The Book of Life

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     🕮    In honor of my 20th year of podcasting on The Book of Life, I'm bringing you an episode from the archives. This episode is called Summer Coolness, and it was released in June 2007. The episode featured a now-defunct website called ReaderGirlz, and the website Nextbook that morphed into Tablet Magazine in 2009. There were also many mentions of MySpace. I interviewed Melissa Schorr, author of Goy Crazy, who, according to her website, seems to have mostly moved on from kidlit to journalism. I must say, her most recent book from 2017, Shame Nation: Choosing Kindness and Compassion in an Age of Cruelty and Trolling, looks extremely on point. And the episode featured the band Sababa, which happily is still in existence, and in fact, they've recently released their fourth album called When We Rise.  It's funny to think how much has changed and how much is still the same, including ...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    VISIT CRAIG'S WEBSITE       🕮    Craig Taubman is a long-time star in the world of American Jewish rock and roll, and the founder of the Pico Union Project .  Mostly Kosher is an up and coming Gypsy Rock Klezmer band whose tagline is “word to your bubbe.”  In spring 2019, Craig Taubman brought along Mostly Kosher and together they put on a foot-stomping concert at Congregation B’nai Israel , the home of The Book of Life podcast. That gave me the chance to grab this interview, and even to include the voice of our cantor ’s daughter Aria. Here’s your chance to be a fly on the wall in the green room before the show. 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 ...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    VISIT CRAIG TAUBMAN'S WEBSITE      🕮    Craig Taubman is coming to Congregation B'nai Israel in Boca Raton! If you will be in South Florida, don't miss this show! Call 561-241-8118 for tickets or BUY TICKETS HERE . Listen to a special message from Craig now, and keep an eye on The Book of Life for an upcoming full-length interview! 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    Patreon: patreon.com/bookoflife Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail number at 561-206-2473.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    Tasa's Song by Linda Kass is a story of a young musician in WWII Poland. I met the author at "A Book in Concert" where she read excerpts interspersed with musical performances by the Carpe Diem String Quartet . They played classical music that Tasa would have played herself, and they played the original piece "Tasa's Song," written by Charles Weatherbee as a tribute to the book. Linda is not only an author, she's also a bookseller! If you're ever in Bexley, Ohio, visit her bookstore, Gramercy Books ! GRAND FINALE: The Book of Life will go on hiatus after the December 2017 episode. YOU can be a part of my grand finale! Leave me a voicemail or send me an audio recording with your comment about what The Book of Life has meant to you, about a favorite interview, about new podcasting ideas for me, or any other thoughts you want to share. Your voice may end up on th...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    DOWNLOAD ON ITUNES     🕮    The Golem is a spoken word album that reimagines the legend of a Frankenstein's Monster type figure created to protect the Jews of Prague. I spoke to creator Eddie Estrin to learn about how he put this fascinating project together. See www.EddieEstrin.com to learn more, and get a copy on iTunes . Eddie Estrin 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     Support The Book of Life by becoming a patron at Patreon.com/bookoflife !   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail number at 561-206-2473.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST    |    BUY THE FILM      🕮    Filmmaker Roberta Grossman offered a work-in-progress screening of her documentary on Hava Nagila at the Association of Jewish Libraries 2012 conference in California. Here we have her introductory remarks and the Q&A that followed the screening. The film is now opening in theaters across the country! 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 number at 561-206-2473.  

Here's a new song from Orit Shimoni, AKA "Little Birdie," a Book of Life guest from May 2009 who was interviewed by our Canadian Correspondent, Anne Dublin. Enjoy!

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    BUY THE ALBUM     🕮    The Book of Life's Canadian Correspondent, Anne Dublin , interviews Montreal musician Orit Shimoni , leader of the band Little Birdie . Orit gives us secular and Jewish-themed songs with a folky/country/rock/alternative flavor on her album Cinematic Way . 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 fan page: click here Twitter: @bookoflifepod Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com !

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    BUY THE BOOK       🕮    Judy Blundell has written over a hundred books under various pen names, but won the National Book Award in the Young People's Literature category with her first book in her own name. The book is called What I Saw and How I Lied and it's a noir-inspired mystery and coming of age story set in post WWII Palm Beach. Like real life, the story is complex, multi-layered, and not easy to sum up, but just to give you an idea, it's the story of Evie Spooner, whose stepfather Joe has returned from the war and whisked Evie and her mother off on a spur of the moment vacation to Florida. Their vacation is shadowed by a mysterious and handsome stranger who knew Joe in the army. Bit by bit, Evie starts to uncover the dark connections between the adults in her life. VIDEO: Enjoy Judy Blundell's National Book Award acceptance speech (with introduction by Lemony Snicket!), and h...

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Check out the Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band's album Ceilizemer: Shalom Ireland , which was the soundtrack to a documentary of the same name, all about Jewish Life in Ireland. The Freilachmakers provide the background music for each episode of The Book of Life!

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST       Richard Michelson was a May 2007 guest on The Book of Life, talking about his baseball-related story Across the Alley . Now he's won the 2009 Sydney Taylor Book Award for his picture book, As Good As Anybody: Martin Luther King Jr & Abraham Joshua Heschel's Amazing March Toward Freedom , and we've brought him back to t alk about this new title. We also have a repeat appearance by graphologist Arlyn Imberman . She analyzed author handwriting on our September 2008 episode , and returns to talk about the handwriting of King, Heschel, and Michelson. Rabbi Gershom Sizomu , the first black sub-Saharan rabbi, joins us to talk about the Abayudaya people of Uganda, his CD Sing for Joy , and Be'chol Lashon ("In Every Tongue"), an organization that supports the diversity of the Jewish people. CREDITS: Our background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band. Books and CD's mentioned on the show may be borro...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    The Book of Life celebrates Chanukah! > Sylvia Rouss tells us about her Sammy Spider series of picture books, which began with Sammy Spider's First Hanukkah . We also hear about the upcoming Sammy Spider's First Simchat Torah, Sammy Spider's First Day at School , and an entry in Sylvia's "Littlest" series, The Littlest Maccabee . > FYI: You can now download mp3 audiobooks of The Chanukah Guest, Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins , and The Magic Dreidels , read by author Eric Kimmel himself. Find them at Anansi's Store at www.ericakimmel.com . > Musician Josh Nelson (of The Josh Nelson Project ) tells us about the part he played in Craig Taubman's Lights Hanukkah concert, and about his own debut CD, Lift . Scroll down to watch a YouTube video of Josh performing L'Dor Vador during the Lights concert. And click to learn how you can get the CD of Lights , and find listings for the TV special . Note t...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    Are you a member of the tribe? Which tribe? What is a tribe, anyway? We explore the notion of "tribe" with several guests: > Aaron Kula is director of the Klezmer Company Orchestra , the ensemble-in-residence of the library at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, FL. We spoke to him about the KCO's CD Beyond the Tribes . Scroll down for a video that includes music from the CD and commentary from the orchestra. > Tiffany Shlain is a documentary filmmaker , director of the Moxie Institute , and founder of the Webby Awards . We spoke to her about her short film The Tribe , which " enlists pop icon Barbie to tackle the challenging issue of Jewish identity." Scroll down to watch a trailer for The Tribe, the entire 18-minute film, or a promotional video for Tiffany's next film Connected : A Declaration of Interdependence.   > Rafael Goldchain is a professional photographer. His installation Familial Groun...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    What's new in Jewish books for adults? 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 2 was about Jewish books for older kids and teens. This is Part 3, and Part 4 will be about books (for all ages) relating to the Holocaust. Part 3, Jewish Books for Adults Coffee House Press Jealous Witness, Poems by Andrei Codrescu, with CD Maelstrom: Songs of Storm & Exile by the New Orleans Klezmer AllStars Harper Perennial Just Say Nu by Michael Wex Who by Fire by Diana Spechler Princeton Architectural Press I Am My Family: Photographic Memories and Fictions by Rafael Goldchain URJ Press (Union for Reform Judaism) The Torah: A Women's Commentary edited by Tamara Cohn Eskanazi and Andrea Weiss Gayla Gabriel, author Leaving with Love: Eternal Mess...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    What's new in Jewish picture books? Follow me around the 2008 Book Expo America conference to listen in on publishers and authors talking about their new and forthcoming titles! I gathered so much audio that I'll be posting it over four episodes. Part 2 will be books for children and teens, Part 3 will be adult books, and Part 4 will be books (for all ages) relating to the Holocaust. Part 1, Jewish Picture Books: Tricycle Press The Yankee at the Seder by Elka Weber Marshall Cavendish Cakes and Miracles by Barbara Diamond Goldin The Hanukkah Mice by Steven Kroll The Rabbi and the 29 Witches by Marilyn Hirsh Tanglewood Press The Miracle Jar by Audrey Penn Sleeping Bear Press A is for Abraham by Richard Michelson Kar-Ben Publishing Jodie's Hanukkah Dig by Anna Levine Harvest of Light by Allison Ofanansky Engineer Ari and the Rosh Hashanah Ride by Deborah Bodin Cohen Sammy Spider's First Day at School by Sylvia Rouss...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    The Book of Life celebrates Israel's 60th birthday with a musical extravaganza! > Composer Yuval Ron talks about the music he created for the Oscar-winning short film West Bank Story > Fran Manushkin discusses her book Come, Let Us Be Joyful: The Story of Hava Nagila > We learn about the 60 @ 60 concert tour with music promoter Michael Dorf , who tells us about the best in new Israeli pop music, including: Yael Naim (you know her from the MacBook Air ad ) Idan Raichel Habanot Nechama David Broza Rami Kleinstein Matisyahu Paul Shaffer John Zorn Noa CREDITS: Special thanks to Vaskez for the techno version of Hava Nagila , to John Zorn for permission to use the track "Nekashim" from the CD The Dreamers , and to Habanot Nechama for permission to use the track "So Far." Our regular background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band. Books, DVD's and CD's mention...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮   The Book of Life takes you on a virtual trip around the world for Passover! > Pulitzer Prize winning author Geraldine Brooks discusses People of the Book , her fictional history of the Sarajevo Haggadah . > Basya Schechter talks about her band Pharaoh's Daughter , which mixes world music and psychedelic rock with Middle Eastern sounds. > Author Ilana Kurshan describes her compilation of translations, Why Is This Night Different From All Other Nights? The Four Questions Around the World . > If you like Ilana's book, you may also like 300 Ways to Ask the Four Questions from Zulu to Abkhaz by Murray Spiegel and Rickey Stein. It comes with a CD and a DVD to demonstrate the translations!   NEWS: In our next episode we'll celebrate Israel@60! Don't miss it! CREDITS: Thanks to Dan Krimm for permission to use Ma Nishtana - The Blues Version ! Our regular background music is provided by The Freilachm...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    This January 2008 episode offers themes of empowerment with these interviews: > Raz Godelnik, founder of Eco-Libris , planting a tree for each book you read > Chana Rothman , whose debut album We Can Rise shows off her "female-fronted earthy groove" > Linda Silver, creator of The Jewish Values Finder, a database and book identifying values in Jewish children's books > Rachel Kamin, chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, describing the 2008 winners of this award for Jewish lit for kids and teens NEWS: February 7, 2008, 3-4pm EST The Book of Life will host a live call-in show on the theme "Funny, That Book Doesn't Look Jewish!" Pam Ehrenberg , author of the middle-grade novel Ethan, Suspended , will be our guest, and we'll take calls for YOU, the audience! Please join us by calling in - instructions for particpating will appear on our web site: www.bookoflifepodcast.com CR...

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...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we celebrate Thanksgiving with a special bonus episode! > We hear from Todd Herzog , a Jewish musician/singer/songwriter from Phoenix, Arizona. Todd's spiritual pop music has a thankful quality about it that fits in well with Thanksgiving. Also check out Todd's MySpace page . > We meet Maryann Kovalski, illustrator of the award-winning picture book Rivka's First Thanksgiving by Elsa Okon Rael. > We learn about the Library Blogathon at the Feldman Children's Library (home base of The Book of Life). If you are a fan of books and libraries, you need to check out this blog! Available beginning November 21, 2007. > Throughout the show we send shout-outs to various listeners who have sent in their comments and feedback to The Book of Life during the year. Do YOU have something to say? Be sure to email us at bo...