Notes from the Levy Library

More to share from my library conferences!

– column updated 7/24/26

Conference takeaways – Part 2

This is the second installment from the back-to-back conferences I attended last month: the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) in Evanston and the American Library Association (ALA) in Chicago

My session at the AJL conference was called “Jewish Literatures in Translation,” moderated by poet, Yiddish translator, and Library of Congress librarian Yermiyahu Ahron Taub. I gave a talk on award-winning translated children’s and young adult books with Jewish content. This is a project I’ve been working on since 2012. Every few years I update the bibliography and talk about how it has changed. It is now a four-page list of 65 books. If you would like a copy, please email me at library@sephardictemple.org and I will be happy to send it to you.

I shared the stage with two scholars focused on adult literature: Jessica Kirzane on “Not Written on Water: The Movement to Recover Women Who Wrote in Yiddish,” and Aviya Kushner, on “Hebrew Literature in Translation in a Time of Trouble.” You may be aware that there has been a real chill on publishing and promoting Jewish authors since October 7, 2023, and Aviya discussed the situation with translating authors in Israel. If you would like to see any of the presentations I can share them with you. The photo shows, left to right: moderator Yermiyahu Ahron Taub and presenters Aviya Kushner, Jessica Kirzane, and your librarian.

I’ll be away July 23-August 16: first on a family visit to Canada and then to present at the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) Congress in Ottawa, August 6-9.

IBBY is a nonprofit organization that represents an international network of people who are committed to bringing books and children together.

This column will be on hiatus until I’m back. Meanwhile, please take advantage of the summer reading suggestions below. Have you read anything particularly wonderful so far this summer? I’m always interested in your recommendations… and better yet, come to the Second Sunday Book Club on September 6 to talk about what you read! Next time: takeaways from the IBBY Congress!

They also host a series of summer book talks. The next (and last) one will be on Thursday, June 25 at 5 pm with novelist Allegra Goodman, about her new book, This Is Not About Us: https://jwa.org/events

Check out our library website home page – instructions are at the end of this article, or you can go there directly https://stti-hl.mimas.opalsinfo.net/bin/home#0. Then scroll down the middle until you see “Book Club Recommendations.” This is where I suggest books that I think would be particularly apt for book clubs. This Is Not About Us is one of my recent additions to the list.

An article by Becca Kantor, “Jewish Summer Camp,” (June 10, 2026) offers reads for children, teens, and adults with a Jewish camp setting: https://www.jewishbookcouncil.org/pb-daily/jewish-summer-camp Ask me for one of her picks, the graphic novel for children, Chunky Goes to Camp, by Yehudi Mercado.

And of course the Second Sunday Book Club always has plenty of recommendations!

Check out the Second Sunday Book Club in September

Our next meeting is Sunday, September 6, at 1:00 – the FIRST Sunday of the month so as not to conflict with Rosh Hashanah. Email me for the Zoom link if you’d like to join us to talk about your reading.

Shabbat Shalom, and happy summer reading!

Your Librarian, Annette

Do visit our online catalog https://stti-hl.mimas.opalsinfo.net/bin/home#0. You can also get there via the Temple web site https://sephardictemple.org/ — click on the “Learning” tab and choose “Temple Library.” Get to know your Levy Library – there’s lots to discover!

Librarian: Annette Goldsmith. Email: library@sephardictemple.org