A largely successful prayer guide, geared mainly toward Reform Jewish audiences.
Salkin, a former congregational rabbi, provides an introduction to the Reform movement’s prayerbook.
The author, a widely recognized thinker in the Reform movement, has previously written 11 books, including the bestselling Putting God on the Guest List: How to Reclaim the Spiritual Meaning of Your Child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah (1992). His latest work, a guide to Jewish prayer, focuses on the Reform Jewish liturgy for Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath). In this volume, Salkin takes the reader through the Friday night and Saturday morning service, according to the practices of the current prayerbook of the Reform movement, Mishkan T’filah (the tabernacle of prayer). He offers an in-depth explanation of each prayer and blessing, including their histories and various meanings. Each section of the book ends with questions for readers to consider that help bring out the relevance of prayers or practices that might seem anachronistic or obscure: “What do you think of the idea of minyan—of needing a quorum for prayer? Is it necessary?” Salkin’s book is illustrative of the advances—and potential limitations—of worship practices in the Reform movement, which in recent decades has moved back toward prayers and customs that the movement in its inception had rejected, including the use of the Hebrew language and prayer garments. The book’s purpose appears to be to help liberal Jews find meaning in prayer and in the Shabbat service in particular, and it largely succeeds. That said, the author takes a maximalist and, in some ways, traditionalist approach to the service, which doesn’t always account for the variations in many Reform services (which the Mishkan T’filah itself does). On the other hand, this book is specifically intended to serve as a companion to the Reform prayerbook and doesn’t include the Musaf (additional) service that’s an integral part of traditional Jewish Sabbath worship. Even with these limitations, Salkin offers a work that will speak to many who seek deeper meaning in Jewish prayer.
A largely successful prayer guide, geared mainly toward Reform Jewish audiences.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2025
ISBN: 9780881236743
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Central Conference of American Rabbis Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A virtuoso performance and an ode to an undervalued medium created by two talented artists.
The veteran actor, comedian, and banjo player teams up with the acclaimed illustrator to create a unique book of cartoons that communicates their personalities.
Martin, also a prolific author, has always been intrigued by the cartoons strewn throughout the pages of the New Yorker. So when he was presented with the opportunity to work with Bliss, who has been a staff cartoonist at the magazine since 1997, he seized the moment. “The idea of a one-panel image with or without a caption mystified me,” he writes. “I felt like, yeah, sometimes I’m funny, but there are these other weird freaks who are actually funny.” Once the duo agreed to work together, they established their creative process, which consisted of working forward and backward: “Forwards was me conceiving of several cartoon images and captions, and Harry would select his favorites; backwards was Harry sending me sketched or fully drawn cartoons for dialogue or banners.” Sometimes, he writes, “the perfect joke occurs two seconds before deadline.” There are several cartoons depicting this method, including a humorous multipanel piece highlighting their first meeting called “They Meet,” in which Martin thinks to himself, “He’ll never be able to translate my delicate and finely honed droll notions.” In the next panel, Bliss thinks, “I’m sure he won’t understand that the comic art form is way more subtle than his blunt-force humor.” The team collaborated for a year and created 150 cartoons featuring an array of topics, “from dogs and cats to outer space and art museums.” A witty creation of a bovine family sitting down to a gourmet meal and one of Dumbo getting his comeuppance highlight the duo’s comedic talent. What also makes this project successful is the team’s keen understanding of human behavior as viewed through their unconventional comedic minds.
A virtuoso performance and an ode to an undervalued medium created by two talented artists.Pub Date: Nov. 17, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-26289-9
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Celadon Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2020
PERSPECTIVES
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
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