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Sunday, October 25, 7:30pm
The Newish Jewish Encyclopedia:
From Abraham to Zabar’s and Everything in Between
(Artisan, 2019)

ABOUT THE BOOK:
For anyone who has politely turned down offers from a well meaning aunt of all ten plus volumes of the Jewish Encyclopedia, the hosts of Tablet Magazine’s “Orthodox” podcast have created a compact, compelling, and hilarious solution. The Newish Jewish Encyclopedia, despite only comprising one volume, is expansive and comprehensive in what it covers. Flipping to a random page, one can learn about the 1976 raid on Entebbe, the basics of how eruvs operate to make Shabbat easier for religious Jews, and the Jewish roots of Esperanto, a constructed language.
The authors cleverly bring in images and graphics that transform the traditional encyclopedia experience into something technicolor. Entries are punctuated with a clever concoction of wit, seriousness and academic curiosity. Open up a page and see what you find out — who knew that the character of Bugs Bunny was allegedly inspired by Groucho Marx? The authors have created the improbable: the encyclopedia that you might actually leaf through and the coffee table that not only adorns but also educates.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Stephanie Butnick is the deputy editor of Tablet and has written for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. She has a bachelor’s degree in religion from Duke and a master’s in religious studies from NYU. She lives in New York with her husband and their cat, Cat Stevens.
Liel Leibovitz is a senior writer for Tablet and the author of several books, including, most recently, A Broken Hallelujah, a spiritual biography of Leonard Cohen. He has a Ph.D. in video games from Columbia, a fact that makes his seven-year-old self very happy. He lives in New York with his wife and their two children.
BOOK: $36 for one copy of The Newish Jewish Encyclopedia
Generously underwritten by the Rubens Family Foundation