Are you looking for a list of good basic books about Judaism?
This is the list I give to my students in Exploring Judaism and Intro to the Jewish Experience.
General Introductory Texts on Judaism
Settings of Silver by Stephen Wylen. (text for this course)
Basic Judaism by Milton Steinberg. A classic text, first published in the 1950’s but still good.
What is a Jew? by Morris N. Kertzner. Another good basic text.
Living a Jewish Life by Anita Diamant.
Jewish Literacy by Joseph Telushkin.
Living Judaism by Wayne Dosick.
To Life!: A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking by Harold Kushner
Jewish Bibles
I don’t require you buy one for this class, but every Jewish home should have a Tanakh, a Jewish Bible. Most Reform and Conservative synagogues use a JPS Tanakh in some form.
If you are curious as to how the Jewish Bible is different from the Christian Bible, read Beginners’ Guide to the Jewish Bible. For a discussion of the various translations of the Tanakh available, read Which Bible is Best, Rabbi?
Jewish Holidays
Seasons of our Joy by Arthur Waskow.
Guide to the Jewish Seasons editor Peter Knobel.
The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel
Keeping Passover by Ira Steingroot
The Days of Awe by S.Y. Agnon
This is Real and You are Completely Unprepared: The Days of Awe as a Journey of Transformation by Alan Lew
Jewish Home
The Jewish Home by Daniel Syme
How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household by Blu Greenberg (orthodox practices)Jewish Lifecycle
Gates of Mitzvah: A Guide to the Jewish Life Cycle by Simeon Maslin
How to Raise a Jewish Child by Anita Diamant
The New Jewish Baby Book by Anita Diamant
Putting God on the Guest List: How to Reclaim the Spiritual Meaning of Your Child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah by Salkin, Lebeau, and Eisenberg
The New Jewish Wedding by Anita Diamant
A Time to Mourn, A Time to Comfort: A Guide to Jewish Bereavement by Dr. Ron Wolfson and David J. Wolpe
Mourning and Mitzvah by Anne Brener
Choosing a Jewish Life by Anita Diamant (conversion)
Choosing Judaism by Lydia Kukoff
Jewish Thought
Finding God: Selected Responses by Rifat Sonsino and Daniel Syme. Clear and simple approach to the question, What do Jews think about God?
The Book of Jewish Values by Joseph Telushkin
Jewish History
A Short History of the Jewish People by Raymond Scheindlin
Wanderings: Chaim Potok’s History of the Jews by Chaim Potok
My People: Abba Eban’s History of the Jews by Abba Eban
A History of the Jews by Paul Johnson
The Story of the Jews by Stan Mack (graphic novel format but quite good)
Israel
My Promised Land: The Triumph and Tragedy of Israel by Ari Shavit
Israel: A History by Martin Gilbert
Israel is Real by Rich Cohen
I’m making notes. I’ve read about a third of these.
If there’s a topic that interests you not listed here, let me know. Happy reading!
Great list! Or should I say lists? For those who may be interested in conversion, take a look at this book list with comments from Jews by Choice – http://www.becomingjewish.net/reading-recommendations.html
Thanks for this! I’ve been looking for this kind of list for a long time.
I’m so glad it’s useful, Joshua. Are there any topics you’d like me to add?