Tears of the Desert: Survival in Darfur by Halima Bashir with Damien Lewis, Random House, 2008 By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — There are a few major determinants which influence our lives upon which we have no control such as where, when and to whom we are born. Coming into the world as a member of […]
From the Jewish library: ‘Tears of the Desert’ Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Middle EastCOLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., June 29, 2016 – In the midst of this crazy election year, it’s worth considering the events of almost 100 years ago at the dawn of the Progressive Era and the 30th president of the United States, Calvin Coolidge. The time bears a sometimes uncanny resemblance to our own; his challenges are
Understanding the 30th President: Coolidge by Amity Schlaes Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, USA
By Chana Miller PETACH TIKVAH, Israel – “Good morning” Simple words. We say them every day. Most people are hardly aware of the greeting by neighbors or fellow workers. But for a small group of women at Ezer Mizion, the words mean everything. They represent the Good Morning program, a visual art workshop for cancer
Art and words express cancer survivors’ emotions Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & EducationA US publisher of Adolf Hitler”s Nazi manifesto announced its decision to donate all proceeds to a local organization that works directly with aging Holocaust survivors, according to a Boston Globe report. The move comes after Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, a Boston-based publisher of one of the English translations of “Mein Kampf”, recently received criticism for
‘Mein Kampf’ profits to aid Holocaust survivors Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Jewish History, USA
Nehemiah: Statesman and Sage by Dov S. Zakheim; Maggid Books © 2016; ISBN 9781592-643691; 246 pages including appendices; $27.95 By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – From the standpoint of one in whose family there have been several intermarriages in which the children have been raised as Reform Jews, I read this biography of the
Biography of Nehemiah prompts mixed emotions Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish ReligionA Spoonful of Sugar: A Nanny’s Story, by Brenda Ashford, Doubleday 2013 (and co-writer Kate Thompson) By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — Fairy tales usually begin with “Once upon a time” and end with “they lived happily ever after.” But is that true? No, of course not – that’s why they are called “fairy tales,” silly.
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Books, Poetry & Short Stories
SAN DIEGO — Feivel Wolgelernter, whose father Chaim Yitzchok Wolgelernter wrote the The Unfinished Diary: A Chronicle of Tears, which detailed his experiences hiding in Dzialoszyce, Poland from the German Nazis, will speak at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 28, at Congregation Adat Yeshurun, 8625 La Jolla Scenic Drive North. Feivel’s talk will be followed by a
June 28 play, lecture to augment ‘The Unfinished Diary’ Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Jewish History, San Diego Calendar, Theatre, Film & BroadcastNehalel beChol: Weekday Siddur devised by Michael Haruni; Introduction by Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo, Nevarech Press, Jerusalem, © 2015, ISBN 978-965-92180-1-1, p. 665 plus Photo and Credits Appendix, $29.95 By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California – At first blush, one cannot help but be moved by the attractiveness of the color photographs permeating the Nehalel beChol
Illustrated prayer book follows Ashkenazic tradition Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish ReligionCan the shape of a letter suggest the meaning of words in which it is used? Linguistics professor Zev bar Lev believes that it can. He previews his Global Alphabet theory, upon which he will expound June 28 at a Lawrence Family JCC workshop, in the video above.
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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – The world’s youngest Nobel laureate, Malala Yousafzai of Pakistan, has often been compared to Anne Frank. Both kept diaries in times when rulers subjugated those whom they believed to be racially or religiously inferior. Both Anne and Malala suffered through warfare, their lives constantly threatened, respectively by the
Malala and Anne could have been great friends Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, InternationalThe Psychology of Tzimtzum: Self, Others and God by Mordechai Rotenberg, Maggid Books, New Milford, CT, ©2015, ISBN 978-1-59264-384-4, p. 109, plus appendices, $24.95 By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California – The sixteenth century Safed mystics employed the Hebrew word Tzimtzum, meaning contraction, to answer the question: why is there something, rather than nothing. If God’s presence
To help another, reduce yourself Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdDIn his latest book, “The Saddest Toilet in the World,” journalist and author Sam Apple tackles a careful science: potty training. Released last week, the book reveals the antics of a runaway toilet. It is inspired by Gogol’s story “The Nose,” which was introduced to Apple by another celebrated writer years prior. “My dad, Max
Journalist gets to the bottom of the wandering loo Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short StoriesBy Dan Bloom CHIAYI CITY, Taiwan –If there’s one continent on Earth where the twin impacts of global warming and climate change are very much on the minds of the people who live there, it’s Australia. It’s doesn’t help that the Australian government is lagging behind on legislating progressive climate change policies, but there’s something about
Down Under author produces a cli-fi novel Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, The World We Share
The Secret Code Menace by Pamela Cosman; Ransom Publishing Ltd; United Kingdom; (c) 2016; ISBN 978 178127 976 2; 200 pages. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO — Author Pamela Cosman teaches electrical and computer engineering at the University of California San Diego. But in The Secret Code Menace, Cosman, a member of San Diego’s
An adventure story that teaches code messaging Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Science, Medicine, & Education