The Book of Life

" Good for the Jews is a smart, funny, sexy novel set in Madison, Wisconsin, during the Bush administration. Part mystery and part stranger-comes-to town story, Good for the Jews is loosely based on the biblical book of Esther. Like Esther, Debra Spark's characters deal with anti-Semitism and the way that powerful men—and the women who love them—negotiate bu reaucracies." -- University of Michigan Press   Colby College professor and award-winning author Debra Spark's newest novel is Good for the Jews. With Purim approaching, I thought you might like to learn a little more abo ut this unique story and its relationship with the megillah. Debra was kind enough to do an email interview with me - enjoy her answers below, and be sure to check out her extremely funky website . Debra, what got you interested in exploring and retelling the story of Esther? Several years ago, in preparation for taking my son to his first Purim service, I reread the Book of Esther. It tu...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST    |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    The Book of Life's Canadian Correspondent, Anne Dublin , attends the launch party for Save the Deli by David Sax at Caplansky's Deli in Toronto. 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail number at 561-206-2473 .

I am very pleased to be participating in the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour! Features on winning authors and illustrators are being posted on blogs all over the web this week; click here to see the entire schedule and links to all participating blogs! The assignment I was happy to accept was to bring you a profile of Natascia Ugliano , illustrator of Jacqueline Jules' Bible story series. The third book in this series, Benjam in and the Silver Goblet , was named a 2010 Sydney Taylor Honor Book in the Younger Readers category, and will receive a silver medal. Check out a profile of the book's author today on ASHarmony , blogged by my friend Betsy Lipp. I cover Sydney Taylor Book Award news frequently, so you may already know that this literary prize recognizes the best Jewish books for children and teens each year. It is the only book award that focuses solely on Judaic children's literature. It's named in memory of Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-o...

Remember back in November 2009 when I posted my interview with author Simone Elkeles and kidlit expert June Cummins , talking about the "kvetchfessional" style of YA chicklit? Simone has now produced a very fun book trailer video for her newest title in the "How to Ruin" series, How to Ruin Your Boyfriend's Reputation . Enjoy!

The Sydney Taylor Book Award will be celebrating and showcasing its 2010 gold and silver medalists and the 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. Note that The Book of Life will participate by interviewing Natascia Ugliano (illustrator, Benjamin and the Silver Goblet ) on Thursday, February 4. 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...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    On January 11, I attended the midwinter council meeting of the Association of Jewish Libraries, where the winners of the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award for Jewish children's literature were officially announced. They let me record the big reveal, which you'll hear first. Then I snuck Kathe Pinchuck, the awards chair, out of the meeting for a little while to talk about the books in detail. The full list of all award, honor, and notable Sydney Taylor books has been posted HERE . I'll also post the schedule of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour as soon as it becomes available. The blog tour will take place February 1-5, 2010, and home base for that event will be jewishlibraries.org/blog . Mazel tov to all the authors, illustrators, editors, and publishers! CREDITS: Produced by: Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel Supported in part by: Association of Jewish Libraries Theme music: The Freilachm...

I am pleased to share with you this announcement from the Association of Jewish Libraries about the winners of the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Awards! Watch for my upcoming interview with the award committee chair, Kathe Pinchuck! THE 2010 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARDS ANNOUNCED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF JEWISH LIBRARIES The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers: New Year at the Pier: A Rosh Hashanah Story by April Halprin Wayland with illustrations by Stephane Jorish (Dial Books for Young Readers, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group) The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers: The Importance of Wings by Robin Friedman (Charlesbridge Publishing) The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers: Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba by Margarita Engle (Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group) Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Younger Readers: Nachshon, Who Was Afraid to Swim: A Passover Story b...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    This is your chance to virtually attend the Jewish Children's Book Writers & Illustrators Conference at the 92nd St Y in NYC! Hear from organize r Barbara Krasner , Scholastic editor Dianne Hess, and attending authors Bryna Fireside, Sandy Wasserman, and Eve Tal! 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod Photo credit: By Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA - 92Y, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=79681131   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     🕮    An impromptu discussion among Heidi Estrin, Mark Blevis of the Just One More Book podcast, author Richard Michelson and author/readiologist Esme Raji Codell during a party at the Planet Esme Book Room . Of seasonal interest: among other things, we discussed potential winners of the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award. We'll find out if we were right next month in January 2010! 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail number at 561-206-2473.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    Alexa Clark was one of the many interesting people I met at Podcasters Across Borders 2009 who had book-related projects to share. She describes herself as a serial entrepreneur, chief cheapeater, photographer & social media addict. I spoke with her about two projects, Mini Book Expo and Book Camp Toronto. Mini Book Expo, currently on hiatus, is a system for distributing, reading, and reviewing (via blog) advance reader copies of new books from publishers. Book Camp Toronto was an "unconference" held in the summer of 2009, as a conversation about the future of books, writing, publishing, and the book business in the digital age. 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is a...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    Hugh McGuire is one of the interesting people I met at Podcasters Across Borders 2009. We spoke about two reading-related projects that he helped to found, LibriVox and Book Oven. LibriVox volunteers record chapters of books in the public domain and publish the audio files on the Internet. The goal is to record all the books in the public domain. Book Oven helps teams of people turn manuscripts into finished books, and then publish them. It is built for writers, editors, proofreaders, designers and small presses. 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail number at 561-206-2473.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    A chat with Lisa Silverman of the Jewish Book Council about the authors going on tour this fall for Jewish Book Month, and the process by which they are selected. 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our voicemail number at 561-206-2473.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    The Book of Life now has voicemail, courtesy of Google Voice. We're waiting to hear from you, at 561-206-2473! 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or call our new voicemail number at 561-206-2473!

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST    |    BUY THE BOOK       🕮    Author Simone Elkeles (author of the "How to Ruin" series) and kidlit expert and professor June Cummins discuss trends in Jewish YA chick lit at the 2009 Association of Jewish Libraries convention in Chicago, Illinois.   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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com !

School Library Journal broke the news today ( see obit ) that author Esther Hautzig died on Sunday, November 1 at the age of 79. Esther Rudomin Hautzig was the author of the memoir The Endless Steppe , about her experiences in Siberia, where her family was exiled during WWII, ultimately saving their lives. The book was the winner of AJL's first book award in 1968 (before the award was even called the "Sydney Taylor"). Esther attended the 2004 Association of Jewish Libraries convention in Brooklyn, NY, where she received a standing ovation during the Awards Banquet in honor of her status as inaugural award winner. Besides winning the gold medal for The Endless Steppe in 1968, Esther also received a silver Sydney Taylor Honor Award in 1992 for Riches and silver again in 2002 for A Picture of Grandmother. In 2002, School Library Journal included a rather tepid review of A Picture of Grandmother , calling it "a slight story." Feeling that the reviewer had ...

When I posted my interview with Ann Gonzales, I forgot to give you the links for the other authors who had placed bids on a Book of Life interview in the Bridget Zinn Auction. I had mentioned in the podcast that I would give you the links to these other worthy books, so here they are, better late than never. Jan Godown Annino is the author of Florida's Famous Animals and she contributed to The Book of the Everglades , The Southeast and Piedmont: A Literary Field Guide, Scenic Driving in Florida, Family Fun in Florida , and The Florida Handbook . She has a forthcoming picture book biography (March 2010) called She Sang Promise , about Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, with art by Lisa Desimini. Dr. Kathleen Reilly Fallon is Co-Founder and Chairwoman of the Heavenly Productions Foundation, whose mission is to help children in distress. She sang on the CD for Heavenly Skies and Lullabies , part of a book-and-CD set which is dedicated to the Babies & Orphans of 9-11-01.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    Connie Crosby is a law librarian in Toronto, Canada. She was one of the very interesting people I met this summer at Podcasters Across Borders , a conference by and for podcasters. This is the first of three Podcasters Across Borders episodes you'll be hearing on The Book of Life. Connie gave a presentation on The ShanachieTour , a library roadtrip around the world. It was very exciting to me, as a fellow podcaster and librarian, to hear Connie talk about the inspirational storytelling of The Shanachies, so I asked her to describe her presentation for us in this brief interview. Connie is currently working on a professional guide book for Neal-Schuman, Effective Blogging for Libraries . To help her gather information about blogging in the library world, please take her survey . CREDITS: Produced by: Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel Supported in part by: Association of Jewish Librari...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST    |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW) is Oct. 4-10, 2009, so this is the perfect time to post my interview with Ann Gonzalez , author of Running For My Life . Ann talks about her mother's mental illness, her own PTSD, and her writing. Ann put in the winning bid for a Book of Life interview in the Bridget Zinn Auction earlier this year, which raised money to assist librarian/author Bridget Zinn with her cancer treatments. While Running for My Life is not a book of Jewish content, it's a topic that's pertinent to everyone and I believe that Ann has done a mitzvah by bringing making this subject matter accessible to young readers. 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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Tw...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST    |    BUY REBECCA DOLL    |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    When I first attempted to post this interview, the audio got cut off halfway through. Here, with my apologies, is the full episode. Jacqueline Dembar Greene talks about the Rebecca Rubin character she created for the American Girl series ( click here for the books, the dolls, and the accessories, and click here for Rebecca games!), and about her High Holidays picture book The Secret Shofar of Barcelona , illustrated by Doug Chayka.   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: facebook.com/bookoflifepodcast Twitter: @bookoflifepod   Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com !