NEW ACQUISITIONS
We’re continuing to add new books to the collection. These books along with books purchased in the last year can be found on the New Acquisitions shelf to the right as you enter the library.
Recent additions include:
Sons and Daughters: A Novel by Chaim Grade (Author), Rose Waldman (Translator from the Yiddish) Originally serialized in the 1960s and 1970s in New York–based Yiddish newspapers, Sons and Daughters is a precious glimpse of a way of life that is no longer—the rich Yiddish culture of Poland and Lithuania that the Holocaust would eradicate. Named Best Historical Fiction Book of 2025 by The New York Times
Mahjong: A Chinese Game and the Making of Modern American Culture by Aneelise Heinz. This mass-pro¬duced game crossed the Pacific, creating waves of popularity over the twentieth century.
The Silver Candlesticks: A Novel of the Spanish Inquisition by Linda Chavez The story of a young woman who learns her family is Jewish just as the Spanish Inquisition grips Sevilla.
How to Read a Talmudic Story by Jeffrey Rubenstein presents a clear, accessible method for reading, studying, analyzing, and appreciating the rich and engaging stories found in the Talmud and works of midrash.
Exhibitions
Jews Are Magic: Occult Practices from Palmistry to Professional Psychics
Opening May 26, 2026
At the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, in the Center for Jewish History in New York City.
Although unsanctioned, magical elements have remained integral to Jewish folk culture. Rituals, incantations, and occult objects addressed the immediate concerns of daily life—illness, infertility, and unseen dangers believed to shape human fate. Pre-modern Jewish communities inhabited a world understood to be filled with invisible beings, where demons, angels, dybbuks, and the evil eye were active forces, and where the boundaries between the natural and supernatural were porous. Sacred Hebrew names were believed to hold power; amulets, inscriptions, and prayers could compel or ward off supernatural forces. As a result, acts of devotion could also function as protection, and objects like mezuzahs and charms operated simultaneously as religious artifacts and magical tools, reflecting a world in which religion, superstition, and everyday practice were deeply intertwined.
Bookplates
We encourage you to think of the library when honoring or remembering a friend or loved one.
Each book bought by your donation will display a newly designed bookplate recognizing the donor and honoree. Looking forward to seeing you in the Library.
Deborah Marinsky and Roslyn Vanderbilt
Library Committee Co-chairs
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