Humans of Judaism
Everyone Has a Story. What's Yours?
-
- $14.99
-
- $14.99
Publisher Description
Discover Humans of Judaism, a heartwarming collection of beautiful portraits and moving stories filled with joy, bravery, survival, community, perseverance, and unyielding hope—curated by the editor and founder of the popular social media brand @humansofjudaism.
Nikki Schreiber created Humans of Judaism as an online space where Jews around the world could gather and share positive and uplifting stories. She launched it six months after her father’s death as a way to find comfort in her mourning and to honor his memory. A mitzvah. Today, millions of visitors and followers find inspiration in its beautiful and moving profiles—two hundred of which are captured, in all their humanity, in this treasure of a book.
Here you’ll meet Dr. Howard Tucker, who at 101 years old was recognized by Guinness World Records as the oldest practicing physician. Lily Brasch, model and motivational speaker and the first person with muscular dystrophy to walk down the runway at New York Fashion Week unassisted. Josh Russ Tupper and Niki Russ Federman, the great-grandchildren of Joel Russ, who founded the iconic Jewish food mainstay Russ & Daughters. Ephraim Hertzano, creator of Rummikub. Ágnes Keleti, Holocaust survivor and, at age 103, the world’s oldest living Olympic champion. Nissim Black, a Hasidic recording artist. Sam Salz, a running back for Texas A&M and the only known Orthodox Jew in NCAA Division I football. Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie. Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor, writer, Nobel Peace Prize winner, and human rights activist.
There are inventors, writers, lawyers, artists, activists, survivors, comedians, the Righteous Among the Nations, and so many more. These are our stories.
Welcome to the family.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Schreiber debuts with a cheery and unique collection of "positive and uplifting Jewish stories" inspired by her Instagram account of the same name. Running the gamut from ordinary to famous, the 200 sections spotlight such artists, athletes, scientists, celebrities, and actors as Mattel cofounder Ruth Handler, who invented Barbie dolls; comedian Jerry Seinfeld (who's said that "the greatest Jewish tradition is to laugh"); and lesser known figures like Sam Salz, the Texas A&M wide receiver who's thought to be the only Orthodox Jew to play NCAA Division 1 college football. Also featured prominently are Jews who escaped the Holocaust and found new lives in Israel or America, several with the help of "incredible people who jeopardized their own lives to do the right thing." Schreiber leaves some stones unturned—Bess Myerson is celebrated as the first, and only, Jewish Miss America, but no reference is made to the highly public corruption scandal that caused her to resign from her post as New York City commissioner of cultural affairs in 1987—though the book's general conceit, that Jews have turned "our pain into perseverance... providing some light in the darkness," makes for an uplifting message during a moment of rising antisemitism. The result is an upbeat celebration of the diversity of Jewish life around the world.
