Library & Film Club
Jewish Books Read and Discussed in the Library
for Your Consideration
1. The Golem and the Jinni — Helene Wecker (486 pages)
Historical fantasy about a Jewish golem and an Arab jinni who meet in immigrant New York at the turn of the 20th century.
2. The Hidden Palace — Helene Wecker (464 pages)
Sequel to The Golem and the Jinni, continuing their story in a richly imagined magical New York.
3. Kantika — Elizabeth Graver (384 pages)
A multigenerational Sephardic family saga spanning the Ottoman Empire, Spain, Cuba, and New York.
4. The Last Shtetl — Max Gross (320 pages)
A satirical novel about a Polish shtetl that somehow escapes the Holocaust and suddenly encounters the modern world.
5. What Makes Sammy Run? — Budd Schulberg (303 pages)
A classic novel about ambition, Hollywood, and the moral compromises of success.
6. Hostage — Eli Sharabi (about 320 pages)
A memoir by an Israeli hostage held by Hamas, recounting captivity, survival, and its aftermath.
7. Spies of No Country — Matti Friedman (272 pages)
The true story of the undercover Jewish spies who helped create the intelligence network that became Israel's.
8. Tough Jews — Rich Cohen (304 pages)
A history of Jewish organized crime in America and its colorful, complicated figures.
9. Catch the Jew! — Tuvia Tenenbom (448 pages)
A provocative travel memoir exploring Israel, the West Bank, and competing narratives.
10. Here All Along — Sarah Hurwitz (320 pages)
A memoir about rediscovering Judaism through its philosophy, ethics, and traditions.
11. People Love Dead Jews — Dara Horn (304 pages)
Essays examining antisemitism, Jewish memory, and why Jewish lives are often valued less than Jewish tragedy.
12. The Matchmaker's Gift — Lynda Cohen Loigman (320 pages)
A family-law attorney discovers the legacy of her grandmother, a gifted Jewish matchmaker.
13. The Periodic Table — Primo Levi (240 pages)
A masterpiece combining memoir and fiction through stories inspired by the chemical elements.
14. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow — Gabrielle Zevin (416 pages)
A novel about friendship, creativity, and the lifelong partnership of two video game designers.
15. The Familiar — Leigh Bardugo (400 pages)
Historical fantasy set in Inquisition-era Spain about a young woman with hidden magical powers.
16. People of the Book — Geraldine Brooks (384 pages)
A historical novel tracing the centuries-long journey of the Sarajevo Haggadah.
17. Autocorrect — Etgar Keret (224 pages)
A collection of surreal, witty short stories exploring AI, technology, love, grief, and what makes us human.
18. Long Island Compromise — Taffy Brodesser-Akner (464 pages)
A darkly funny family saga about the lasting effects of a kidnapping on a wealthy Jewish family over several generations.
19. Goodbye, Columbus and Five Short Stories — Philip Roth (304 pages)
Roth's acclaimed debut collection, featuring sharp, often funny stories about Jewish identity, class, assimilation, family, and ambition in postwar America.
20. The Last Kings of Shanghai — Jonathan Kaufman (368 pages)
A work of narrative nonfiction about the rival Sassoon and Kadoorie family dynasties, whose business empires helped shape modern Shanghai.
21. As a Jew — Sarah Hurwitz
An exploration of how antisemitism has shaped Jewish identity and how Jews can reclaim Jewish history, tradition, and identity on their own terms.