Reading has become a rite when it comes to summer vacations. Did it all start with the beach read? The idea of basking under an umbrella in the sun, whiling away the hours reading the latest novel? Or is it just the idea of vacation in general, a block of time without a fixed schedule allowing for the pleasure of reading without interruption?
Either way, reading has become synonymous with summer, and IJN staff are no exception. Here are some of the books some of us are reading this summer.
Andrea Jacobs:
Fear and Trembling and The Sickness Unto Death by by Soren Kierkegaard. Works of the 19th century Danish philosopher exploring anxiety in the human condition.
My Life by Marc Chagall. A memoir by the famed Jewish artist.
Rabbi Hillel Goldberg:
Wisdom for Living: Rabbi Noach Weinberg on the Parashah by Rabbis Nechemia and Yitzchak Coopersmith. A compilation of the Aish HaTorah founder’s commentary on the weekly Torah portion.
The Rabbi of Buchenwald by Rafael Medoff. Rabbi Herschel Schachter, part of the liberation of Buchenwald, helped survivors transition back into life.
Larry Hankin:
Heartland by Lauren Brooke, about life on a horse ranch in Virginia.
Shana Goldberg:
Prairie Fires by Caroline Fraser. A biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the “Little House” series, that highlights some of the history and difficulties Wilder left out of her series.
Chris Leppek:
Jacobo’s Rainbow by David Hirschberg. Historical fiction that takes place during the student protest movement of the 1960s.
Carnivale: An American Grotesque by various authors. Essays on the HBO series.
Lucy Sullivan:
The Boy Who Followed his Father to Auschwitz by Jeremy Dronfield. The true story of a Viennese man who was deported to Auschwitz, and his son who followed him there.
What are you reading? Post in a comment below.
