In My First Ninety Years, Naomi begins with stories of her grandparents Gussie Krumholz and Isidor Krumholz (cousins from the same town in Austria) – from their births, immigration to the United States in the pre-Ellis Island days, marriage, and lives. The reader learns of the birth of Naomi’s parents, Rose Krumholz and Max Rothbart, and of their days growing up in Brooklyn, as first-generation Americans, and their marriage and life together. Naomi was born in 1931 into a large and vibrant Jewish extended family. She was six when her parents and sister moved into the same house that Naomi’s grandparents bought years earlier (having realized their entrepreneurial immigrant dreams). In 1951, Naomi married Kenneth Rivlin, whose family emigrated from Wales after World War II. Naomi and Ken moved to Long Island, where they would raise a family of their own. The reader learns of Naomi and Ken’s lives, business ventures/careers, involvement with the local synagogue, leisure activities, success stories, and low points in life. The reader also gets to know Naomi and Ken’s children and grandchildren through Naomi’s words. Ms. Rivlin also offers words of wisdom, and some Jewish and Yiddish teachings, for her grandchildren. With characteristic bluntness, Naomi’s My First Ninety Years is funny and engaging, and written in an easy-to-read style. This book is a must read for anyone wanting an inside view of an extended family’s stories, jokes, gossip, wisdom, traditions/lore, and what might be some tall tales!

The Talmud states, "In a world that lacks humanity, be human." In a world as untethered as ours has become, simply being human, a good person, is a measure of heroism. At a time when norms of civility are being routinely overwhelmed, it may be the only measure that matters. Mensch-Marks represents Rabbi Joshua Hammerman's personal Torah scroll—the sacred text of his experiences, the life lessons he has learned along his winding, circuitous journey. Mirroring 42 steps Israel wandered in the Wilderness, Hammerman offers 42 brief essays, several of which first appeared in The New York Times Magazine, organized into categories of character, or "mensch-marks," each one a stepping stone toward spiritual maturation. These essays span most of Rabbi Hammerman's life, revealing how he has striven to be a "mensch," a human of character, through every challenge. Mensch-Marks creates a brand-new genre. It is memoir as sacred story, as how-to book; a series of personal vignettes in dialogue with one another over the span of decades, resonating with eternal ideas that span centuries. It traces the author's own personal growth while providing a road map for people of all backgrounds seeking a life of moral vision. The wisdom is shared not from a pulpit on high, but rather from an unfolding story of a fellow traveler, one who has stumbled, failed, and persevered, struggling with the questions large and small. Through it all, Rabbi Hammerman has tried to live with dignity and grace, what he calls the "nobility of normalcy." He writes, "If by sharing what I've learned, I can add a modicum of generosity, honesty and human connection in a world overflowing with cruelty, loneliness and deceit, then I'll have done my job.' The essays cover crucial moments of failure and forgiveness, loving and letting go, finding deeper meaning in one's work, and holiness in the seemingly inconsequential moments of everyday life. Rabbi Hammerman, ever the optimist, believes that we can turn things around, one mensch at a time.

From the outset, the Windsor Jews have been active in the community, but in recent years, their shrinking numbers have forced major changes to ensure their survival.

Longlisted for the 2006 Man Booker Prize and hailed by "The Times" (London) as Ra work of genius, S Jacobson's exquisitely written, audaciously funny novel explores the countless questions of postwar Jewish identity.

Introducing To Learn and To Do: The Temple Management Manual, a 700+ page joint publication of the URJ Ida and Howard Wilkoff Department of Synagogue Management and the National Association of Temple Administrators designed to help demystify the enormously complex task of governing and administering a congregation in the 21st century. For ease of use The Temple Management Manual is fully indexed and tabbed in an updatable three-ring binder. It also includes a CD-ROM containing 22 useful forms.