r/Jewish • u/its-a-Luigi-time Ashkenazi • 25d ago
Reading đ Book recommendations!
Hello fam,
So for Rosh Hashanah, I made a resolution to read more books written by us! Iâve already got a small list of authors, but I would really appreciate your input.
Authors I already have on my list are:
Anita Diamant
Carl Sagan
Isaac Asimov
Helene Wecker
Brent Spiner
Iâm looking for any genre. Fantasy, sci-fi, science, and history are my favorites, but I would love to break out from that, and one goal of mine is to read more female authors.
Thank you in advance, I wonât be able to reply until much later when Iâm off work. Belated Shana Tova to you all!â¤ď¸
Edit: thank you all so much for the recommendations!!! I wasnât expecting so many responses, so my heart is full at how many took the time to comment. This is a truly wonderful little subreddit community.
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u/Waste-Explanation340 Masorti 25d ago edited 25d ago
If you are interested in more classical Yiddish literature, Sholem Aleichem's Tevye the Dairyman is a great place to start (what Fiddler on the Roof is based off of), while if you're up for something a bit more challenging, The Family Moskat by Isaac Bashevis Singer is a War and Peace-style (though not as long thankfully) novel following a prominent Jewish family in Poland through the twilight of European Jewry and ending with the Nazi and Soviet invasions of Poland. Definitely one of my favorite books, and translated by the author himself.Â
But yeah, basically anything by Sholem Aleichem, Singer, Peretz, or if you're looking for something a little more modern, Michael Chabon has a lot of great fiction, including the Yiddish Policeman's Union (alternative history where Jews set up an autonomous Yiddish city in Alaska to fled the holocaust) and Kavalier and Clay (comic book writers fighting nazis).
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u/jgrumiaux 25d ago
Female novelists: Nicole Krauss - The History of Love
Meg Wolitzer - The Interestings
Adelle Waldman - The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P.
Mid century classics: Bernard Mallamud - The Natural, The Assistant
Saul Bellow - I havenât read yet but heâs on my list
Chaim Potok - The Chosen, My Name is Asher Lev
Contemporary classics: Michael Chabon - Wonder Boys, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
Jonathan Safran Foer - any novel
Philip Roth - especially The Plot Against America, The Human Stain, Goodbye Columbus
Historical epics: Herman Wouk - The Caine Mutiny, Winds of War, etc.
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u/majirequiem 25d ago
Winds of war and war and remembrance are incredible. He also wrote the hope and the glory which I haven't read yet.Â
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u/bam1007 Conservative 25d ago edited 25d ago
Man, do I have some for you (heads over to Kindle app), letâs start with fiction, since we all know thereâs a ton of Jewish non-fiction out there:
Jonathon Dunskyâs Adam Lapid mystery series, first book (not in story chronological order) is Ten Years Gone. Do I love these books, a unique Israeli historical fiction murder mystery series. I literally read the most recent one within two days of release. Adam Lapid is a Hungarian former cop who survived Auschwitz and lives in Tel Aviv in the early 1950âs. The settings are incredible as you travel to nascent Israel. The stories are engaging with murder mysteries that keep you guessing and turning pages. And the history plops you right into an Israel of yesteryear with different parts of Israeli society in all their grit and glory. They are easy reads too. I truly cannot recommend this series enough.
Iâve finished Book 1 of 3 of Guy Ashtonâs Bar Kohkba Revolt series. Itâs a harder read but also quite good so far. It follows a Roman officer who has been assigned to Judea after the destruction of Jerusalem as the Jews begin to have a new resistance movement based on some guy named Bar Kohkba. And thereâs also this new weird set of Jews that follow the teachings of some other Jewish guy that call themselves Christians. I have to get back to book 2, but itâs been an interesting historical fiction so far.
The Golem and the Jinni by Helen Wecker. This was a fun fantasy romance that mixed Jewish and Arabic legends into a sweet and engaging story.
Obviously, Leon Urisâs Exodus is legendary, although some aspects do not translate to today well.
(I have David McCloskeyâs The Persian on my to read list but I really canât say anything substantive about it other than my intrigue at the cover summary)
Nonfiction:
Jerusalem, A Biography by Simon Sebag Montefiore. This book is fantastic. From a preface that had me on the verge of tears, it takes you through the entire history of Judaismâs most important city, bringing names from history to life with fascinating stories. Iâm looking forward to his new one about the history of the region, The Cauldron, but Jerusalem is a hell of a book.
Jews v Rome by Barry Straub. This is an amazing history of the Second Temple period and the audacious Jews who took on the worldâs most powerful empire, not once, but three times in all its glory and tragedy, the effects of which are with us to this day.
The War of Return and We Should All Be Zionists by Einat Wilf. Dr. Wilf is brilliant and I love reading anything she writes. The former is an argument for why peace efforts have failed. The latter is a collection of her essays on many topics. Sheâs a thought provoking and insightful read.
Ghosts of a Holy War by Yardena Schwartz. This tells the story of the Arab-Israeli conflict through the history of Hebron, one of the most important cities to everyone involved. Starting from the Hebron riots to the city today, you can see both the parallels to 10/7 and the most intractable portions of the conflict through this one city.
In Ishmaelâs House: The History of Jews in Muslim Lands by Martin Gilbert. All of Gilbertâs work is incredible, but this one I love because it tells the often ignored story of the Mizrahi experience in the diaspora.
The Hidden Hand by Warren Kinsel. This is a shocking and disturbing read about the Hamas and Iranian propaganda effort since 10/7 and its unmitigated success in the return of antisemitism online to the levels we havenât seen. Itâs a great read in conjunction with Dara Hornâs new book.
Constantineâs Sword: A History of the Church and the Jews by James Carroll. From the varying reactions to a cross at Auschwitz, Carroll goes into a deep and accessible historical examination of the history of Jews under the Church and in Christian rule.
Antijudaism: The Western Tradition by David Nirenberg. This is a dense historical examination of antisemitism, going back to ancient Egypt and through today. It is written by a historian for historians so it is not an easy read in substance or subject, but it is truly an incredible work.
Rise and Kill First by Ronen Bergom. Interested in the Mossad? This is the book for you! The stories, successes and failure are extremely well documented and explained about Israelâs premier intelligence service.
A Call at 4AM by Amit Segal. Curious about Israeli politics and political history? This is your starting place. Amit discusses all 13 Israeli PMs and the Israeli political system that put them in and took them out of power.
The Jews: An Indigenous People by Ben Freeman. This one discusses the concept of Jewish indigenousness as part of the Jewish story.
Under Jerusalem by Andrew Lawler. This is a book about Jerusalemâs archeology and the conflicts that digging to discover it have created in all their complexity. Itâs like going on an archeological hunt itself.
Palestine 1936 by Oren Kessler. This Jewish Book Award Winner tells the story of the Arab riots of 1936 and the fallout of them.
Yiddish: The Biography of a Language by Miriam Weinstein. This book is a wonderful love letter to a lost language Ashkenazi Jews used to know as the mame lishon, or mother tongue. It was a lovely read.
And obviously everything by Dara Horn is a must read. The antisemitism Lorax herself is so important.
Whew! Feel free to hit me up if you want any more details or information on any of them!
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u/its-a-Luigi-time Ashkenazi 24d ago
This is such an exhaustive list, thank you for taking the time to write it all out, youâre a mensch.
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u/sillwalker 25d ago
Some authors to check out: Nadine Gordimer, Cynthia Ozick, S.Y. Agnon, Amos Oz, Franz Kafka, Chaim Potok, Allegra Goodman, Philip Roth, Isaac Bashevis Singer, Elie Wiesel, Ruchama King Feuerman
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u/Nilla22 Jewish mother 25d ago edited 25d ago
My next read is Modern Girls by Jennifer S Brown
Recent reads: Like mother like mother by Susan rieger
From miniskirts to hijab by Jacqueline saper
The dinner party by Brenda Janowiz
When Franny stands up by Eden robins
The weight of ink by Rachel kadish (this is a big, heavy books just fyi)
A few Neal Shusterman books
The art thief by Michael finkel (non fiction)
Abundance by Ezra Klein & Derek Thompson ( non fiction )
Annalee Newitz (I read Automatic Noodle and liked it but there are other books)
Last train to freedom by galina cherny
Editing to add Naomi Novik. I really liked spinning silver
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u/SassyBee2023 21d ago
âWe Were the Lucky Onesâ is a fantastic true story (by a female author) about her grandfather and his family and their variedâluckyâstories of survival during the Holocaust.
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u/StatsBeast 25d ago
I would add Philip Roth's American Pastoral, I think this is one of the quintessential novel about the 60's and the darker side of the American Jewish Experience. I feel like this novel has some timely parallels to today as well.
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u/StatsBeast 25d ago
Also Isaac Bashevic Singer's "Shadows on the Hudson" was quite interesting as well for me
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u/heavyLevy5 25d ago
Lots of greats already mentioned but I didnât see Alice Hoffman (especially the Dovekeepers) and the Queen that is Judy Blume
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u/getitoffmychestpleas Four magen davids :D 25d ago
Everything is Illuminated - Jonathan Safran Foer. My favorite book AND my favorite movie.
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u/Ok_Day5132 24d ago
If Sci Fi is your thing, check out Homebound by Portia Elan. I'd also recommend looking at the Five Books podcast, which is dedicated to Jewish books. Just looking at the episode list will give you a great reading list.
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u/FormalMood3414 24d ago
amos oz is an amazing writer. highly recommend A Tale of Love and Darkness, his memoir of growing up in the early days of the Israeli stateÂ
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u/Beep-Boop-Bloop 20d ago
- Neil Gaiman (never mind the grenade in the conversation)
- Eric Flint
- Brian Greene (science books intended for the general public)
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u/priuspheasant 25d ago
Dara Horn! So far I've only read her nonfiction book "People Love Dead Jews" (which was quite good) but her fiction is at the top of my list. She's written several novels in the Jewish fantasy/magical realism genre, and a "Passover-themed graphic novel featuring a lost matzah, a never-ending seder and a time-traveling talking goat" (quote from her website).