Christmas Books

The following text made me rethink my plans to give this book to my third-grade nephew: "A few years after Nicholas was ordained bishop, a man who kept an inn on the outskirts of the city murdered three youths and then hid them in a tub of brine...". Not exactly bedtime story material. So, I'll set it aside to give to him when he is a bit older. In the mean time, I did give him Paul Prokop's book The True Story of Santa Claus which I think is more appropriate for a younger audience.

A wonderful family keepsake. Well written and well presented in a beautifully artistic work. Something to read to children. An answer to a life long question. Is Santa Claus real? Or Saint Nicholas? Wonderful!

Opening with the traditional version of the beloved poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas" renowned children's book author Marianna Mayer seques into the life of St. Nicholas, the saint whose legendary generosity was the genesis for Santa Claus.

St. Nicholas, who lived during the fourth century in the area that is now known as Turkey, was the child of practicing Christians who died when Nicholas was but a boy. Fortunately, they were people of wealth so the child was left with a handsome inheritance which it is said he used to help others.

According to stories that have grown up around the saint when he was still a boy he overheard villagers in the marketplace discussing a family that was destitute, so impoverished that three daughters were to be sold into slavery.

That night young Nicholas stealthily approached the family's home and threw a bag of gold in through an open window. So astounded was the man to find this amazing gift that he sat by the window each night hoping to see his benefactor.

When he did catch Nicholas leaving another bag of gold the man wanted to know how he could repay him. The boy only asked that the man never tell who had helped him.

Later, as an adult, Nicholas was elected Bishop of Myra and continued his selfless generosity which won him legions of followers.

Illustrating her story with reproductions of paintings by some of the world's greatest artists, including Tintoretto and Fra Angelico, Ms. Mayer has created a keepsake Christmas book that families will enjoy season after season.

- Gail Cooke

How I wish I'd had this book when I was a child. That certainly would have cleared the Santa question up for me in good order.

What is so wonderful about this book is that it is a biography of St. Nicholas, the bishop who was later canonized as the Patron Saint of Children. Santa Claus is a variation of the name Saint Nicholas. In Dutch, St. Nicholas is translated as Sinterklaas.

It is a beautifully illustrated work that shows how the tradition of Santa Claus caught on and is a book families are sure to enjoy.

Bob Litak has a very special way of touching one's heart. It must be his special knowledge and relationship with "Santa". This is a must read. Simple. Moving. It would make a fabulous Christmas gift!

This book will put you in the Christmas mood in July. It made me remember a more innocent time of life.

A wonderful and heartwarming story about a small town Santa and his charming Mrs. Claus. This book can put a smile on the grinch's face and a hum in the bahhumbug of Mr. Scrooge. A must read to "get you in the Christmas spirit".

The excitement of Christmas fills your heart as the author Bob Litak shares his heart- felt story with you. Most of us can relate to getting a job which was not one you asked for nor something you even wanted, but somehow turned out to be a blessing in disquise. Laughter and sadness tug at your heart strings as a friendship forms such a strong bond. Helps one to understand how much you can grow with in yourself. But most of all, it helps put the children back in our lives and makes us once again "Believe in Santa" If you enjoy reading a heart-felt story than I highly recomend this fantastic book.

This is another anthology of five Christmas stories with selected Regency authors.

THE CHRISTMAS GHOST
Sandra Heath's "The Christmas Ghost" was a pleasant enough read with a touch of the supernatural as Rebecca Winterbourne tries to recover from the death of her husband Edward and her father. Edward died two years ago but Rebecca still hadn't recovered; however she knows she must contract a marriage so that she no longer has to depend on her brother Clifford and his wife Margaret, and she has received an offer from Sir Oliver Willoughby, a friend of her father's. Sir Oliver wants her to attend an event but she is concerned that Piers Winterbourne will be there - Piers inherited the title after the death of her husband. She used to have a friendship with Piers but after her marriage that died and she dislikes him.

However Rebecca starts to see some strange things, papers get moved about that she is working on and she sees a man who looks very like her father. Eventually she is thrown together with Piers Winterbourne and he thinks she must be hallucinating. But is there more to Rebecca's strange behaviour? They find themselves having to talk to each other about past events and uncovering misunderstandings.

This was a pleasant enough story although some might not like the supernatural element. In some ways there were few surprises in the story but Rebecca and Piers were reasonable characters, if both a little blind to their own behaviour and feelings.

THE RAKE'S CHRISTMAS
I enjoyed Edith Layton's story "The Rake's Christmas" where new Viscount Ian Hunt finds himself attending a house party with Lord Shelton, a well-known rake. Ian himself is beginning to get a name as a rake and is unsure whether he wants that reputation. Lord Shelton tells him about a particular young women he is planning to seduce at the house party but on the way there is waylaid and Ian goes on alone.

Eve Thomkins is a poor relation, a woman who is overlooked by others at the house party. However Viscount Hunt soon realises she is the woman that Lord Shelton has described and he tries to get to know her so that he can warn her what to avoid in the rake. However as time passes and they get to know each other Hunt finds himself feeling more for her than he should. The resolution at the end, when Shelton arrives at the party, was hardly unexpected but it was an enjoyable story and hero and heroine were both good characters in their own way.

LADY BOUNTIFUL
Laura Matthews' story features Drucilla Carruthers who has been looking after the estate of her father, who has dementia, for many years. She's been trying to put off her father's solicitor who might declare her father incompetent so that Drucilla and her companion, Miss Script, lose their home to her father's heir, Lord Meacham. When Lord Meacham arrives following a letter from the solicitor Drucilla is careful to show him all the work that she has been doing and to convince him of its importance. However Meacham begins to discover that Drucilla may be more important to him than he had previously thought and that she is under a false impression of his style of landownership.

There isn't actually very much plot in this story, it is more a description of how Drucilla shows Meacham the work she has been doing and tries to cover up her father's unfortunate behaviour. Meacham is an amiable man and a good landlord and the reader is in no doubt that he will do the right thing. Still it's pleasant enough and a light read.

A MUMMER'S PLAY
Jo Beverley, a well-known name in this genre, writes about Miss Justina Travers whose husband died three years before. She blames Lucky Jack Beaufort, the Duke of Cranmoore and formerly her husband Simon's commanding officer, for his death - Jack Beaufort was the only survivor of an ambush when fighting Napoleon in Spain. She decides to go to Jack Beaufort's house and find evidence that he was spying for the French all along, surely the reason he survived, and so enters the duke's house with a band of mummers as her disguise.

She starts looking for evidence in his library and is soon discovered. They end up talking and, although Jack doesn't know who she is, he doesn't believe her cover story. Still they get talking and he tells her a little about the events in the war and eventually she seduces him in order to get the truth out of him. However the truth isn't necessarily what she was expecting and Jack's guilt might be for reasons other than she thought.

This is well written although Justina's behaviour seems very odd, particularly her seduction of Jack. It's a decent read and has some interesting insights into the fighting on the Peninsular and the ways in which officers and men related to each other.

THE SURPRISE PARTY
Mary Balogh continues to write with unrivalled mastery. I've become acquainted with a lot of her short stories and I have been very pleasantly surprised at how good they are. Often authors of full length novels can't write good short stories, or vice versa, by Mary Balogh, with one or two exceptions, seems to be able to excel at both. Her trick with her short stories is not to bite off too much plot but instead to focus on a small event and the way in which it shapes characters. As with many of her other short stories, the hero and heroine here have known each other a long time and are estranged. This story, similar in theme to many of her others, has the Christmas season and the traditional activities functioning as a turning point in various people's lives and bringing healing and rapprochement between them.

This story, entitled "The Surprise Party", begins through the eyes of three young children, orphans living with a nurse and mourning their parents. Christmas is approaching but Nurse has told them they can't celebrate it as they're in mourning. However when their aunt and uncle arrive things start to change. The aunt and uncle aren't blood relatives - Aunt Ursula, the widow Lady Carlyle was sister to the children's father and Uncle Timothy, otherwise known as Lord Morsey, was brother to the children's mother. The children's parents' marriage actually cause the breaking of the betrothal between Ursula and Timothy nine years before and Ursula promptly married someone else as an escape - one that didn't lead her to marital happiness. The two have avoided each other for years and yet they are brought together as they have responded to letters about the children's welfare and have come to each offer them a home.

The Christmas magic that Mary Balogh weaves with such mastery catches both children and adults and as they all spend time together they begin to understand anew what is important in life.

In conclusion, this is a better-than-average collection of stories and is pleasant reading at Christmas time but none of them are brilliant and I'm not sure this book will stay on my Keeper shelf. However it's one that many will enjoy and the variety of the stories adds to its charm.

(BTW, Moore's review is of the wrong book.)

Beverley's story left me a little unsatisfied, probably because this couple admits they may never truly love each other. It's a great story otherwise, and while their admission rings true, it's still something of a letdown.

I don't consider this one of Balogh's best, but it's still a powerful read. Although Ursula can be annoyingly waspish at first, the children turn coal into diamonds.

Matthews' story is the perhaps the weakest of the bunch because it is relatively undemanding and the romance is not altogether convincing. Still it's a pleasurable read.

This is possibly one of Layton's best stories, full of interesting characters, misinterpreted intentions, and a most unusual matchmaker.

The resolution of Heath's story comes too quickly, and the ghost is perhaps too obvious, but the romance is a powerful one and the inherent emotions capture the reader.

Definitely an anthology to read. In fact, this is my second reading of this book, and it's still enjoyable.

Dinner At Grillion's by Sandra Heath Shows us the beauty of rekindled passion when an estranged husband and wife are reunited. Christmas Magic by Emma Lange Proves how magical Christmas can be when a beautiful young widow is surprised with the visit of an old beau. The Best Gift by Mary Balogh A lonely schoolmistress who celebrates Christmas for the first time and receives the best gift of all, love. Christmas Knight by Emily Hendrickson Two sisters share one wish for the Yuletide, a knight to rescue them from their somber lives. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear by Sheila Walsh. Weves an intriguing triangle of a French viscountess, a sinister earl who desires her, and the dashing nobleman who will vie for her honor.

I am working my way through a little horde of Regency Christmas anthologies, savouring them one at a time. I picked this one up whilst on holiday recently and just read it; what a pleasure it was! I don't ordinarly seek out short stories as a matter of course but I am very fond of this particular little mini sub-genre. Three of the contributions stood out for me.

"The Rake's Christmas" by Edith Layton is the poignant story of a young man, back from the Peninsular wars, saddened and a little self loathing, who throws himself into some half-hearted rakery in order to put the wars behind him. He is taken up by a truly accomplished rake, Lord Shelton. During a Christmas house party, the elder rake plays deus ex machina to young Ian, Viscount Hunt in order to bring him together with Miss Eve Thompkins. Eve is the daughter Shelton never had - the offspring of his true life-long secret and unrequited love. So, he stands in an almost fatherly way over Hunt, helping him to overcome his sombre loneliness and sad boyhood in making a match for him and Eve. Edith Layton is a favourite of mine and she packs a lot of emotion into just a few short pages.

Jo Beverley is a writer whose books I have been collecting with the aim of indulging myself. Why she and Layton and Balogh are not published in the UK is beyone my comprehension - such a shame! I was delighted with her contribution to this anthology. "A Mummer's Play" is the story of Col "Lucky Jack" Beaufort, by default the new Duke of Cranmoore. Justina Travers lost her fiance in the Peninsula when he was under the command of his close friend, Jack. Justina has some reason to suspect that Cranmoore may have been a traitor and, therefore, the cause of her fiance's death. She insinuates herself into Jack's first Christmas house party as the new duke by hiding herself amongst the mummers who come to perform. Her aim is to expose him as a traitor and murderer. The story takes place during the course of just one evening and, in just a few intense, emotional pages, Jo Beverley brings an almost unbearably high degree of tension and emotion as these two lonely, hurt but passionate people find an extraordinary and unexpected love and mutual redemption. Simply excellent.

Mary Balogh's contribution is, as always, as near to perfection as you can get. Hers is the story of three young orphaned children whose wastrel parents largely ignored them. Their maternal uncle, Viscount Morsey, and paternal aunt, Lady Carlyle, reluctantly leave London to come to the depths of the countryside to "do their duty" and make some half-hearted provision for their upbringing. It emerges that the two adults were once engaged but huge family problems, anger and recriminations tore them apart. The story is largely told through the eyes of the children and the theme of the story, as Lady Carlyle discovers, is that Christmas is about birth, parenthood, love, hope and commitment. In the context of this very brief piece, all five players find themselves turned into a loving family. Mary Balogh is pure magic. She writes such poignant, moving and emotional stories which are refined to pure gold. Wonderful.

Do find yourself a second hand copy of this anthology; reading it is simply a pleasure worth the effort.

First off I bought this because I wanted to reach the $25 Free Shipping mark. I thought it would be a good filler. Now I think that this was one of the best purchases I have made on Amazon!

I have always wanted to set aside a quiet time with God daily and this has helped me achieve this goal. It starts with a weekly theme to think about and there is a short scripture for you to meditate on.

I had gone to Jesuit schools all my life and I was very lucky to have chosen this book, because it maintains the ideals I had grown up to believing.

This is a wonderful way to start your day and has helped me in my walk with God. Every morning I wake up, I dedicate 10-15 minutes to prayer and this has helped me develop this habit. This was my first prayer book, and I ended up buying the prayer book for 2009 too, just like the last reviewer.

Since this book is already past, I would highly recommend Sacred Space for Lent 2009 (Paperback) or even Sacred Space: The Prayer Book 2009 (Paperback). I promise you that you wont regret this purchase.

Sacred Space for Advent and the Christmas Season 2008-2009 is a beautiful, easy read meditational book. It has practical, real-life reflections to think about each day that will foster your relationship with God. I loved it so much that I already ordered Sacred Space for Lent 2009 Sacred Space for Lent 2009 and Sacred Space: The Prayer Book 2009 Sacred Space: The Prayer Book 2009 You will not be disappointed!

This was a great little devotional to share with our life group. We made an advent wreath and the devotions helped us center our thoughts on God during the crazy month of December.

This little book has a big impact on how I view Advent & Christmas. It gently refocuses you to what the Season is really about and what our priorities in life should be--not material but Peace, Love, Hope, Joy and Forgiveness. The fact that it only takes a few minutes a day is a definite plus yet the reading stays with you the entire day--really makes you think. Great little book. I recommend it to anyone looking for that "something" that's missing in their lives.

This is an awesome book -- particularly to explain to young people what Christmas is about!

Written by Lois Shope, Ray Shope and illustrated by Michael White, Sandy Claws is a rhyming picturebook about the true meaning of Christmas. When a lonely orphan kitten defends a struggling mouse family from predators, they invite her to share their home - the Chris Mouse tree. Together, kitten and mouse are given the amazing opportunity to witness the birth of baby Jesus, and warm him in his sleep, while other animals decorate the Chris Mouse tree in his honor. An imaginative and warmhearted Christmas story, illustrated in a gently minimalist style.

Its a lovely little book -- nice images, sweet sort of story, good poetry. Really nice for younger children -- the pictures show the story very well and coincide with the words nicely. Younger kids can really *see* what's going on as you read to them, or they read to themselves with it. Would make a fantastic gift for kids.

This is a book that touches the child in all of us. The characters, Chris and Sandy, express the true meaning of Christmas. It is fun to read to your children, and the warmth and spirit with which it is written will evoke pleasure in all who read it.

This book was written more than a decade after "Nightmare Before Christmas" and so the theme is not a new one, but the rhymes and illustrations are superb [there is so much detail on each page, on the back paper cover and inside the front cover] and well worth the addition to your holiday library.
I bought many copies at Powell's Bookstore in Portland for a very reduced price; every year I give a new Christmas book to my grandchildren and they enjoyed this book tremendously. I also bought them "Good-Night Goon" - it's become my 3 year old granddaughter's favorite book regardless of the season! Lemony Snicket's "The Lump of Coal" is also a great off kilter addition to your Christmas selections, if your tastes run in that direction.

I purchased this book along with several others along the same vane for my Grand Daughters. age 2 and 4 to eventually enjoy as I know they will. I am their Gran Pa and are really looking forward to reading it to them when they are old enough. Great illustrations which go great with a twist of the tale....

I LOVE THE ART OF GRIS GRIMLY!!!!!!!!!!!!I HAVE ALL HIS BOOKS!!!!!THIS ONE IS THE BEST SO FAR!!!!!CHILDREN WILL ALSO LOVE IT!!!!IT IS A BOOK FOR ALL AGES!!!!!!

Santa Claws offers weary holiday readers a gruesome Nightmare Before Christmas like alternative to the standard holiday fare. In this little tale we meet Mack & Zack two eager monster children preparing for Christmas and Santa (in his blood red suite and snake in his boot) will be along shortly. These boys are prepared, they've hung their smelly socks by the fire with care, the oozing blistertoe is hung, and the dead pine trees decorated and ready to go! Young readers will love this morbid little tale fully of macabre Christmas cheer...the only drawback is that it's extremely brief...there is minimal text and while the art is lovingly drawn and detail rich, the nearly monochromatic watercolor illustrations may not be well received by younger readers...but I think older kids (4-8) will get a kick out of this and it's something that beginner readers should have no trouble with at all. An added bonus are the "ads" on the endpapers...for gruesome things like Ear Wax Furniture Polish, Sludge Hair Dressing for Men, and Dog Breath Mouth Wash...it's a cute touch that I think kids will really enjoy! I give it four stars...I simply wish there was more of this gruesome little holiday story!

Do you like books about dogs? If you do read Santa Paws Come Home and find out how he saves city people from every day mistakes. Huh? You may ask. He's a sensitive dog who helps people. But when the Callahans go on a vacation, he gets stolen by...... I'm not telling! They plan to drug and sell him! When he escapes he's in an unknown city! Will he get home? Will he get caught? Will he escape? Find out in this book. Use your mind and go on adventures with Santa Paws. Recommended for dog lovers.

by
Mickey

Santa Paw's rescue of a little boy is the top story on the news, but who ever knew it could lead to trouble?
When two local criminals go to drastic measures to steal Santa paws from his family's car the news programs go from reporting his amazing rescue to his horrible disappearance. Then Santa Paws wakes up in a strange car and, knowing he has to get home, escapes in the middle of a highway in New York City.
What with the dangers of cars, trains, and a few mean people, it's hard to believe that Santa Paws will ever make his way home by Christmas. But even when he's injured, lost, and fighting to get home he can't avoid helping many more people on his way.
With the help of a little black kitten who befriends him, will Santa Paws make it home for the holidays?

Santa Paws Come home, by Nicholas Edwards, is a very good book to read around the holidays, or just if your lounging on the beach. When the hero dog Santa Paws gets stolen and escapes, he finds himself in busy New York City. To make matters worse, Christmas is right around the corner! Can the beloved dog return to his family in Oceanport in time for Christmas?

This is an excellent sequel in the series of Santa Paws. The book starts out with Santa Paws' usual helpful rescue. This time the rescue is of a small boy, which in turn ends up on the TV news program. Santa Paws usual act of heroism gets him stolen by 2 local thugs, who are acting on the part of a rich man. Santa Paws manages to escape, but is bumbarded by traffic hazzards and the lost scent of his family and home. He continues to try to locate his home berrings, but as he does, he finds himself in one problem after another helping and saving a variety of different people along the way. Tired, injured, and hurt, Santa paws continues to scense his way home coming across and meeting a black kitten. This young kitten chooses to befriend Santa Paws and follows him until he finally mades his way home to the Callahans.

This is a great santa collection, the charts are in full color, very easy to read.

You should to have it!

This is, so far, the best collection of Santas and Father Christmases I have yet encountered. The charts are color coded, and there are a great variety of designs. This is perfect for someone who knows a collector of all that is Father Christmas! I have even kept several to display myself.

Great book for all the cross-stisches crazy, like me. Sorry for my englis

This is one of my favorite cross-stitch books. I have already stitched 3 of the Santas from it and hope to eventually stitch them all. The photography is excellent and the charts are very well done. Along with each photo is some history about the various renderings of Santa. It is a great book for stitchers and Santa collectors alike!!!

I got this book years ago and it has been a tradition to read it to my kids every Christmas. The ideas and art work are very clever (and not predictable). It keeps the mischief and wonder of Santa alive! Couldn't find extra copies of it anywhere until I recently found a couple copies on Amazon. Great book for kids from 5 to 90. Well worth getting this keepsake. You'll enjoy it for years to come!

This is a great book to leave on your coffee table during the Christmas season. It gives definitions of words as they would pertain to Santa Claus' life along with a painting for each. I put it out every Christmas and find myself leafing through it and smiling.

This book offers a wonderfully warped walk through the alphabet, exposing more of Santa's odd predilections with each letter. The drawings are delightful and the text is, well, odd. (Example for the letter B, accompanied by a cute illustration of a baboon - "BOTTOM: in Africa there are nasty monkeys who display their bottoms to Santa. This is neither very nice nor very polite. That's why they never get presents.") This combines for a joyfully quirky look at Santa in contrast to the normally maudlin treacle written about Nick.

I flipped through a friend's copy of this book and immediately had to search for more copies. One for myself, and one for those within my circle of friends that I feel can fully appreciate its humor. (I know what they're getting for Christmas!)

This book was written by G. Solotareff and was translated from French. It could be said that it has lost something in translation, or like me, you can say that it's funny because it's strange...a strangeness that comes directly from a language barrier that was broken.

This book takes children from A-Z through Santa's life (personal and otherwise) with little quips of information and brilliantly illustrated pictures that sometimes leaves you baffled and befuddled, but always smiling!

Check it out!

In the old days - meaning pre-Internet - when someone had a question about Judaism or Jewish practice they would inquire of their rabbi either in person or in written form. Of course, sometimes the rabbi did not respond (or at least not in a timely fashion) and sometimes the rabbi did not know the answer and would have to send correspondence to another sage. Furthermore, many questions may have been too embarrassing or personal to pose to the rabbi. Many non-Jews may not have had the resources to have their questions answered. Many questions may have been too controversial to raise. All of this changed because of the Web and the anonymity of the e-mail message.

While there are several "Ask the Rabbi" sites on the Web, the most popular is hosted by a layman - just a regular guy (albeit a synagogue leader) named Gil Mann. Several years ago Mann began answering a range of queries on an America Online forum about Judaism. This led to thousands of questions pouring in via e-mail sent to Mann at his BeingJewish.org website. While not a rabbi, Mann serves as something of a cross between an advice columnist and a sage for the everyman. He defines himself as an "open-minded committed Jew" and explains that the e-mail messages he was receiving became part of a "personal evolution" in his post-business world life. Mann is also the author of How to Get More Out of Being Jewish Even If... and the publisher/editor of "Being Jewish" newsletter.

In Sex, God, Christmas & Jews, the best e-mail questions are compiled into three broad sections - ethics, spirituality, and peoplehood - serving as Mann's "trinity" of the Jewish faith. He fields questions ranging from the serious ("Can Jews donate their organs" and "Why does Judaism discriminate against woman") to the downright silly ("Do the Orthodox have sex through a hole in a sheet?"). Whether serious or silly however, these are the questions that are on people's minds and Mann has provided the forum to answer the inquisitive and the spiritually seeking. At the end of each chapter are a couple pages titled "Concluding Thoughts to Copy, Cut, Paste, and Save" serving as a summary of the discussions, as well as directions where one may turn for further information and resources.

In the introduction, Mann opens with a candid, intimate letter from a distraught woman whom he terms "a female Job." This missive serves to show that Mann is more than just posing as the Jewish Ask-Jeeves on the Web. Average people have sought him out as a patient listener although he is not a spiritual leader or psychologist. This is the magic of Cyberspace. Indeed, Mann has created a virtual community with passionate conversations taking place.

One subject in the book that raises much heated discussion is about whether it is humane for Jews to ritually circumcise their sons. While the controversy surrounding this topic is no stranger to the Web, Mann successfully contains it in a considerate, thought-provoking manner (although I'm sure some of the less respectful messages were edited out). Following his response, and that of others, to the Jewish man not willing
to circumcise his [hypothetical] son, Mann includes information from a leading Orthodox rabbi, Yitz Greenberg, for clarification and a rabbinic perspective. The author is very careful to give fair and accurate responses to his inquirers, and it is evident that he has a long list of rabbis and scholars to consult before weighing in with his responses.

This book might best be characterized as The Jewish Book of Why packaged with feedback and virtual discussions for each question raised. The topics - from theological doubt and interfaith relations to morality and anti-Semitism - serve as great fodder for book discussion groups and introduction to Judaism classes. Mann succeeds at making Judaism relevant to the masses. With this book, he has proclaimed himself to be the guy to answer those questions everyone has about Judaism and Jews but were afraid to ask.

As a Christian, this book gave me an intimate glimpse into Jewish faith and traditions. It answered questions that as a non-Jew I would not have ever dared to ask. As I read Gil's responses to the email from both Jews and non-Jews, it became clear that regardless of the faith we choose, we all grapple with some of the same difficult questions. This book is a bridge that reaffirms and connects us all.

The pages of Sex,God,Christmas & Jews are filled with honest, beautiful, sometimes heartbreaking, but always encouraging discussions that demand answers. I found personal relevance in topics such as body piercing and tattoos, interfaith dating, having Christmas trees and Jews praying in Christ's name. Gil has found a way to let his readers feel safe in their questions and doubts, and is able to respond with compassion and great wisdom.

I actually read a review of this book in the Baltimore Jewish Times (a "must read" recommendation by one of the BJT staff members).

This book is humorous, poignant, controversial, thought-provoking and hard to put down. I'm amazed at the honesty of the contributors and how this book is so relevant today: to all age groups, all religions--just all of humanity.

As a former Roman Catholic, now a Jew by Choice (oh, and thank you [to the author] for your slant on that term---I too believe it is beautiful!), this book is a valuable resource to help get things back into perspective should my perspective go a little awry. This book speaks to everybody--and to me in a very personal way.

A "must read"? Yes, absolutely!

There is no better example of how the internet can bring us closer to each other through the sharing of honest, meaningful and often difficult conversations than in Gil Mann's new book "Sex, God, Christmas and Jews." For in its pages lies a broad range of questions, doubts, issues and opinions about topics that will fascinate Jews and non-Jews alike.
Questions like: "Can I be angry with God? Why does Judaism discrimate against women? Can I pray to Jesus if I am Jewish? and Will Jews burn in Hell?" are just a few of the many subjects that are openly discussed through a collection of reader emails.

This book is a wonderful opportunity for people of all faiths to get an "insider's view" about Judaism and learn about Jewish faith, culture, family, spirituality, ethics and everyday living. It is a "must read" for Jewish lay leaders and professionals as well.

Thank you, Gil Mann, for giving us such a treasure!

Amy Hirshberg Lederman, author of "To Life! Jewish Reflections on Everyday Living"