edited by Goldie Milgram and Ellen Frankel with Peninnah Schram, Cherie Karo Schwartz and Arthur Strimling plus 60 contributing authors.
Dive into these sixty inspiring and provocative adult-level mitzvah stories crafted by leading Jewish storytellers, rabbis and authors from across the full spectrum of Jewish life. These juried, newly-minted tales reveal how each mitzvah, when carried out with understanding and creativity, becomes a rich
source of spirituality and meaning. Mitzvah Stories cultivates respectful Jewish community and facilitates engaged Jewish living. Meant for reading and retelling across the generations, Mitzvah Stories shows us that Judaism is a spiritual practice.$25.00 BUY NOW [2]
Enter a story in our juried competition [3] for the next volume in the Mitzvah-Centered Life series.
See Table of Contents below for free sample stories.
[4]Free Mitzvah Stories Discussion Guide [5] for book clubs, groups and classes.
$25.00 7" x 10" (17.78 x 25.4 cm), 328 pp, quality paperback
ISBN-13: 978-0984804801 ISBN-10: 0984804803
Contributing authors: Yossi Alfi, Noa Baum, Joel Ben Izzy, Yisroel Bernath, Renee Brachfeld, Rosyln Bresnick-Perry, Barry Bub, Phil Cohen, Anita Diamant, Helen Engelhardt, Ed Feinstein, Ellen Frankel, Mark S. Golub, James Stone Goodman, Dan Gordon, Janie Grackin, Eva Grayzel, Bonnie Greenberg, Tina Grimberg, Dan Grossman, Miriam Grossman, Fred Guttman, Sharona Halickman, Jill Hammer, Richard Joel, Amichai Lau-Lavie, Benji Levene, Herb Levine, Syd Lieberman, Doug Lipman, Cindy Rivka Marshall, Melvin Metelits, Goldie Milgram, Lynnie Mirvis, Nadia Grosser Nagarajan, Steve Nathan, Caren Neile, Leon Olenick, Yoel Perez, Peter Pitzele, Jack Riemer, Carol and Neal Rose, Gail Rosen, Barbara Rush, Sandy Sasso, Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Peninnah Schram, Rebecca Schram-Zafrany, Howard Schwartz, Cherie Karo Schwartz, Rami Shapiro, Danny Siegel, Laura Simms, Corinne Stavish, Naomi Steinberg, Arthur Strimling, Carla Vogel, Shohama Harris Wiener, Diane Wolkstein, Debra Gordon Zaslow, Steve Zeitlin, Jennifer Rudick Zunikoff BUY NOW [2]
PRAISE FOR MITZVAH STORIES
"The power of mitzvah as a primary lens for meaningful Jewish living is revealed in this most stimulating volume where every branch of Judaism is represented with creativity, integrity and moral imagination."
--Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, author, Jewish Literacy and Hillel: If Not Now, When?
"These stories, so varied in style and orientation, collectively teach us universal lessons about life: that all worthwhile relationships are multi-layered; that small details can carry large meanings; that no fantasy is too remote or without resonance, and that tales, whether simple or complex, have the capacity to evoke wonder. Kol haKavod!"
--Blu Greenberg, author of On Women and Judaism and How to Run a Traditional Household
"The vision, voices, views and values of the full spectrum of the Jewish people are respectfully reflected in these spirited, challenging, re-tellable contemporary mitzvah stories. A rare, precious and inspiring opportunity for many ways into learning and living a meaningful Jewish life. The perfect gift for every Jewish occasion.
--Arthur Kurzweil, author, On the Road with Rabbi Steinsaltz and From Generation to Generation
BUY NOW [2]
[2]
[2]Free Mitzvah Stories Discussion Guide [5] for book clubs, groups and classes.
TABLE OF CONTENTS (Free Sample Stories are hyperlinked below)
Mitzvah Stories: Seeds for Inspiration and Learning
Goldie Milgram and Ellen Frankel [Eds]
with Peninnah Schram, Cherie Karo-Schwartz and Arthur Strimling
-Foreword by Richard Joel, President, Yeshiva University
-Peninnah Schram: A Story of a Life - A Life of Stories
-Acknowledgments
[6]Introduction: Appreciating Mitzvah as the Core of Jewish Practice by Goldie Milgram
Bonus Section: The Mitzvah Stories Driver’s Manual
The Golden Chain of Jewish Stories by Ellen Frankel
The Craft of Storytelling by Arthur Strimling
Creative Ways to Use Mitzvah Stories compiled by Peninnah Schram & Cherie Karo Schwartz, with Goldie Milgram

I. Coming to Wholeness: Mitzvot of Love and Healing... 39
-The Burga Baby by Yossi Alfi
-A Father’s Gift [7] by Noa Baum
-One Day at Stone Mountain a friend’s experience reframed by Renée Brachfeld
-Mr. Kharrubi and Me by Helen Engelhardt
-Saved by the Evil Eye by Ellen Frankel
-The Clubhouse Turn by Leon Olenick
-Joe the Butler by Danny Siegel
-Flowering Words by Laura Simms
II. Expanding the Heart: Mitzvot of Joy and Generosity
-The Mitzvah House by Roslyn Bresnick-Perry
-The Hitchhiker by Joel ben Izzy
-My Mama’s “Elijah” by Lynnie Mirvis -
-The Melody by Nadia Grosser Nagarajan
-Life Lessons by Neal and Carol Rose
-The Demon of Dubrovna by Gail Rosen
-Elijah’s Yellow Balloon by Rebecca Schram-Zafrany
-A Single Seed of a Pomegranate [8] retold by Cherie Karo Schwartz
-Grandma and Mr. Pushke by Corinne Stavish
-Disarming the Enemy by Shlomo Carlebach retold by Diane Wolkstein
-The Girl Who Told Stories by Steve Zeitlin
III. Celebrating Sacred Time: Mitzvot of Shabbat and Holidays
-Light by Yisroel Bernath
-It’s Crowded in My Kitchen by Janie Grackin
-The Wooden Axle by Jill Hammer
-The Dress: A Purim Fairy Tale by Amichai Lau-Lavie
-The First Light by Doug Lipman
-The Moon's Garment by Cindy Rivka Marshall
-A Story from My Teacher, Abraham Joshua Heschel retold by Jack Riemer
-The Hanukkah Menorahs that Could Not Be Lit by Barbara Rush
-Shabbos Candles by Sandy Eisenberg Sasso
-Queen Esther’s Joy [9] by Naomi Steinberg
-The Shabbat Story I Want to Tell by Arthur Strimling
-The Magic Gourd: A Story for Sukkot by Debra Gordon Zaslow
-Rina and the Exodus by Jennifer Rudick Zunikoff
IV. Seasoning Our Lives: Mitzvot of Life Cycle and Learning
-Honor by Phil Cohen
-Mikveh by Anita Diamant
-The Bar Mitzvah – A Ghost Story by Ed Feinstein
-The Eternal Hand by Mark S. Golub
-Men On Menses by James Stone Goodman
-Chayala, Give Me A Smile-a by Eva Grayzel
-If My Wedding Dress Could Talk by Bonnie Greenberg
-Floating Lovers by Tina Grimberg
-The Lion of Yerushalayim by Sharona Margolin Halickman
-A Teacher by Syd Lieberman
-Permission to Leave by Melvin Metelits
-A Kiss Divine by Steve Nathan
-Why I Volunteer by Caren Neile
-Every One Is a Story by Yoel Perez
-Serach bat Asher — A Midrashic Monologue retold by Peninnah Schram
-Chutzpah Awakening by Carla Vogel
V. Finding Holiness & Happiness: Mitzvot of Serving & Experiencing God
-Tied Together and Worlds Apart: A Holism Story in Three Parts by Barry Bub
-The Kabbalah of Laundry by Dan Gordon
-The Taxi by Dan Grossman
-These Are Your Laws by Miriam Grossman
-Working Together by Fred Guttman
-The Escort by Benji Levene [10]
-Playing Monopoly with Melvin by Herb Levine
-The God of Curried Fish by Goldie Milgram
-Being a Wrestler with God by Peter Pitzele
-Whitewater by Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
-The Dead Sea by Howard Schwartz
-The Surprising Ones by Rami Shapiro
-The Elevator that Wouldn’t Go by Shohama Harris Wiener
Glossary
Recommended for Further Study
Index
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