The Book of Life

Lynne Azarchi and Harlene Galen are the co-authors of Countering Antisemitism & Hate: A How-To Guide for Youth (8-18), Family, & Educators . Thanks to both of them for answering a few questions from The Book of Life! BUY THE BOOK HERE Lynne and Harlene, what is the book about and what inspired you to write it? In late 2021, Lynne conducted a listening session for the Greater Princeton Jewish community under the auspices of her local Federation’s Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC). What we heard was that while antisemitic incidents were increasing, Jewish youth were suffering shame and trauma and that parents and educators did not know what to do. But after more than 21 years as Executive Director of the Kidsbridge Youth Center in suburban Trenton, NJ, Lynne knew what to do! And with 16 years as a Kidsbridge Board member and Chair of the Kidsbridge Education Committee, Harlene also knew what to do! For two decades at Kidsbridge, we have provided students of all faiths wit...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    MEET APRIL     🕮    As you may remember, in December 2023 I participated in The Artists Against Antisemitism auction, which raised funds for Project Shema. Today we'll talk with April Powers, Vice President of Diversity Equity and Inclusion at Project Shema, to learn more about their mission and how it can help us kidlit folks.  LEARN MORE: Project Shema Jewbian Princess "Skin in the Game: How Antisemitism Animates White Nationalism" article by Eric K. Ward Reading suggestions: The Source by James Michener, The Assignment by Liza Wiemer CREDITS: Produced by Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel Co-sponsored by the Association of Jewish Libraries Sister podcast: Nice Jewish Books Theme Music: The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band Facebook Discussion Group: Jewish Kidlit Mavens Facebook Page: Facebook....

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     🕮    Like so many of you, I am devastated by the suffering and loss of life in Israel and in Gaza, inflicted by the terrorism of Hamas, so I'm interrupting our regular schedule to bring you additional content related to the war in Israel and Gaza. This conversation with Yael Levy , Chava Pinchuck , and Marjorie Gann is about the need for children's literature related to Israel and the challenges that make it hard to get that literature published.  LEARN MORE ABOUT PUBLISHING AND ISRAEL: "Publishers Against the People of the Book" in The Washington Examiner Backstory of Once More With Chutzpah , "This moving tale about an Israel youth trip sparked outrage before it even came out" in Kveller Lists of biased books and recommended books from CAMERA, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis Annotated Bibliography of Children's and YA Books o...

White supremacists are targeting the Jewish community with a "National Day of Hate” on February 25, 2023. Publicly, they are planning for vandalism and intimidation, but it will be unsurprising if violence occurs as well.  At this time, I call upon all Book of Life listeners, and everyone who cares about peace and justice, to let the world know that you stand with the Jews. Whether you are Jewish or Gentile, please join the Anti-Defamation League in taking action. This horrific day of hate is taking place two days after my birthday. I would consider it a great gift  if you were to join me in doing any of the simple advocacy actions below: Let your elected representatives know that hate is not OK, at  https://www.adl.org/take-action/advocate-with-adl .  Choose any action on The Book of Life's "Justice" page, and do it today. See  https://jewishbooks.blogspot.com/p/stand-up.html Use and share the Association of Jewish Libraries' "Love Your Neighbor" book...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    Sarah Darer Littman does not shy away from tough topics. Her middle grade and young adult novels address religious identity, internet predation, eating disorders, and online bullying. Her new YA novel, Some Kind of Hate , addresses radicalization and antisemitism. It's an important and all too timely book that helps readers understand how ordinary people can become radicalized extremists.  LEARN MORE: Buy Some Kind of Hate Sarah Darer Littman's website Educational resources for Some Kind of Hate Deeyah Kahn's film White Right: Meeting the Enemy Washingtonian article "What Happened After My 13-Year-Old Son Joined the Alt-Right" The Book of Life's Justice section (resources for fighting antisemitism) StoryCorps One Small Step Sarah's earlier appearances on The Book of Life in 2006 for Confessions of a Closet...

BUY THE BOOK       🕮    October 27, 2020 is the second anniversary of a horrific act of domestic terrorism, the antisemitic shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, PA. In memory of the lives lost on that day, I bring you a conversation with the editors of Bound in the Bond of Life: Pittsburgh Writers Reflect on the Tree of Life Tragedy . This book highlights the voices of those who were significantly affected by the deadliest antisemitic act on American soil. Although the gunman killed 11 innocent souls, injured 6, and created deep wounds within the community, he was unable to silence them or disconnect them from their ties to their faith.    I got my Masters of Library Science at the University of Pittsburgh and worked for a few years at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh's Lawrenceville Branch in the 1990s. I love Pittsburgh, so I was especially eager to hear the local perspective from co-editors Beth Kissileff and Eric Lid...