Books, Poetry & Short Stories

‘Cli-fi’ appears on ‘Jeopardy’ and in crossword puzzle

Editor’s Note: Ever since he coined the term “cli-fi,” SDJW correspondent Dan Bloom has monitored with satisfaction from his home in Chiayi City, Taiwan, the use of the term spreading in popular culture. CHIAYI CITY, Taiwan — Hollywood is catching up with the ”cli-fi” buzzword these days, as the popular TV show Jeopardy episode last […]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Biography recalls Cantor William Sharlin’s career

By Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel ENCINITAS, California — The distinguished Rabbi Richard N. Levy paid tribute to his colleague, Cantor William Sharlin in recognition of 30 years as originator and Director of the Department of Music at the Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles. “William, you taught me the difference between davening and singing, between

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel, z"l, Jewish Religion, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, USA

Book offers tips and facts about DNA testing

Seed of Israel: DNA Guide To Tracing Your Jewish Ancestry by Joshua Robbin Marks,  48 pages including endnotes; available on Amazon.com for $14.99. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Perhaps your friends or relatives have told you that they did a DNA test and found out about their ancestry, and now you’re wondering whether

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Science, Medicine, & Education

Linguist learns of biological father’s secret past

What Language do I Dream in? by Elena Lappin;  HarperCollins, 2017, ISBN 9781554-684632. By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson DOMEYROT, France — As a bilingual speaker of Hebrew and English as well as having some knowledge of French and German, I was intrigued by the title of this book. But the beginning is something of a surprise, as

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International

The Ramban vs. Maimonides in theological debate

Nachmanides: An Unusual Thinker by Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin, Geffen Publishing House (c) 2018, ISBN 9789652-298874. By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — One of the most interesting books I have read in years is Rabbi Israel Drazin’s excellent primer on the Ramban, entitled, Nachmanides An Unusual Thinker about a brilliant rabbinic scholar

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi

Children’s book tells of Miep Gies’s heroism

Miep and the Most Famous Diary by Meeg Pincus, illustrated by Jordi Solano, Sleeping Bear Press (c) 2019, ISBN 9791534-11-0250, 40 pages, for children 6-10; $17.99. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO — The story of the woman who hid Anne Frank and her family focuses on the time immediately after the Franks were dragged

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History

Weiss propounds ‘Open Orthodoxy’ in new book

Journey to Open Orthodoxy by Avraham “Avi” Weiss, Ktav Publishing and Urim Publishing, New York © 2019, ISBN 978-1-60280-318-3, p. 592, plus appendix and index, $29.95. By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California – Reform Judaism in eighteenth century Germany and Hasidism in the Ukraine in the same century represent the first modern ruptures in traditional Judaism;

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish Religion

Rose and Max (z”l) Schindler relate their survivals

Two Who Survived: Keeping Hope Alive While Surviving the Holocaust; Rose & Max Schindler’s story, written by M. Lee Connolly; MRS Publishing © 2019; ISBN 9781738-19877; 179 pages including glossary; $21.95. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – There is a romantic notion in popular Judaism that everyone has a bashert – a special person

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, USA

A modern history of the ancient Middle East

The Cities that Built the Bible by Robert R. Cargill, HarperOne, 2016 By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson DOMEYROT, France — This overview of the history of the Ancient Near East as it relates to the events described in the Bible is written in a language that is accessible to any reader who is not an expert in archaeology

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Middle East

‘Unfreedom of the Press’ indicts Fourth Estate

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Mark R. Levin’s very informative book Unfreedom of the Press may surprise many readers when they discover that the book is filled with eye-opening fascinating information that is written in clear easy-to-read English. Levin covers many interesting subjects relating to the press, newspapers, TV, radio, attacks on

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., USA

Jewish gay comedian Jason Stuart speaks out

By Eva Trieger SOLANA BEACH, California — Steve Martin said of comedy, “It’s all in the ti-ming.” (He put the accent on the second syllable.) Well, if that be so, the time is now for Jason Stuart. The actor, stand-up comic and lecturer has also become a published author. This weekend celebrated a book signing

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Eva Trieger, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

When our Sky ‘met’ Albert Einstein

  By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Our cousins, Harry and Sherry Jacobson-Beyer of Louisville, Kentucky, paid us a visit, bringing along their 14-year-old grandson, Ethan Jacobson, of Fairhope, Alabama.  Together, with Nancy’s and my grandson, Sky, 12, we visited the Reuben E. Fleet Science Center in Balboa Park. The boys went off in

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, USA

Rabbi in Florida enjoys learning about San Diego

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Donald H. Harrison’s book Schlepping and Schmoozing through San Diego County, Vol. 1 is enjoyable, really fun to read, as one can tell by the book’s title. He has been a journalist since 1962 and is an excellent writer. His articles are not only enjoyable, sometimes witty,

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA