Braun Library News

To access our Braun Library catalog on-line click here.

Do you want to see what’s in our library? Click on the link for the catalog on this page. Try the “Simple Search” option first. Or select “Advanced Search” from the drop-down menu. If you still need assistance, click on “Help.” Some of the catalog options are not enabled at this time. Additional catalog searching information is available in the library.

Thanks go to The Braun Family and Rabbi Rosenthal who made it possible to install ungraded hardware to link the library catalog to the internet through the synagogue web site. Jacqueline Luna, our library intern, cataloged and barcoded all of our books and DVD’s. Check-in and check-out are now automated,too. Marvin and Elaine Gale provided the initial funding for computerizing the library.

Purim

Purim is almost here, and that means it is time to rediscover the stories detailing the goings-on in Shushan. Meet the characters again — two queens, a king, a scoundrel, and a hero — in our library.

Purim stories for children:

Esther’s Story by Diane Wolkstein. The Jewish girl who became a queen tells her story in this lushly illustrated work. Ages 6-10
The Story of Esther: A Purim Tale by Eric Kimmel. This colorful, thrilling tale introduces a clever, beautiful heroine. Ages 5+
Cake and Miracles: A Purim Tale by Barbara Diamond Goldin. An angel helps a blind boy make miraculous three-corned cakes for his mother to sell. Ages 3+
Here Come the Purim Players by Barbara Cohen. In Medieval Prague a young boy plays Queen Esther in a lively performance of the Purim story. Ages 5+

Purim DVD for children:

Shalom Sesame: Be Happy It’s Purim

New book for adults:

Blessing of a B Minus: Using Jewish Teachings to Raise Resilient Teenagers by Wendy Mogel. Guide our future Esthers and Mordecais to adulthood with a sense of good humor, psychology, and a helping of Jewish teachings.

Library Hours

The library is open Sundays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and Wednesdays from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. when Torah School is in session. The Book Cart is available at the Social Hall after most Shabbat morning services.

Donations

We are happy to accept books, DVD’s and CD’s of Jewish interest in good condition. Donated items will be placed in the library or sold at our used book sale to benefit the library.

Five ways you can help our library grow

Join the library committee.
Contribute to the Library Fund. The library is entirely dependent on contributions to add new books and DVDs to the collection. We want to continue adding the best new literature for Jewish children as well as popular and worthy material for adults. A gift to the Library Fund is a heartfelt way to honor someone or express your sympathy. Library Fund donations are acknowledged in the Shofar, a book plate is placed in a new book noting your gift, and an appropriate letter is sent. To contribute to the Library Fund, contact the synagogue office or select the “Library Fund” from the online donation options.
Celebrate a child or teen’s birthday with a Birthday Book Club purchase.
Purchase a book or DVD from our Amazon Wish List.
Let us know what you want in the library.

Contact

The Library Committee

Susan Braun, Chairperson

Susan Hayman, Librarian

Wendy Falcon

Sharon Finzi

Gabi Fisdel

Charlotte Friefeld

Barbara Jacobs

Terri Kitten

Alissa Weiss

Our library’s mission is to provide Jewish books, DVDs, and CDs for the children, adults, and teachers of our congregation.

A Message from the Rabbi about Our Library

The handwritten and printed word has always been central to the odyssey of the Jewish people. Our primary religious document, the Torah, is still painstakingly copied and preserved as it has been for centuries using the rather primitive tools of bird quill and sheepskin. Torah scrolls are treasured in synagogues throughout the world in much the same form as they were at the time of the Talmud. Jews have always prized large personal libraries and one of the questions a Bet Din asks potential Jews by Choice is, “What Jewish books do you have in your home?”

Tifereth Israel has long been the home of the Braun Library, established by Dr. Richard and Sue Braun. For many years the library has been overlooked and underutilized. This summer a devoted group of volunteers has been working to renew and revitalize it. The Braun Library has been moved closer to the Cohen Social Hall, to room #1 in our school building, outdated books have been culled and new ones ordered. Additionally, acknowledging that learning modalities have changed, the Braun Library will also become a resource center with computers and an audio/visual center for our Silverman Preschool and Abraham Ratner Torah School students, as well as the congregation at large. We look forward to the reopening of the newly renovated Braun Library in the coming months.

Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal
The Shofar, November 2009