3 Things Bringing Me Jewish Joy Right Now
From Hebrew learning to the inner lives of fictional yeshiva boys, here are my recs!
Hi friends,
With summer winding down and real life kicking in, plus the fact that the High Holidays are right around the corner (ahhh), I thought I’d share some Jewish joys that have been grounding me.
Today marks day 700 of this horrible war, with 48 hostages still in Gaza. I don’t know about you, but I’m trying to be more proactive in finding ways to uplift myself Jewishly. Here are some ways I’m doing that.
1. Mango Languages
When I tell American Jews I’m learning Hebrew, the question I most often get is, “What app do you use?” On my long and winding Hebrew learning journey, I’ve tried every app out there. My favorite so far is Mango Languages.
Step aside, Duolingo! Mango Languages is far superior because it teaches you useful vocab and how to actually correctly pronounce the words. When I was in Israel, people were surprised by my range of vocab, everything from al tid’ag (don’t worry) to te’unat drachim (car accident).
I even learned how to say Tzarich latzet mehasherutim ki yesh chefetz chashud (We need to get out of the bathroom because there is a suspicious object.) But if you’re an innocent American woman learning Hebrew on an IDF base, don’t bother saying this to anyone if you really mean it, because no one will take you seriously.
Mango also explains those pesky Hebrew exceptions and unique instances: “Oh you thought the answer was echad shavua? Here’s why it’s shavua echad.” Super helpful!
Unfortunately, there is only one unit in Mango Language, but I highly recommend the app, especially if you have an NYPL card which makes it free! The app also has other languages. Shoutout to my brother for recommending it.
2. Zionist Girls Read Book Club
A few weeks ago, I saw a post on my Instagram feed by a random Bookstagram account I follow which featured a Palestinian memoir. Since I had never heard of the book before, I was curious to read the caption, but disappointed to find the “review” of the book to be just a paragraph critical of Israel’s “genocide” and a nasty statement about Zionists.
I went to the account’s profile, which usually posts fun romantasy, to see if they read an Israeli memoir (like the well-balanced Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor), but nope. It didn’t seem like this person had any connection to Zionists, or Jews for that matter. It didn’t even seem like they had an interest in Palestinians, frankly.
Disheartened by the hate, I was reminded of an account I follow but had never interacted with: Zionist Girls Read. Rather than be angry at random online hostility, I decided to channel my frustration into action, and signed up for their next meeting.
I assumed the club’s reads would be typical books on the history of antisemitism or Israel’s history, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn their next book was Mrs. Lilienblum’s Cloud Factory by Iddo Gefen, a novel that was already on my TBR (thanks, Hadassah Magazine!). The club celebrates Jewish and Israeli culture by uplifting Israeli authors at a time when the publishing industry has been marginalizing them.
I had four days until the next virtual book club meeting, and I breezed through the novel, which was easy to do because it was so delightful (and, okay, I was on vacation). I’ll write more about the book in my end-of-year Jewish books wrap up :)
The meeting had about 15 friendly, well-read women from all around the country. We had a q&a with the author, who is a current PhD student in cognitive neuroscience at Columbia (and writes a cool neuroscience Substack!).
The next book is The Gates of Gaza by Amir Tibon, meeting virtually on 10/28. Sign up here. Women-identifying only, please!
3. The New Black
A young Haredi man is stuck standing in the middle of a minefield in Israel. An IDF soldier steps out in protective gear and offers to carry him on his shoulders to get him out.
“You’re going to carry me on your shoulders?” the Yeshiva student asks cautiously.
“How symbolic,” the commander points out.
That’s just one of the many brilliant scenes from the hit Israeli comedy, The New Black, or in Hebrew, Shababnikim. My new favorite show follows the lives of four yeshiva students in Jerusalem who try their best, but keep getting pulled by the sway of “the outside world.”
It’s laugh-out-loud funny yet touches on sensitive topics at times, like shomer negiah and spirituality. It’s truly a comfort if you’re missing Israel, and is easy to understand even if you’re not familiar with the Haredi scene, which some of my friends say is (sometimes) accurately portrayed on the show. Plus, the theme song and scene transitions feature delicious Israeli funk and the guys are adorable.
Need I say more? Stream it on ChaiFlicks. You won’t be disappointed. And season 3 comes out next week!!
What’s been bringing you Jewish joy lately? I’d love to know in the comments!
Shabbat Shalom. Stay blessed,
"I don't have 17 cows" - great title for a poem, thanks for that. Also thanks for ChiaFlicks, I do need to get to that show, I want to laugh out loud!
What am I to do with even one cow if I am lactose intolerant...and 17?
My language question then is this: I know you are currently studying Hebrew, and I am proud of you for that. It is, after all, the language of Israel and our people. But I have fancied myself a product of the working class, i.e., stretching back to the Lower East Side, Hester St, where my mother was born. For wannabe populists, identifying with this part of our past, Yiddish is the common currency, or was...Do I study both, or one, and if one, convince me which one it should be, since i am not making plans to move to Israel.