Rec­om­mend­ed Reading

Ten Days of Awe-some Jew­ish Biographies

JBC Staff
August 24, 2026

A per­son read­ing a book while relax­ing on a sofa, Har­ald Giers­ing, ear­ly 1900s

Nation­al Gallery of Den­mark, Pub­lic Domain

The High Hol­i­day sea­son is a time of deep reflec­tion, and whether you’re turn­ing to new books or old stand­bys to aid in your intro­spec­tion, we know sto­ries will be guid­ing you. 

In hon­or of this, JBC is thrilled to team up with Jew­ish Lives to share ten exquis­ite biogra­phies pub­lished by Yale Uni­ver­si­ty Press that speak to top­ics that are even more salient as we approach a new year and mar­i­nate on the old one. 

To check out the Jew­ish Lives full cat­a­log and learn more about their work, click here.

For any­one hop­ing to begin again…

Rab­bi Aki­va: Sage of the Tal­mud by Bar­ry W. Holtz

For turn­ing faith into action…

Abra­ham Joshua Hes­chel: A Life of Rad­i­cal Amaze­ment by Julian E. Zelizer

For trans­form­ing vision into reality…

Hen­ri­et­ta Szold: Hadas­sah and the Zion­ist Dream by Francine Klagsbrun

For chal­leng­ing assumptions…

Emma Gold­man: Rev­o­lu­tion as a Way of Life by Vivian Gornick

For lead­er­ship under pressure…

Gol­da Meir: Israel’s Matri­arch by Deb­o­rah E. Lipstadt

For rein­ven­tion and creativity…

Bar­bra Streisand: Redefin­ing Beau­ty, Fem­i­nin­i­ty, and Pow­er by Neal Gabler

For the sacred work of encoun­ter­ing the other…

Mar­tin Buber: A Life of Faith and Dis­sent by Paul Mendes-Flohr

For reimag­in­ing tradition…

Morde­cai M. Kaplan: Rest­less Soul by Jen­na Weiss­man Joselit

For find­ing pur­pose in every­day life… 

Men­achem Mendel Schneer­son: Becom­ing the Mes­si­ah by Ezra Glinter

For ask­ing life’s biggest questions…

Ein­stein: His Space and Times by Steven Gimbel

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