Leon Trotsky: A Revolutionary’s Life by Joseph Rubenstein. Yale University Press, 2011, 225pp. By David Strom SAN DIEGO — In his book, A Revolutionary’s Life, Joseph Rubenstein wrote a well-researched biography of Leon Trotsky that is neither a fawning nor a completely derogatory view of this twentieth century revolutionary. His book is rich in detail [...]
Among Righteous Men: A Tale of Vigilantes and Vindication in Hasidic Crown Heights, by Matthew Shaer. John Wiley Press, 2012. 243pp. By David Strom SAN DIEGO — On December 29, 2007, the Crown Heights Shomrim (Hebrew for guards) Rescue Patrol answered a call for help from the Lubavitcher yeshivah student dormitory at 749 Eastern Parkway, [...]
Jews and Booze: Becoming American In the Age of Prohibition , by Marni Davis. New York University Press, 248pp. By David Strom SAN DIEGO — At the next family simcha (joyous occasion) as I raise my kiddish cup, I might think about the Jewish connection to alcoholic beverages, realizing that wealthy Jews, prior to the [...]
By David Strom Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition, Scribner, New York. 2010, 468pp. SAN DIEGO — On a warm day in July of 1966, two magazine journalists writing about the liquor industry and Prohibition wondered what Sam Bronfman’s role was during the Prohibition era. Most of the time when Sam answered that [...]
By David Strom David Strom SAN DIEGO — Alvin Rosenfeld, the author/editor of several important books about the Holocaust, has written a book that is thoughtful and challenging to our perceptions of what the Holocaust means. The End of the Holocaust is a critical survey of the vast range of assaults on our collective Holocaust [...]
The Eichmann Trial by Deborah E. Lipstadt, Schocken, 272pp. By David Strom SAN DIEGO — It has been fifty years since the Adolf Eichmann trial. Deborah Lipstadt, renowned historian and professor, has written a new account of the Eichmann trial. Eichmann was one of the world’s most notorious war criminals. He sat in an [...]
When Brooklyn Was Heaven: A Memoir from Brooklyn to L.A. and Places In-Between, by Stan Levenson. Outskirts Press, Inc. Denver, Colorado. 313pp. By David Strom SAN DIEGO–Now eighty, Stan Levenson, a retired professor, elementary teacher, school consultant, and author of books about raising funds for public education, is now living in San Diego. He recently [...]
The Punishment of Gaza, by Gideon Levy. Verso, 2010, 146 pages. By David Strom SAN DIEGO–When going to Hebrew school, I often wondered why people didn’t pay too much attention to the Prophets in the Torah. Why didn’t the leaders of the day follow what these wise men were saying? As a young school student, [...]
The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2010. 603 pages By David Strom SAN DIEGO–All of us have faced and crossed some invisible bridges in our lives. Did you notice the bridge you crossed from childhood into adulthood? Did you feel it? We often feel the “rocky and sometimes stormy bridge” [...]
The Accidental Anarchist by Bryna Kranzler, Crosswalk Press, 2010. By David Strom SAN DIEGO–The only grandfather (Zaydah) I knew died when I was seven. My memories of him are very slim and dim. What I mainly know about my Zaydah is what my older siblings have said about him over the years. To them, he [...]
