A rare combination of cookbook and theological commentary, both visually stunning and profound.
Harper explores the Torah through imaginative challah creations.
“Challah is no ordinary bread,” writes the author, a rabbi, “it is rich with religious and spiritual resonance, as well as powerful sensory memories that are often connected to community and culture.” As described in the book’s introduction, which surveys the long history of the eggy, yeasty, braided bread throughout Jewish history, challah has long been a staple of Jewish cultures throughout the diaspora. By the 18th century, Ukrainian Jews were baking “increasingly elaborate challah shapes for different holidays” (birds and ladders for the pre-Yom Kippur fast, hands for Hoshana Rabbah, and keys for the Shabbat after Pesach), while Moroccan Jews were embedding whole eggs in a “thin ‘cage’ of dough” to represent Haman’s evil eye during Purim. After exploring this rich legacy, the bulk of the book takes readers through the Torah, with individual chapters devoted to Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, respectively. The major stories from these biblical books are given brief synopses, along with learned commentary from Harper that balances astute scholarship (backed by hundreds of citations) and exegesis with applications to daily life. An assistant rabbi at Temple Beth Elohim in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with an advanced degree in Hebrew literature, the author is a talented scholar and teacher, both strengths on full display as she distills complex, theologically dense material into an easy-to-read format. While this narrative on its own makes for a thoughtful book, the triumph of this volume lies in its highlighting of the gorgeous, creative interpretative bread that accompanies each story. While on the surface, Harper admits, “Challah dough may have some limits as an artistic medium,” the variety, symbolism, and beauty of the loaves are the undeniable stars of the book, displayed in full-page, high-quality glossy photographs. The book’s final section includes tips on baking and shaping challah, enabling readers to learn more about the Torah while participating in “Floury Fun.”
A rare combination of cookbook and theological commentary, both visually stunning and profound.Pub Date: Nov. 6, 2023
ISBN: 9780881233797
Page Count: 321
Publisher: Central Conference of American Rabbis Press
Review Posted Online: Oct. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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