The Book of Life

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we celebrate klezmer music! > We visit the Judaica Sound Archives at Florida Atlantic University and hear some of their historic klezmer samples. > We talk to Joan Betty Stuchner , author of the picture book The Kugel Valley Klezmer Band (also known in Canada as Shira's Hanukkah Gift ). > We meet Yale Strom , a "one man klezmer industry," who tells us about his books, films, travels, and performances, all relating to klezmer music.   NEWS: > Don't forget to inscribe yourself in The Book of Life's High Holidays "Book of Life!" Shanah Tovah! CREDITS: Background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band. Books and CD's mentioned on the show may be borrowed from the Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel . 

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST        🕮    In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we explore themes of magic and mystery. > Cantor Amy O. Miller explains Jewish views on Harry Potter. Cantor Miller has presented at many Harry Potter symposiums , including Nimbus 2003 , ConventionAlley 2004 , Accio 2005 , and Lumos 2006 . > Cartoonist Jason Lutes gives us some background on his graphic novel, Houdini, The Handcuff King , published by Hyperion in association with The Center for Cartoon Studies . Lutes' co-creator was Nick Bertozzi . > Author Sarah Mlynowski describes her Bras & Broomsticks trilogy for middle-grade girls. > Mystery writer Pari Noskin Taichert tells us about supernatural aspects of her novel The Clovis Incident . She also blogs on Murderati and is active on Crimespace . NEWS: > The Book of Life T-shirt with original art by award-winning author/illustrator Simms T...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     🕮    The Book of Life cools off with summer reading. We learn about the ReaderGirlz web site, and their promotion of a Jewish title: GoyCrazy by Melissa Schorr . Then we talk to Melissa herself! We hear from the music group Sababa . And we talk to Nextbook.org for summer reading recommendations. Our background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band. Most books, videos, or CD's mentioned on the show may be borrowed from the Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel . Browse our online catalog to reserve books, post a review, or just to look around!

The Book of Life has won the Bronze Medal in the Best Jewish Podcast/ Audio Blog/ Video Blog category of the 3rd Annual 2007 Jewish & Israeli Blog Awards ! Gold went to Lazer Beams Emunah Outreach Videos , and Silver went to Sameach Music Podcast. Thanks SO MUCH to everybody who voted and helped make this medal a reality for The Book of Life!!!

The Book of Life is a finalist in the 3rd Annual Jewish & Israeli Blog Awards (JIBA) in the "Best Jewish Podcast/Audio Blog/Video Blog" category. We are currently the lowest in votes, and we need your help ! Won't you please vote for us? Click here to vote . Voting closes on Wednesday, May 16, 10pm US-EDT. Thanks! Heidi Host, The Book of Life

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month by focusing on America's favorite pastime: baseball! > We'll talk to Carol Matas , author of the middle-grade historical novel Play Ball . > We meet Aviva Kempner, the independent filmmaker behind the documentary The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg . > During our seventh-inning stretch, we take a break to "say Chai" in celebration of our 18th episode. Thanks to all our listeners who sent in greetings! > Fellow podcasters Andrea & Mark of Just One More Book review the picture book Across the Alley for us. > Finally we speak to the author of Across the Alley , Richard Michelson . Rich is also the owner of the R. Michelson Galleries in Northampton, MA. Baseball-themed music in this episode includes Take Me Out to the Ball Game (Yiddish Version) per...

Ever heard of a Blog Carnival? Here's a description from the blog Chicken Spaghetti : A "carnival" takes place at one blog; it is a conglomeration of links (from many different blogs) to posts on a certain theme. Children's books and reading are the focus of the Carnival of Children's Literature. Carnivals generally include one post from each blog who wants to join in. The Book of Life participated in the 13th Carnival of Children's Literature , hosted at Jen Robinson's Book Page . Jen's blog promotes the love of reading among children and the continued reading of children's books by adults, a sentiment I heartily agree with! The Carnival has links to children's-literature-related posts from a wide variety of literary blogs. Our post, which relates to the Sydney Taylor Book Awards, can be found in the section labeled "The Midway (About Prizes and Awards)."

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    Next month we will post our 18th episode! The number 18 is lucky in Jewish tradition because its numerological value is "chai" (Hebrew for "life"). In celebration, we invite you to "say chai" to the folks in your life! We'll be reading your shout-outs on the show, like Garrison Keillor does after intermission on A Prairie Home Companion. Send in a message for your friends or family by emailing bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com today! In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we celebrate the power of books to sustain the Jewish people. We'll hear from: > Jonathan Kirsch , author of Biblical non-fiction such as The Harlot by the Side of the Road, God Against the Gods, and A History of the End of the World . He'll be the keynote speaker at the Association of Jewish Libraries convention on June 17, 2007 in Scottsdale, Arizona. > Nancy Kalikow Maxwell, autho...

WJEW is an online radio station broadcasting live out of Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan. The station is run by the students of Temple Israel and overseen by Cantor Michael Smolash. As the description on their broadcast page says, they play "the best new Jewish music, along with interviews with some of the most influential Jews in the world." WJEW will be broadcasting various interviews from The Book of Life's past podcasts. During their "talk hour" 8:00-9:00 pm on Thursday, March 22, 2007 they will be playing The Book of Life's interview with Steve Brodsky of Mah Tovu about the song "Pharoah Pharoah." The segment originally appeared in The Book of Life's April 2006 episode .

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we celebrate the holiday of Passover. We'll hear from: > dave horowitz (yes, he spells it lower case), speaking about his picture book Five Little Gefiltes (Putnam, 2007). The "Five Little Ducks" recording you'll hear on the show was provided by I CAN , a UK charity that supports children's communication. Please help them help more kids by adding your favorite (or "favourite") word to their Wall of Words. I added "gefilte." > Tami Lehman-Wilzig on her children's book Passover Around the World (Kar-Ben, 2007). > Sean Altman of the band Jewmongous about the song "They Tried to Kill Us (We Survived, Let's Eat)," written with Rob Tannenbaum (now of Good for the Jews ) during their tenure in the band What I Like About Jew .   FYI: W hile most materials discussed on The Book of Life are...

I will be attending the 3rd Annual Podcast and New Media Expo in Ontario, California (note - California, not Canada), September 28-30, 2007. Check it out at www.NewMediaExpo.com , and let me know if you'll be there too!

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we celebrate the holiday of Purim with jokes and interviews! We'll hear about: > The classic Purim picture book Queen Esther Saves Her People , by Rita Golden Gelman with illustrations by Frane Lessac . > Two recent Purim-related major motion pictures, One Night with the King and For Your Consideration , reviewed for us by film critic Kathryn Bernheimer, author of The 50 Greatest Jewish Movies: A Critic's Ranking of the Very Best. > Jewtopia: The Chosen Book for the Chosen People , a crazy comedy book by Bryan Fogel and Sam Wolfson, based on the hit play Jewtopia.   FYI: while most materials discussed on The Book of Life are family-friendly, this book has some sections that are strictly for adults! > Jewish jokes submitted by listeners Pete Pollock, Nina Black, and Maureen Reister. Mazel tov to Nina,...

We love to know where The Book of Life is being heard, so please take a moment and click here to add yourself to our new listener map , provided by Frappr.

The Book of Life makes a guest appearance on Just One More Book , a fun podcast "about the children's books we love and why we love them." Check out Heidi's review of Hanukkah at Valley Forge , and take some time to listen to their other reviews and author interviews. Thanks to hosts Andrea & Mark for including us!

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    In this episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, we kick off the new year with new books and new music. We'll hear about: > The 2007 Sydney Taylor Book Awards for Jewish children's literature, presented by the Association of Jewish Libraries. We'll speak to awards chair Rachel Kamin, as she announces the winners at the Association's Midwinter Meeting. Many of the winning authors have been previously interviewed on The Book of Life; click below to find those interviews: 2007 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD: YOUNGER READERS CATEGORY Hanukkah at Valley Forge by Stephen Krensky & Greg Harlin - December 2006 show 2007 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD: OLDER READERS CATEGORY Julia's Kitchen by Brenda Ferber - September 2006 show 2007 SYDNEY TAYLOR HONOR AWARD: OLDER READERS CATEGORY Vive la Paris by Esme Raji Codell - November 2006 show 2007 AJL TEEN BOOK AWARD (this is a new award, as ...

Howdy, Book of Life Listeners!  We are planning ahead for our Purim episode, and we need your help. In the spirit of Purim, the episode will focus on humor. WE WANT YOUR JEWISH JOKES! Some of the jokes submitted will appear on the show, and the very best jokester will receive a copy of Jewtopia, The Chosen Book for the Chosen People by Bryan Fogel & Sam Wolfson (yes, the same guys who created the hit play by the same name).  Sumbit your joke (clean jokes only, please!) by email to heidi@cbiboca.org . Even better, if your computer has a microphone you can tell us your joke out loud using MyChingo - just click on the MyChingo button on The Book of Life web page at www.jewishbooks.blogspot.com . It only allows 2 minute recordings, so be quick... or call back and tell your joke in segments if you need to. Can't wait to hear your jokes! Happy New Year!

December, 2006 For immediate release MEDIA RELEASE “THE BOOK OF LIFE” CELEBRATES ONE YEAR OF JEWISH PODCASTING The Book of Life, a monthly podcast about Jewish books and music, celebrates a year of successful podcasting this December. The first episode of the audio program was posted in December, 2005. This “Internet radio show” features interviews with authors and illustrators of Judaic books, and musicians who have produced Judaic recordings. “As a librarian, my purpose is to promote books and CD’s that people can borrow from libraries,” says podcast producer and host Heidi Estrin, who directs the Feldman Library at Congregation B’nai Israel in Boca Raton, Florida. “I am especially excited about the wonderful Jewish books being published these days for children and teens, and that is a major focus of the show. I hope that hearing the ‘backstory’ will get readers involved!” The Book of Life has received notice from other literary web pages, including PlanetEsme and Cynsat...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    Congratulations to Jason Gaines , winner of The Book of Life holiday book drawing! An autographed copy of Celebrate Hanukkah with Light, Latkes and Dreidels is on the way! Listen to an interview with the author in this month's podcast. SHOW NOTES: This episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, celebrates the holiday of Hanukkah. We'll hear from: > Stephen Krensky and Greg Harlin , author and illustrator of Hanukkah at Valley Forge , a historical picture book about George Washington's encounter with a Jewish soldier > Nora Guthrie, Woody Guthrie's daughter and director of the Woody Guthrie Foundation and Archives, about the new Klezmatics CD Woody Guthrie's Happy Joyous Hanukkah . > Deborah Heiligman , author of the new nonfiction picture book Celebrate Hanukkah with Light, Latkes and Dreidels

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    This brief "addendum" to The Book of Life offers timely information about a new book list of Hanukkah stories for children. The Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee of the Association of Jewish Libraries has created the list Great Hanukkah Books for Kids , a recommended reading-and-shopping list for families, teachers, and librarians. The list has space at the bottom of the front page for libraries or booksellers to add local information, turning the list into a promotional tool for you!

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST      🕮    HOLIDAY BOOK DRAWING: Use this form to enter our drawing! and you may win an autographed copy of the nonfiction picture book, Celebrate Hanukkah with Light, Latkes, and Dreidels by Deborah Heiligman, new from National Geographic! Illustrated with beautiful multicultural photographs, the book makes a great gift or a keepsake for yourself. Tune in to The Book of Life in December to hear an interview with the author. You'll be asked to answer a few simple questions, including the name of your favorite Hanukkah book. Deadline for entry is Sunday, November 26, 2006 -- the end of Thanksgiving weekend.   This episode of The Book of Life, a show about Jewish people and the books we read, celebrates Jewish Book Month. We'll hear from: > Howard Schwartz , author of Before You Were Born , winner of the 2006 Koret International Book Award > Carolyn Starman Hessel, Director of the Jewish Book Council , on the ...