Orthodox by Design: Judaism, Print Politics, and the ArtScroll Revolution

by Jeremy Stolow

Orthodox by Design , a groundbreaking exploration of religion and media, examines ArtScroll, the world’s largest Orthodox Jewish publishing house, purveyor of handsomely designed editions of sacred texts and a major cultural force in contemporary Jewish public life. In the first in-depth study of the ArtScroll revolution, Jeremy Stolow traces the ubiquity of ArtScroll books in local retail markets, synagogues, libraries, and the lives of ordinary users. Synthesizing field research conducted in three local Jewish scenes where ArtScroll books have had an impact―Toronto, London, and New York―along with close readings of key ArtScroll texts, promotional materials, and the Jewish blogosphere, he shows how the use of these books reflects a broader cultural shift in the authority and public influence of Orthodox Judaism. Playing with the concept of design, Stolow’s study also outlines a fresh theoretical approach to print culture and illuminates how evolving technologies, material forms, and styles of mediated communication contribute to new patterns of religious identification, practice, and power.

Finalist for the National Jewish Book Award in the scholarship category, Jewish Book Council

Genres: Judaica, Religion, Nonfiction, Jewish

284 pages, Paperback

First published March 13, 2010

Reviews

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book up because I enjoyed Strictly Kosher Reading: Popular Literature and the Condition of Contemporary Orthodoxy, which cited Orthodox by Design: Judaism, Print Politics, and the ArtScroll Revolution frequently. Unfortunately, it was something of a disappointment.

I generally don't mind reading academic writing, even though it can be demanding. This book, though, frequently employed unfamiliar polysyllabic words in a convoluted sentence structure. I was constantly spacing out, which may explain why I'm left wondering what he said exactly. But I don't think my limited attention span is the only reason for my confusion.

This book is a study of Artscroll, a publisher of Orthodox Jewish books ranging from prayer texts to Talmuds to novels and cookbooks. One of Stolow's points -- if I understood it -- is that Artscroll fills a niche by spelling out detailed instructions for Jewish ritual life. Their prayer books are sufficiently user-friendly that someone unfamiliar with the Orthodox prayer service can probably appear to know what he's doing in the synagogue, which can be comforting for many. By making the prayer service and other forms of ritual accessible to the masses, and being the first to do this, Artscroll has also constructed and homogenized the way we carry out our ritual obligations. More and more, Artscroll has monopolized the scene and become a trusted authority for Orthodox Jews.

Artscroll's powerful and pervasive influence on Orthodox Jews is not limited to the synagogue or even to the study of Talmud from their attractive and user-friendly texts. Artscroll's cookbooks and self-help books provide scripts for day-to-day life. Additionally, Artscroll has worked to make their texts attractive and accessible, attempting to balance a need for authenticity with a need for updating in order to make the content and delivery palatable for today's generation. The "Orthodox by Design" title appears to refer to both Artscroll's reconstruction and reframing of ancient texts and Artscroll's scripting of Orthodox lifestyle, both in religious ritual and in more mundane matters.

So at the risk of sounding anti-intellectual, this is one of those times when I find myself saying, so what? What have you told me exactly that's new or enlightening here? I'm sure I missed the point. Certainly when Yoel Finkelman cited this book it seemed to enhance his arguments and provide interesting examples. I'm sure it's me, but somehow I couldn't see the forest through the trees.

[Avi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating analysis of Artscroll’s popularity and influence among Jews. In particular, the books thesis positioning Artscroll within the context of Jewish literacy, the rise of Jewish scripturalism and the Artscroll series as an easy guide to life was penetrating and fascinating. I expected to read a history of Artscroll but instead got an incisive portrait into the sociological dynamics of 21st century Orthodox Judaism as conveyed through the lens of analyzing Artscroll’s publishing output

[Bentzion · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rare and easy-to-read critical analysis of ArtScroll’s contributions to Jewish history from a societal, historio-religious, and aesthetic point of view.

[Jon-Erik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unnecessarily dense with both relevant and irrelevant information, this book could have been shortened to a long-form magazine article and presented to a broader audience with some good editing. The ArtScroll phenomenon is indeed an interesting piece of the rise of orthodox Judaism for the unschooled, but this book offers little more than what one could find on Wikipedia in less tiresome writing other than anecdotal evidence and statistics of questionable meaning. Most useful for its bibliography.

[Michael Lewyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing here I disagreed with, but not much I didn't already know.