Read a book by a local author

Are you going to participate in the Jewish community reading program? This new initiative encourages members of the greater Rhode Island Jewish community to read a single book of his/her choice in the next three months. These should be nonfiction books of Jewish content. To celebrate how we have each broadened our knowledge, there will be a special event on Jan. 22, 2017.

This program is sponsored by the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, the Board of Rabbis of Greater Rhode Island, Kollel: Center for Jewish Studies, PJ library, and Project Shoresh.

If you are looking for a book by a local author, you may want to consider one of the authors below. Many of the following authors have been quite prolific, so the books listed here are only a single nonfiction suggestion, generally not academic, from each person’s many works. They are in no particular order.

Michael Satlow explores the origins of the Jewish Bible in “How the Bible Became Holy.” He details how various biblical books became authoritative within our tradition. Satlow is currently a professor at Brown University.

Shaye J. D. Cohen, Satlow’s predecessor at Brown, now at Harvard, wrote “From the Maccabees to the Mishnah.” This book examines how Judaism developed during the early Roman Empire, which includes the transition from a Temple-centered religion to Rabbinic Judaism.

Judith Romney Wegner, who also taught at Brown, is the author of “Chattel or Person?:  The Status of Women in the Mishnah.” This work was written about the early Rabbinic period, so it overlaps with the time period that Cohen deals with.

Jacob Neusner,  who recently passed away, was also at Brown, before moving on to other universities. He is acclaimed as the author and/or editor of about 950 books. “Invitation to the Talmud” is his introduction to the major religious and literary work of Rabbinic Judaism upon which most Rabbinic literature refers.

David I. Kertzer, who was provost of Brown for several years, wrote “The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara.” This event took place in 1858 in Italy, and is the first such kidnapping of a Jewish child by the Catholic Inquisition to catch the world’s attention.

David C. Jacobson, another professor at Brown, specializes in Hebrew literature. Poetry is central to Jewish religious experience and prayer. In “Creator, Are You Listening?:  Israeli Poets on God and Prayer,” Jacobson offers the poetry of Israelis who are not necessarily traditionally religious.

Not all local authors are connected so strongly to Brown University.

Ronald Florence, who is both a novelist and a historian, wrote a biography of two people who helped Britain conquer parts of the Ottoman Empire a century ago. Aaron Aaronson may not be as famous as “Lawrence of Arabia,” but he was more famous at the time and led a Jewish underground. Their wartime exploits are detailed in “Lawrence and Aaronsohn: T. E. Lawrence, Aaron Aaronsohn, and the Seeds of the Arab-Israeli Conflict.”

William F. Miles teaches at Northeastern University. In “Afro-Jewish Encounters: From Timbuktu to the Indian Ocean and Beyond,” Miles presents several stories of encounters between Jews and Africans, in what may seem like exotic settings.

Marjorie Ingall, who grew up in Providence, wrote an entirely different type of book, “Mamaleh Knows Best: What Jewish Mothers Do to Raise Successful, Creative, Empathetic, Independent Children.” This book is a parenting book for the 21st century, with an emphasis on raising a mensch rather than a Nobel laureate.

There are certainly many more local authors – of cookbooks, novels and literature, even of more books of Jewish nonfiction. Please feel free to share your own recommendations by writing to lkatz@jewishallianceri.org.

What would you like to read? For recommendations of books, and to register, check out our website at www.jewishallianceri.org/read, or feel free to call your rabbi or neighbors. Please sign up at this website, as well, so that we know how many are participating and to receive notices related to this reading program. A community that learns together grows together!

LARRY KATZ is director of Jewish Life and Learning at the Jewish Alliance.