We Are More Than Our History: On Also Reading Books About Joy

As idiosyncratic who writes astir and reviews books, I’m pitched a batch of books from publicists connected a regular basis. As idiosyncratic who has written astir and reviewed books with Jewish themes, I americium besides pitched oregon sent books astir the Holocaust. Some dependable bad, immoderate dependable truly bad, and a fewer dependable reasonably decent. Sometimes I americium adjacent sent books astir the Holocaust — usually fabrication — without maine requesting them. To beryllium wholly honest, these often spell successful the recycling bin, unread.

I seldom work fabrication astir the Holocaust. I grew up with teachers who had stories of their own. I had classmates with grandparents who were survivors. We observed Yom Hashoa each twelvemonth successful schoolhouse and spent a full twelvemonth dedicated to studying the Holocaust successful depth. When I prime up a novel, this is not the genre I choose. When I bash work astir the Holocaust, I would overmuch alternatively work nonfiction due to the fact that determination are truthful galore stories that request to beryllium read. There are truthful galore stories that person not been told yet, and mightiness ne'er beryllium told. We don’t request fiction, we request facts. We request to carnivore witnesser to the lived experiences of these individuals. We request stories from survivors earlier determination are nary much left. I don’t privation a romanticized mentation of the Holocaust oregon of World War II, nor bash I privation an appropriative caller that is voyeuristic oregon not wholly factual. All that being said, I inactive take my depletion of nonfiction astir the Shoah cautiously and lone aft overmuch probe connected the book.

But here’s the thing: arsenic with immoderate marginalized group, we are much than our history. We are much than the worst parts of our history. We are much than the genocides, much than the ghettos, much than the camps. We are besides much than the uprisings. We are the absorption groups, we are the underground fighters, and we are the radical who chose to unrecorded a Jewish life, time aft time aft day, nether the menace of death. We are the families who rebuilt their lives and built sukkahs successful the backyard for Sukkot, we are the ones frying latkes for Hanukkah, dancing with wantonness connected Simchat Torah, and lighting the candles each Friday night. Even today: we are much than the quality stories of antisemitism. We are the stories of endurance and celebration. We are joy.

And yet I americium seldom pitched oregon sent those books of Jewish joy, of mundane Jewishness. (I person respective thoughts connected this, with the main 1 being that trauma sells, unfortunately, and that is simply a larger treatment to beryllium had successful a abstracted post).

We each privation to work divers books, I assume. I hope. We privation our children to person entree to divers books. We privation to thatch our children accurate, factual history. And that’s each good and good. In fact, it’s necessary. But it tin beryllium casual to support choosing books that absorption connected the struggles, the hardships, and the times of oppression. After all, that’s what’s connected the shelves successful the past section. While we each request to larn astir and cognize that history, conscionable arsenic important — if not much truthful — are the stories of celebration, of life, of joy.

The representation books astir celebrating Passover, oregon the books astir family, similar Tia Fortuna’s New Home: A Jewish Cuban Journey. The graphic novels that are cleanable for tucking successful an overnight campy bag, similar Yehudi Mercado’s Chunky. Immersive Jewish SFF similar The City Beautiful, Hereville, oregon Anya and the Dragon. Stories of divers Jewish characters similar Lucky Broken Girl oregon The Whole Story of Half a Girl. Or books that are conscionable downright amusive to read, similar It’s a Whole Spiel, Eight Nights of Flirting, and Gitty and Kvetch.

For adults, determination are the memoirs similar Koshersoul, Shanda, and My Jewish Year, to sanction a few. Naomi Ragen’s books are ever a bully prime (An Unorthodox Match and An Observant Wife are a large duology), arsenic good arsenic Ben Freeman’s Reclaiming Our Story. If you’re looking for thing with much accent connected societal justness themes, the anthology There Is Nothing So Whole arsenic a Broken Heart is great.

These books should besides beryllium considered erstwhile looking for Jewish books, not conscionable Maus, Anne Frank’s diary, and Night — each of which are inactive important stories, but are not the full story.

History is important and shouldn’t beryllium minimized oregon made softer. But it’s besides indispensable to see stories of joyousness and solemnisation alongside that history. Our lives are larger than immoderate 1 thing. The stories we work should bespeak that.

If you’re looking for adjacent much books to adhd to your list, cheque retired this station connected Jewish modern novels, and this station connected diverse Jewish children’s and YA books.