I love books; I love them more than bagels, jewelry, or cashmere sweaters, and that’s a lot. Reading kept me from teen pregnancy, heroin, and robbing convenience stores with a badass boyfriend. I’ve read great books, good books, mediocre books, and books so awful they damaged my eyes, and it was never the genre that … Read more
Stories abound of Jewish people who grow up warm and secure in their faith. Those for whom the eight days of Hanukah didn’t compete with Christmas: Jewish nurses, firefighters, and doctors who take Christmas Eve shifts to ensure their Christian brethren are home for the holidays. These are the lucky Jews with traditions of Chinese … Read more
For ten years, I co-led groups for violent men.* I sat in a circle with a (usually) male co-leader and anywhere from 8 to 18 men who’d been violent with their wives, girlfriends, dates, sisters, or another woman in their lives—sometimes a mother. Their violence ran from emotional abuse to the most devastating physical viciousness—from … Read more
Woman (me, for instance) weeks (months?) getting ready for a book launch (or any event): Buy a new dress.Return dress.Decide to wear an edgy jagged-hem blouse.Realize anyone using the word ‘blouse’ is too old for edgy. Buy pants.Wonder what the ‘young’ word for pants is.Google.End up teary seeing choices of pants ‘types’ and future as, with … Read more
Perhaps the lure of the bad boy is similar to the temptation of climbing Mt. Everest. It feels so good to conquer it and reach the top—despite all the pain you felt on the ascent. But getting back to that thrilling peak (The glitter! Finding out you are the only one!) means bearing again the sulks, the … Read more