After a decade as a political speechwriter—serving as head speechwriter for First Lady Michelle Obama, a senior speechwriter for President Barack Obama, and chief speechwriter for Hillary Clinton on her 2008 presidential campaign—Sarah Hurwitz decided to apply her skills as a communicator to writing a book . . . about Judaism. And no one is more surprised than she is. Amazon link

The daughter of a scientist who frequently noted her lack of “genius,” Angela Duckworth is now a celebrated researcher and professor. It was her early eye-opening stints in teaching, business consulting, and neuroscience that led to her hypothesis about what really drives success: not genius, but a unique combination of passion and long-term perseverance. Amazon link

Featured reading for live book club on Friday, March 27th @ 1:00PM

A haunting tale of human resilience in the face of unrelieved horror, Camus' novel about a bubonic plague ravaging the people of a North African coastal town is a classic of twentieth-century literature. Amazon link

Featured reading for live book club on Saturday, April 4 @ 4:00PM

Set in the London of the 1660s and of the early 21st century, The Weight of Ink is the interwoven tale of two women of remarkable intellect: Ester Velasquez, an emigrant from Amsterdam who is permitted to scribe for a blind rabbi just before the plague hits the city, and Helen Watt, an ailing historian with a love of Jewish history. Amazon link

Want even more books? This list of books which dates back to 1949 should have you covered for a while!

As Jews around the world engage in a seven-and-a-half year cycle of Daf Yomi, reading the entire Talmud one page per day, Tablet Magazine's new podcast, Take One, will offer a brief and evocative daily read of the daf, in just about 10 minutes. New episodes will be released daily Monday through Friday.

The On Being show and podcast was created by Krista Tippett inside a legacy media organization (American Public Media) in 2003.

It began with a controversial idea for a public radio conversation, Speaking of Faith, that would treat the religious and spiritual aspects of life as seriously as we treat politics and economics. On Being, as it has evolved, takes up the great questions of meaning in 21st-century lives and at the intersection of spiritual inquiry, science, social healing, and the arts. What does it mean to be human, how do we want to live, and who will we be to each other?

Unorthodox is a smart, fresh, fun weekly take on Jewish news and culture hosted by Mark Oppenheimer, Stephanie Butnick, and Liel Leibovitz.

Israelis, we all know, are a nation of storytellers. So in many ways our task was an easy one – to shine a spotlight on the little (and big!) dramas that comprise Israeli life. Our primary goal is to tell the story of a different, diverse Israel: To amplify voices that are rarely heard on the mainstream media, to showcase and celebrate the plurality of local communities and traditions.

Judaism has a deep and rich tradition of storytelling, of passing down stories from one generation to the next. To carry on that tradition, "Stories We Tell" will share a new story with you every Thursday.

Srugim is a drama series which deals with the life of religious bachelors from Jerusalem. The series offers a glace into the lives of intelligent and educated young males and females which can't find their place i the existing religious frames.

Filmed in Israel, Our Boys is based on the true events which led to the outbreak of war in Gaza. The series follows the investigation of Mohammed Abu Khdeir’s murder, and tells the story of all those involved, Jews and Arabs alike, whose lives were forever changed by these events.

Satire sketches, examining the history of the Jewish people since biblical times. Satirical parody of traditional Jewish texts hardly constitutes a new genre in Hebrew literature and culture. According to scholar Derek Penslar in Israel in History: The Jewish State in Comparative Perspective (Routledge, 2007), parody and humor about Jewish holy books were an integral part of Haskalah literature in the 19th century as well as of Jewish culture in the Zionist Yishuv from its earliest days.

Study the competing mitzvot of visiting the sick and guarding our health -- how we can navigate our obligation to sustain each other in a pandemic.

- Rabbi Sarah Bassin

Mishkan T'filah for Shabbat, courtesy of the Central Conference of American Rabbis

A facebook group all about learning Israeli poetry on line during Coronavirus stressful days. Made possible by the generosity of Rabbis, Synagogues, Jewish Federations and individuals who love and support Jewish learning. You will find here schedules and links. Source sheets and recorded lectures. Hopefully much more with time.