Money: it plays a major role in our relationships, even if we hesitate to admit it. Our sensibilities are offended if someone suggests we made a decision based on anything other than love. However, what we do for our family – or what we allow our family members to do – is often influence…
Judaism, magic and dragons: how could I not love a novel that combines those three elements? They explain not only my reaction to Sofiya Pasternack’s first tween novel “Anya and the Dragon” (see the review at www.thereportergroup.org/past-articles/feature-book-review/feature-book-revie…
By Rabbi Rachel Esserman
When we study history, we often view the result of an action as inevitable. We forget that there was no guarantee that a revolution would succeed or fail, or that any particular country would win a war. That can make it harder to understand the decisions people make…
By Rabbi Rachel Esserman
When someone who doesn’t understand Hebrew asks me what is the most accurate translation of the Bible, I find it difficult to suggest just one work. If you are really interested in the meaning of the words, the best way to study is to compare two or three transla…
Before I request a review copy of a novel, I check to see if it contains Jewish content. At a minimum, there has to be at least one Jewish character. If religion plays a role in the book, that’s even better. When looking at works by Israeli authors, though, the same rules don’t always ap…
