The Book of Life

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮     As Vice-President/President-Elect of the Association of Jewish Libraries, I naturally attended the midwinter council meeting of AJL in January. One of the highlights of the meeting was the moment when Barbara Bietz, chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award committee, revealed the 2012 winners of the award! I snagged an interview with her after the meeting was over, and I hope you'll enjoy hearing about this year's selections "from the horse's mouth." Click here for the full list of 2012 Sydney Taylor Book Award winners . CREDITS: Produced by: Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel Supported in part by: Association of Jewish Libraries Theme music: The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band Facebook: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail ...

Congratulations to Book of Life Facebook fan Rick Sternberg of Pittsburgh, PA, who has won our book giveaway (held in celebration of reaching 150 Facebook fans). Rick works at the Community Day School in Pittsburgh and will be donating the book to the school library. We'll hold another drawing when we reach 200 Facebook fans, so if you haven't become a fan yet, do it now! Rick will be receiving a copy of The Disappearing Dowry: An Ezra Melamed Mystery by Libi Astaire (Zahav Press). I very much enjoyed this historical novel. When I first heard that it was written "in the style of Jane Austen" I admit I was worried: books written in a famous author's style have so much to live up to and can easily fall short. However, this book feels like a loving tribute to Austen rather than a cheap imitation, and avoids becoming an Austen remake by embracing the "cozy" mystery genre as well. What really sets the book apart is its portrayal of Jewish life in 19th ...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    What's new in Jewish books for older kids and teens? Follow me around the 2008 Book Expo America conference to listen in on publishers and authors talking about their new and forthcoming titles! This series includes four episodes: In Part 1 we heard about Jewish pictures books. Part 3 will be about adult books, and Part 4 will be about books (for all ages) relating to the Holocaust. Again, thanks to all the publishers who graciously agreed to be interviewed on the spot! By the way, many of these books have not yet been published, so you may not be able to find the individual titles online. I've provided links to the publishers so you can keep an eye on until the books become available! Part 2, Jewish Books for Kids & Teens: Jewish Kidlit Blogger Barbara Bietz Annick Press The Apprentice's Masterpiece, A Story of Medieval Spain by Melanie Little Roaring Brook Press Penina Levine Is a Potato Pancake by Rebecca O'Co...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    This episode marks the 2nd year anniversary of The Book of Life! In this show, we celebrate the holiday of Hanukkah . > Illustrator Ann Koffsky describes her snowflake " Jerusalem of Peace ," created for Robert's Snow for Cancer's Cure . We also learn about her illustrations for My Cousin Tamar Lives in Israel by Michelle Shapiro Abraham, and her new Joyfully Jewish 2008 calendar . > Author Sarah Marwil Lamstein and illustrator Neil Waldman discuss their picture book Letter on the Wind: A Chanukah Tale . > Kenny Ellis , cantor and performer, riffs on his CD Hanukkah Swings! You can also check out Kenny's MySpace page, and download "Swingin' Dreidel" as a ringtone. > Author Barbara Bietz talks about her chapter book Like a Maccabee , as well as her kidlit blog and her new position on the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee , where she'll help choose the best Judaic children's books of...