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Three Brief Book Reviews

Gil StudentSep 7, 26
1 minute read
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by R. Gil Student

In the Fall 2026 issue of Jewish Action, I review the following three books:

  • I Read This Over Shabbos: Reading Jewish History in the Parasha by Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin
  • You, G-d & Me: The Divine Importance of Interpersonal Relationships by Rabbi Allen Schwartz
  • Benot Melachim: Inyanei Leidat HaBat BeHalachah UveAggadah by Rabbi Yechezkel Moskowitz

I Read This Over Shabbos: Reading Jewish History in the Parasha

Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin gravitates toward controversy. The founder of 18Forty and host of its flagship podcast, and a close friend and colleague of mine as well as a member of Jewish Action’s Editorial Committee, he has a keen feel for what deeply interests and profoundly concerns today’s Jews. He publicly explores the boundaries of Orthodox Jewish society and the beliefs and insecurities of many people through an extremely popular conversation about the Jewish community. One pillar of Rabbi Bashevkin’s thought is that the Jewish present can only be understood, and the Jewish future can only be built, based on an intimate knowledge of Jewish history.

Someone who wants to add to scholarship writes a textbook. Rabbi Bashevkin wants to reach the broader public, so he wrote an engaging series of historical essays connected to the weekly parashah. Each essay uncovers fascinating historical episodes, often controversies, many of which reverberate today.

Continued at Jewish Action: link

Gil StudentSep 7, 26
1 minute read

Gil Student

Rabbi Gil Student is the Editor of TorahMusings.com, a leading website on Orthodox Jewish scholarly subjects, and Director of the Halacha Commission of the Rabbinical Alliance of America. He writes a popular column on issues of Jewish law and thought featured in newspapers and magazines, including the Orthodox Union’s Jewish Action magazine, The Jewish Link, The Jewish Echo and The Jewish Vues. In the past, he has served as the President of the small Jewish publisher Yashar Books and as the Managing Editor of OU Press. Rabbi Student currently is serving his third term on the Executive Committee of the Rabbinical Council of America. He serves on the Editorial Board of Jewish Action magazine and the Board of OU Press. He has published five English books, the most recent titled Articles of Faith: Traditional Jewish Belief in the Internet Era, previously served as the Book Editor of Jewish Action magazine, and served as the American editor for Morasha Kehillat Yaakov: Essays in Honour of Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks.

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