Knowledge is power. The more we know, the better our capacity for understanding and empathy. Knowledge also gives us the power to learn from the past.
Books, films and art, are perfect ways to gain knowledge and understanding. One of the library’s main goals is to provide information on a wide variety of topics. Check out the items below for ways to broaden your knowledge on Jewish culture and history.
Art Exhibit
In celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month, we are hosting the winners of the Jessica Stein Memorial Student Art Contest sponsored by Temple Beth Shalom. The theme of this year’s contest is “Survival and Life After the Holocaust.” More than 100 students entered the contest. The winners were granted scholarships and were featured in The Spokesman-Review. The exhibit is displayed on the 1st floor of Central Library until May 22.
Films
View these films for free with your library card on Kanopy! There are over 30,000 titles and the search feature allows you to find films specific to a subject. The below selections were found by searching for Jewish American Heritage Month and Jewish Studies. Kanopy also has an entire collection dedicated to Jewish American Heritage Month.
Picture Books
Tía Fortuna’s new home by Ruth Behar, illustrated by Devon Holzwarth
Big Dreams Small Fish by Paula Cohen
Two New Years by Richard Ho, illustrated by Lynn Scurfield
Middle Grade
How to find what you’re not looking for by Veera Hiranandani
The Many Mysteries of the Finkel Family by Sarah Kapit
Two Tribes by Emily Bowen Cohen, with colors by Lark Pien
Adult Fiction
All Other Nights by Dara Horn
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
Kantika by Elizabeth Graver
Last Summer at the Golden Hotel by Elyssa Friedland
The Majority by Elizabeth L Silver
Sam by Allegra Goodman
Sons and Daughters by Chaim Grade, translated from Yiddish by Rose Waldman
Adult Nonfiction
America’s Jewish Women by Pamela S Nadell
The American Way by Helene Stapinski and Bonnie Siegler
Antisemitism in America by Senator Chuck Schumer with Josh Molofsky
Bad Jews by Emily Tamkin
Be Ready when the Luck Happens by Ina Garten
The Cost of Free Land by Rebecca Clarren
Ira Gershwin by Michael Owne
I Want You to Know We’re Still Here by Esther Safran Foer
KosherSoul by Michael W Twitty
My Name is Barbra by Barbra Streisand
Once We Were Slaves by Laura Arnold Leibman
Graphic Novels
The Jewish Deli by Ben Nadler
Maus by Art Spiegelman
We Are Not Strangers by Josh Tuininga
