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
Karen Goldman, Jordan and the Dreadful Golem, Penlight Publications, Rachel Moseley illustrator, 2013, ISBN 978-098-386-852-1, 224 pages, $15.95 By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO –Jewish tweens and teens who enjoyed the Harry Potter series by J.K.Rowling may find themselves charmed by a new juvenile fiction series launched by Karen Goldman about a village in the […]
A golem versus tween super-heroes Read More »
Donald H. HarrisonBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — I wanted to prepare a suitable version of the advertisement for my book, The Balancing Game for inclusion in the website of the San Diego Jewish World, which posts my articles from time to time and whose motto is ‘There is a Jewish Story Everywhere.’ For this purpose I
Should SDJW change its masthead font? Who knew? Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Travel and FoodBy Steve Kramer JERUSALEM — Jerusalem is the unique capital of the Jewish state. Palestinian demands to proclaim Jerusalem their capital, entirely or partly, are spurious. I believe that the only reason that Palestinians insist on this is to delegitimize Jewish rights to our 3,000 year old capital and our country. My argument: the Palestinians
Challenging Arab myths about Jerusalem Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer
By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO—This book falls within one of those between genres—historical fiction—in which it is difficult to tell what is real and what is made up. If you were writing a biography of Marilyn Monroe, you couldn’t reliably cite it, yet there is enough verisimilitude about the book that a reader
Book follows Marilyn Monroe to her psychiatrist’s couch Read More »
Donald H. HarrisonBy Laurie Baron If glitches continue to plague HealthCare.gov, the Affordable Health Care Act is slated to be renamed the Inaccessible Health Care Act. . Dan Snyder, the politically insensitive owner of the Washington Redskins, is considering less offensive names for his team. Possible alternatives are: The Washington Firewater Drinkers, The Washington Savages, and The
Humoring the Headlines: October 22, 2013 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire
By Donald H. Harrison EL CAJON, California–For those of us who are attuned to every development in Middle Eastern news–worrying about violence in Syria and Egypt, negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, and the prospect of Iran getting the N-bomb–attending a town hall meeting such as the one Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-San Diego) conducted at
Congresswoman’s Town Hall focuses on domestic issues Read More »
Donald H. Harrison
Tilia Klebenov Jacobs, Wrong Place, Wrong Time; Linden Tree Press, (c) 2013, ISBN 978-0615805597, 400 pages, cover price unlisted. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO- – While reading and enjoying this novel about an almost-ethical kidnapper, I kept wondering why the author had decided that the female victim in this story should be a well-educated
Novel probes relationship between kidnapper and victim Read More »
Donald H. HarrisonBy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. — If the Palestinian movement believes it lives outside the laws of politics, nature and economics, it may be right. The PA and Hamas occupy a split territory with two feuding governments — both dictatorships with all the arbitrariness and lack of accountability implied by that; multiple armed services
Europe may be awakening to Palestinian fraud Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana BryenBy Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California–Popular culture often adds its own midrashic spin to famous biblical stories. The episode known as the Akedah, “The Binding of Isaac” illustrates the harrowing chapter when Abraham almost saw his future go literally, “up in smoke.” Bob Dylan and Woody Allen both add a remarkable subtext to
God wanted Abraham to just say no Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-RabbiBy Laurie Baron (Tune: My Country ‘tis of Thee) My country is shut down Congress has let us down. And we must plead. Land of enormous size, It needs a compromise. Support from Boehner’s side That’s how to lead. Here’s my analysis Of our paralysis. Let the House vote. To fund the government, On debts
Humoring the Headlines: October 15, 2013 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire• The sign of circumcision is so important, that . . . .it alone would preserve the nation [Israel] forever — SPINOZA, Theologico-Political Treatise 1670. Ch. 3 • Turnus Rufus asked R. Akiba: “If God wanted circumcision, why didn’t he make man born circumcised?” R. Akiba replied, “Why do you ask only regarding circumcision? Why
Circumcision has been debated through the ages Read More »
Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Science, Medicine, & EducationBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — After seeing the latest polls on the percentage of Americans who disapprove of the Republican strategy of linking the approval of a budget to the defunding of Obama Care, Confucius say, “Those who heed the advice of the junior senator from Texas will find themselves in a Ted end.”
Humoring the headlines: October 12, 2013 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBy Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — Retirement is becoming a more distant dream for a rising number of older Americans, largely because they need the money but also because they are healthy enough to keep working. The percentage of 65-plus women who are working jumped more than 4 percentage points to 12.5%.
Abraham proved the Power of One Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi
By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO — Someone might have predicted years ago when Sue Marder was 8 and still younger than her grandchildren are today, that she would become both a writer and a volunteer at an animal shelter. As a child she wrote a poem called “My Pet” and precociously sent it off
Marder’s poems display her humor, doggone it! Read More »
Donald H. Harrison