Book review
'Agents of Change': American Jews and the transformation of Israeli Judaism - review
From gender roles to religious authority, American-trained leaders transformed key debates in Israeli Judaism.
'The Wisdom of Truth': Reaching the attic with a ladder to the Zohar - review
Inside Israel’s secret operation to turn Hezbollah’s beepers into bombs - exclusive
Inside Jerusalem’s 1948 siege through the eyes of a child who survived the Old City’s fall
'Frequencies of Deceit': Propaganda broadcasting in the heyday of the radio age - review
From the previously under-appreciated source of radio broadcasting, Margaret Peacock sheds new light on how and why today’s Middle East has developed.
'The Jewish South': Comfort and discomfort of southern Jewry - review
Most pioneering is her description of the Jews’ participation in the Confederate government and army, pinpointing by name the Jewish “rebels” serving in the army.
'Hostage': Eli Sharabi’s account of his captivity by Hamas - review
Two men grabbed Sharabi and dragged him out barefoot. He yelled to his family, promising to return. A terrorist hit him, causing his glasses to fall to the ground. He was beaten and kicked.
'Living Dangerously': A man's journey to business success and religion - review
Irwin Katsof considers that his “journey has been... connecting to my soul and to the Jewish people and to God so that I’m never really alone, and I can deal with anything that happens…”
Mermaids and a talking donkey: A treasure trove of ‘midrashic’ interpretations - review
Zev T. Gershon's '100 Wonders in the World of Torah' includes entries of little-known stories and oddities.
'Questioning Belief': Torah and tradition today - review
Understanding the Torah in ways that ‘make sense to the modern mind,’ to ‘facilitate a deeper connection with our traditions and our Creator.’
'While Israel Slept': Inside the failures of Oct. 7 - review
The book raises many questions of government and the IDF’s systematic failure on October 7.
'To Be Holy but Human': A look into the life ‘hesder yeshiva’ creator Rabbi Yehuda Amital - review
One of a kind: Rav Amital was that unique and unparalleled leader who lived at a time when he was needed the most.
'Life-Tumbled Shards': A journal on family, loss, and search for self-healing - review
We are all part of the trauma-filled family of Israel struggling to cope with a divine-given destiny beyond our comprehension. Sometimes God says “No.”
'Awakening to Radical Islamist Evil': A record of the Israel-Hamas War - review
Monty Penkower’s book is less of a “what went wrong” analysis and more a log book of entries as to what, mostly, went right, and in some cases, wrong.
