeting we will enjoy an Author Double Feature! Our two guest speakers will be:

• Tsipi Keller, editor and translator of Poets on the Edge: An Anthology of Contemporary Hebrew Poetry
  
  
• Jerry Glantz, author of The Man Who Spoke to God, a book/CD set on the music of Cantor Lieb Glantz (Jerry's father)

More information about our speakers will be forthcoming as the meeting draws near. Be sure to mark your calendars!

Happy Reading New Year

I was looking online for reviews of kids' books about Rosh Hashanah, and I found a brand-new blog that I like a lot. It's called Reading Kids Are Dreaming Kids and you can find it at dreamyreads.wordpress.com. It's so new it's still got metaphorical tissue paper sticking to it - the first post was on September 10 - but it's already quite active. The posts are all about children's literature, with the vast majority covering Jewish books. The unidentified author has already reviewed most of the decent Rosh Hashanah children's books in print - a doable task, as there are so few titles in that category.

Do yourself a favor and check out Reading Kids Are Dreaming Kids!

2008 Recommended Books for Judaica Libraries

Presented by Etta D. Gold, Library Director at Temple Beth Am

September 16, 2008

Non-Fiction

The Zookeeper’s Wife: A War Story by Diane Ackerman.

34 Days: Israel, Hezbollah, and the War in Lebanon by Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff

Bubbe Meises: Jewish Myths, Jewish Realities by Ronald H. Isaacs

Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson.

The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit: A Jewish Family's Exodus from Old Cairo to the New World by Lucette Lagnado

My Father's Paradise : A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq by Ariel Sabar

Fiction

Away by Amy Bloom

People of the Book: A Novel by Geraldine Brooks

The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon

The Ministry of Special Cases by Nathan Englander

Matrimony by Joshua Henkin

The Cure for Grief: A Novel by Nellie Hermann

The German Bride: A Novel by Joanna Hershon

The Last Chicken in America by Ellen Litman

The End of the Jews: A Novel by Adam Mansbach

The Romantics by Galt Niederhoffer

The Saturday Wife by Naomi Ragen

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

The Septembers of Shiraz: A Novel by Dalia Sofer

Isaac's Torah by Angel Wagenstein