Below are the names of writers who are currently active. For others, living and deceased, please type their name into the search box above the masthead on our home page, www.sdjewishworld.com
By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — There’s an ill wind blowing through the world. First Brexit, and now Trump. What’s next? And what makes people vote for a policy or a person that seems on the face of it to embody all that is worst in human nature and societal relations? In the referendum in […]
Winds of resentment: Brexit and Trump victories Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, USAPhew! It Is Almost Over By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO-Donald Trump claimed he survived an assassination attempt at his Reno rally this past Saturday. The Secret Service corrected him noting that it was only a Clinton supporter who shouted gun. In other words, it ended up being an asinine protest and claim. * This past
Humoring the headlines: November 8, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire
Did You Ever Have the Chance to Marry an American Multimillionaire? by Dora Klinova; DK Corporation; (c) 2016: ISBN 9781533-137852; 245 pages. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO — This autobiographical work was fictionalized enough to be classified as a novel, but it closely follows author Dora Klinova’s own progress in San Diego in the
A Ukrainian Jew and her American multi- millionaire Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, San Diego County
Faithful by Alice Hoffman, Simon & Schuster, © 2016; ISBN 97814767-99209; 258 pages; $26. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – “Oh, oh,” I thought while reading the very dark and depressing first chapter. “This is going to be a very long book. Do I really want to expose myself to all this pain?” Thank
Novel takes us on a road to recovery Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. HarrisonBy Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California —The Book of Judges speaks of a time of great social chaos in the generations leading to the formation of the ancient Israelite monarchy. The author of Judges bluntly says, “In those days there was no king in Israel and every man did what was right in
Hillary Clinton and Abimelech Read More »
Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, USABy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — When I came to live in Israel fifty years ago, and even before that on my occasional visits to the country, my father equipped me with a typewritten list of names and addresses of relatives. I dutifully visited most of them, and so I got to know the numerous
A reunion of cousins in Israel Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Jewish History, Middle East, Travel and FoodBy Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California –This past week, I enjoyed watching some scary zombie movies on Hulu and Netflix; it’s a custom I have kept since I was a boy of seven or eight years old. Halloween was always a fun time for me as a child. Watching scary movies still remains
What is the true nature of a zombie? Read More »
Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Travel and Food
By Jerry Klinger Herman Stern was a small-town North Dakota clothier based in Valley City. He was isolated, remote from any major Jewish community. He and his wife lived their lives modestly and with community respected dignity on the Dakota Plains. Stern became a major, American Holocaust rescuer. On Oct. 15, 2016, the State Historical
Holocaust Rescue and Herman Stern Read More »
Jerry Klinger, Jewish History, USAHumoring the Headlines: Weinergate By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO−The bad news is that Hillary Clinton emails from her tenure as Secretary of State were found on Anthony Weiner’s laptop. The good news is that they were all marked “Confidential” by Weiner and forwarded to underage girls. * The bad news is that the FBI is
Humoring the headlines: October 31, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USAThe Koren Sukkot Maḥzor; Introduction, Translation, and Commentary by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Koren Publishers, Jerusalem, © 2015, ISBN 978-965-301-659-0, p. 1465, $24.95 By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California – When a knowledgeable Jew hears the Hebrew word maḥzor, more than likely an image appears of a sanctuary filled with Jews praying during the High Holidays,
A mahzor for Sukkot Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish Religion
Devil Out of Texas by Roger Raffee, 2016; Amazon Publications; 456 pages; now on Kindle. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Author Roger Raffee, a fellow San Diegan, has written a novel—and I’ll repeat that word “novel”—purportedly about a great-great grandfather who was a sure-shooting, fast-drawing Texas Ranger who could snuff out a
Tales of a Jewish lawman in the Old West Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, USABy Mimi Pollack LA MESA, California — Many of us lead very busy lives, and there are many self help books out there to help people find ways to cope. However, it is nice to find one that gives concise advice on ways to make your life less stressful, healthy and even lighten your footprint
Lightening the loads of life Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Mimi PollackBy Eileen Wingard ENCINITAS, California — The Israeli duo, violinist Asi Matathias and pianist Victor Stanislavsky, shone in their recent recital at the Encinitas Library, under the auspices of Virtuosi USA, a concert series sponsored by the Friends of Musical Arts, under the direction of Michael Tseitlin. Matathias and Stanislavsky have performed in San Diego
Recital by Matathias and Stanislavsky enthuses S.D. audience Read More »
Eileen Wingard, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego CountyBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — I was born in 1947. When I was growing up on the north side of Chicago, I had no inkling that the Chicago Cubs had played in a World Series two years earlier, let alone that the last time they won the Series was in 1908. All I knew