Celebrating the Jewish Year: The Fall Holidays: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot

by Rabbi Paul Steinberg, Janet Greenstein Potter (Editor)

Named a 2007 National Jewish Book Award Runner-Up in the category of Contemporary Jewish Life and Practice. JPS’s holiday books take us through the joys, spirit, and meaning of the seasons. Blending the old and the new, they ground us in the origins and traditions of each holiday and open up to us ways we can add our own expression to these special days. Although synagogue ritual is touched upon, the real focus here is on our personal connections to each holiday and our home observance. As we move from season to season, Paul Steinberg shares with us a rich collection of readings from many of the Jewish greats—Maimonides, Rashi, Nachmanides, Shlomo Carlebach, Marge Piercy, Elie Wiesel, Martin Buber, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Arthur Green, and others—and he guides us in discovering for ourselves the many treasures within each text. The readings teach us about the history of each holiday, as well as its theological, ethical, agricultural, and seasonal importance and interpretation; others give us inspiration and much food for thought. These stories, essays, poems, anecdotes, and rituals help us discover how deeply Jewish traditions are rooted in nature’s yearly cycle, and how beautifully season and spirit are woven together throughout the Jewish year.

Genres: Judaism, Religion, Nonfiction

220 pages, Paperback

First published July 2, 2007

Reviews

[Karla · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a COMPREHENSIVE summary, and by that, I mean that it seems to examine every thinker on the subject of the fall holidays. While this may be good for some, as a non-jew it was a little too much for me. Although I did find some of the information that was more accessible in the book very useful.

[Joshua]

A comprehensive introduction to the history, theology, literature and ritual of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot. It's extremely readable and accessible for the average reader, making it easy to read in small snatches as the season progresses. The layout is also very attractive and engaging.

Best of all is the large collection of quotes, excerpts and essays by a variety of biblical, medieval and modern Jewish rabbis, thinkers and theologians. This book encompasses a wide variety of perspectives, which makes it extremely interesting and relevant.

My biggest criticism: I suspect that this book was rushed to print to meet a holiday deadline. As a result, it wasn't sufficiently copyedited. There are numerous typographical errors, particularly in the endnotes. Endnotes are sometimes redundant or even repeated word-for-word. Occasionally, the numbering system is wrong, with citations incorrectly attributed to the wrong texts. It's a sloppy job, and it would have been pretty easy to prevent. A shame.