The Rebbe’s Army: Inside the World of Chabad-Lubavitch by Sue Fishkoff (2003)
I read this book a few years ago and found it an excellent introduction for those who are interested in Lubavitch Chassidim and how they have expanded from a relative small Chassidic group in White Russia to an organization with over 3,000 official centers around the world which provide Shabbat meals, lectures, a second home and Jewish simcha (joy) to any Jew who is in, let’s say, Hong Kong and is looking for freshly baked challah or a minyan (group of ten) for davening (praying). This book gives an insight into the charismatic leader, the Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, and the Chassidim who carry out his revolutionary ideas.
Mystics Mavericks and Merrymakers: An Intimate Journey Among Chassidic Girls by Stephanie Wellen Levine (2003).
I was actually hesitating to recommend this book, but its overall observations, I feel, are accurate. Ms. Wellen Levine spent a year in Crown Heights, among Chassidic girls, and wrote a book about her various impressions. Her conclusion was that, far from being the repressed, diffident girls she expected to find in such an apparently restrictive society, the Chassidic girls were actually empowered by the secure boundaries of their world, particularly because of their separation from boys. My only criticism of the book is that I think she gives undue attention to the “rebels” and describes their activities which are not in tune with the Chassidic community which she is attempting to depict. But overall, I think it is a good read and an eye opener.
In The Case for Israel (2003), Alan Dershowitz makes an eloquent argument for the existence of the State of Israel, and confronts assumptions that underlie media representations of Israel as a mere colonial power. His writing is insightful, fresh and clear as usual and his skill at argumentation is unsurpassed. A must-read for the media weary and the reluctantly indoctrinated college student, and for the rest of us.
Teacha! Stories from a Yeshiva (2002) by Gerry Albarelli, gives the reader a bittersweet glimpse into the life of young boys in a Chassidic yeshiva in Brooklyn. A non-Jewish teacher guides the reader through his comic and challenging experience teaching cat mysteries to boys whose first language is Yiddish.The boys, stumbling over his unfamiliar name, call him just “Teacha!”
Israel behind Bars: True Stories of Hope and Redemption (2006)
Chassidic rabbi and black belt karate master Fishel Jacobs takes the reader inside Israeli prisons in the first-ever publication on the Israeli prison system. Rabbi Jacobs sees the humanity of the inmates and brings light to those who are incarcerated, and even performs a wedding inside the prison walls. “Bars are but illusions, each of us can choose to be free,” he writes.
The Jewish Book of Why by Alfred J. Kolatch (2003)
This is a must-own encyclopedia for every Jewish home and is so comprehensive, it is amazing that it was written by just one person. Kolatch answers both basic and complicated questions such as “Why do Jews eat donuts on Chanukah?” Even after a few years of observance, I find myself referring to his book periodically to remind myself of the “whys” of Jewish life as well as the “hows.”
Total Immersion: a Mikvah Anthology (2006) by Rivkah Slonim provides insight into the often misunderstood ritual of immersing in a ritual bath. In addition to providing important information to women about visiting a mikvah, the book contains poignant essays describing personal feelings and experiences in the cleansing waters.
Expecting Miracles: Finding Meaning and Spirituality in Pregnancy through Judaism (2005) by Chana Weisberg
I found this book tremendously helpful during my last pregnancy, particularly reading the account of many Jewish women of various backgrounds describing their birth and pregnancy experiences. While I would have liked to have read stories from Jewish women outside of Jerusalem as well, I was moved by the accounts, both sweet and bitter, of the joyful anticipation as well as the doubts and fears experienced during pregnancy, and how birth brings us closer to Hashem.
Elie Weisel: Conversations (2003)
Many of us have read one of the most important books about the Holocaust, Night by Elie Weisel. If you haven’t, please read it. Conversations gives the reader a glimpse into the mind of the Nobel Laureate, humanitarian and holocaust survivor who has written many books about the holocaust and the world that it uprooted and attempted to destroy.
See also: Jewish Books for Everybody
Kosher Reading