Reviews
"Why We Kiss Under Mistletoe And Toast With Eggnog" by NPR's Thomas Lu, Justine Kenin and Sam Gringlas, A Kosher Christmas -full of entertaining and intriguing anecdotes and tales of Jews reconciling their traditions and values with the pervasiveness of Christmas culture-is a fast-paced read that anyone who grew up around holiday celebrations of all stripes will enjoy., A Kosher Christmas is a unique observation of American Jewry and the ambivalence Jews face as we simultaneously try to integrate ourselves into American culture, while helping to shape aspects of it at the same time., A Kosher Christmas --full of entertaining and intriguing anecdotes and tales of Jews reconciling their traditions and values with the pervasiveness of Christmas culture--is a fast-paced read that anyone who grew up around holiday celebrations of all stripes will enjoy., Christmas is our only national holiday founded on religious beliefs, and Plaut, a rabbi and Jewish studies scholar, describes the multitude of creative rituals, activities, and responses Jews have developed to counteract feelings of marginalization and 'transform Christmastime into a holiday season belonging to all Americans.' Plaut offers a quirky, provocative, yet solid study of contemporary Jewish behavior and emerging new forms of popular culture., A Kosher Christmas is a welcome addition to the literature in what remains an understudied area of the American Jewish experience., A Kosher Christmas --full of entertaining and intriguing anecdotes and tales of Jews reconciling their traditions and values with the pervasiveness of Christmas culture--is a fast-paced read that anyone who grew up around holiday celebrations of all stripes will enjoy., Hanukkah, a once-obscure Jewish festival that--conveniently falling in December--has been built up to become a response to the 'December dilemma', the puzzle posed for non-Christians by Christmas. The dilemma is no more, suggests Rabbi Plaut. December now features traditions that are both distinctively American and inventively Jewish. And one last Jewish Christmas custom--volunteering to work or help the needy so that Christian neighbours can enjoy the holiday--trumps the rest, distilling the essence of the season., In this short, informative and illuminating book, Plaut traces not only the changing attitude of American Jews to Christmas but the holiday's symbiotic influence on Hanukkah as well., This book is a clever look at the dilemmas presented to us at Christmas, whether in fact we are Jews or not. Many readers will be likely to enjoy it., A Kosher Christmas; is a richly amusing, well-researched present to American Jews, allowing them to wear their new cashmere sweaters to Chinese restaurants on Christmas day without being racked by religious guilt." "With humor and insight Rabbi Joshua Plaut, Ph.D. recounts the meaning of Christmas to American Jews. This 'only in America' account should be read by Jews and non-Jews alike but especially by those of us who have always felt a little bit guilty for enjoying Christmas., Fascinating. Plaut means so well and covers so much ground. After 207 pages, I am a Hanukkah maven. Ask me anything., A Kosher Christmas is a richly amusing, well-researched present to American Jews, allowing them to wear their new cashmere sweaters to Chinese restaurants on Christmas day without being racked by religious guilt., Hanukkah, a once-obscure Jewish festival that-conveniently falling in December-has been built up to become a response to the 'December dilemma', the puzzle posed for non-Christians by Christmas. The dilemma is no more, suggests Rabbi Plaut. December now features traditions that are both distinctively American and inventively Jewish. And one last Jewish Christmas custom-volunteering to work or help the needy so that Christian neighbours can enjoy the holiday-trumps the rest, distilling the essence of the season., With humor and insight Rabbi Joshua Plaut, Ph.D. recounts the meaning of Christmas to American Jews. This 'only in America' account should be read by Jews and non-Jews alike but especially by those of us who have always felt a little bit guilty for enjoying Christmas., Providing more than a Jewish cultural history, Plaut opens discussion on the way that the US Jewish response to Christmas, which he calls culturally unique, paved the way for the identity politics of other minorities to be expressed in the all-important December holiday season. Recommended.
