Big League Dreams finds the Krimsk Rebbe and many of his flock in St. Louis on a Saturday, the Sabbath, in the summer of 1920. In St. Louis, it is the summer of 1920 and the day is the Sabbath, but there is little rest for the Jews from Krimsk and less reverence for the wondrous Krimsker Rebbe, who led them to the New World seventeen years before. The rebbe's former hasidim have embraced America to discover that the vision of "gold in the streets" evokes larceny in the heart. Matti Sternweiss, the ungainly, studious child wonder in Krimsk, now the cerebral catcher for the St. Louis Browns, is scheming to fix Saturday's game against the pennant-contending Detroit Tigers. It is an American Sabbath: Prohibition, bookies, the criminal syndicate, the Hiberian fellowship of the police brass, hometown blondes, a bootlegging rabbi, and big league baseball. It is also Krimsk in America: Boruch Levi, the successful junkman, confiscates his zany, crippled brother-in-law Barasch's sizable bets; Barasch's lusty wife, Malka, has her own connubial reasons for wanting to stop the gambling; the chief of police fatefully inspires his loyal disciple, Boruch Levi, to bring Matti before the Krimsker Rebbe on the Sabbath in order to preserve the purity of the national pastime. Recluse and wonder-worker, messianist and pragmatist, the Krimsker Rebbe navigates the muddy Mississippi River, haunted by a recurring prophetic vision of Pharaoh's blood-red Nile. In the final, decisive innings, with Matti crouched behind home plate, it will come down to Ty Cobb versus the kabbalah. Richly imagined, populated with robust, complex characters, Big League Dreams is a profoundly original, inspiring, and comic creation. It is the second volume in the series Small Worlds, which follows the people of Krimsk and their descendants in America, Russia, Poland, and Israel. In each volume Allen Hoffman draws on his deep knowledge of Jewish religion and history to evoke the finite yet infinite "small worlds" his characters inhabit.

It is Rosh Hashanah — the Jewish New Year and Day of Judgment — in Moscow during the Stalinist purges of 1936. In the Lubyanka secret police prison, senior investigator Grisha Shwartzman masterfully pursues the rigorous logic and obsessive legalism of the Soviet witch-hunt. Facing an extraordinary prisoner, Grisha realizes that the Soviet system he has faithfully served is murderously corrupt and that he himself will be the next victim — but not an innocent one. In despair, he flees to his home, where his deranged wife and an unexpected Rosh Hashanah letter from his father-in-law, the enigmatic Krimsker Rebbe in America, await him. The Day of Judgment proves to be a startling experience as Grisha, the once idealistic radical, judges himself, accepts his responsibilities, and is guided to sublime passion and possible redemption by his mad wife, who for twenty years has been patiently awaiting him in a closed wardrobe. In 1942 a train of imprisoned Jews leaves the Warsaw ghetto for "resettlement in the East." It is Yom Kippur — the Day of Atonement and the holiest day of the Jewish year. In a crowded cattle car stands a lonely, defeated individual who is ashamed that he cannot even remember his own name. During the tortuous journey Yechiel Katzman will overhear a talmudic debate and meet a dull-witted giant who turns out to be none other than Itzik Dribble, also from Krimsk. As they arrive in the death camp of Treblinka, Yechiel remembers not only his name but also the Krimsker Rebbe's prophetic curse that exiled him from Krimsk forty years earlier. Yet as death approaches, that curse will prove a blessing. Stalin and Hitler decree certain death, but Grisha and Yechiel discover Jewish fates. The devil incites loneliness, degradation, despair, and even complicity; through memory, the victims elicit community, dignity, and the awareness of sanctity. Grisha's "Soviet" Rosh Hashanah and Yechiel's "Nazi" Yom Kippur are truly "Days of Awe." Even when death is certain, life can be lived.

Keeping track of prolific authors who write fiction series was quite challenging for even the most ardent fan until To Be Continueddebuted in 1995. Noew, readers will be happy that the soon-to-be-released second edition has added 1,600 new books and 400 new series. To Be Continued, Second Edition, maintians the first volume's successful formula that featured concise A-to-Z entries packed with useful information, including titles, publishers, publication dates, genre categories, annotations, and subject terms. Among the genre categories that can be found in To Be Continued are romance, science fiction, crime novel, horror, adventure, fantasy, humor, western, war, Christian fiction, and others.

The art of Jewish storytelling thrives in this captivating collection of tales by Allen Hoffman, filled with memorable characters. This captivating collection of stories by Allen Hoffman, award winning author of the critically acclaimed Small Worlds series are deeply felt explorations into the Jewish mind and world?stories in the tradition of Isaac Bashevis Singer. At the same time, illuminated by compassion and humor, they transcend cultural boundaries and provide fascinating studies in the universal human experience. Kagan the compulsive gambler, Bluma the old beggar woman, Hymie the well-to-do arsonist, and Maxie the juggling uncle are but a few of the comic and sympathetic characters of Hoffman's title novella and four short stories that celebrate the human experience. Hoffman loves and integrates two worlds, the modern secular and the timeless traditional. Kagan's Superfecta is a dazzling, inspirational performance.

A riveting study of a generational transition with major implications for American Jewish life

In this era of globalization, Jewish diversity is marked more than ever by transnational expansion of competing movements and local influences on specific conditions. One factor that still makes Jewish communities one is the common reference to Israel. Today, however, differentiations and discrepancies in identification and behavior generate plurality and ambiguities about Israel-Diaspora relationships. Moreover the Judeophobia now rife in Europe and beyond as well as the spread of the Palestinian cause as a civil religion make Israel the world’s "Jew among nations.” This weighs heavily on community relations - despite Israel’s active presence in the diaspora. In this context, the contributions to this volume focus on Jewish peoplehood, religiosity and ethnicity, gender and generation, Israelophobia and world Jewry, and debate the perspectives that are most pertinent to confront the question: how far is the Jewish Commonwealth (Klal Yisrael) still an important code of Jewry today?

Your life matters, not because of what you have done or what you possess. Even when things go wrong or you make mistakes, your life still matters. It matters, because God says it does. There is a tendency for a man to measure his worth with the wrong measurement system, to compare his life with others or not like his place on the team. But when a man knows who he is in the eyes of God, he experiences his significance. Every event and relationship has unlimited potential. He has made it to the Big Leagues. Welcome to the Big Leagues—Every Man’s Journey to Significance, The Darrel Chaney Story, shows a utility player’s struggle--on one of the best baseball teams to ever take the field--with ambushes, setbacks, minimum wage one year contracts and changes beyond his control. But he makes his Top-10 list, encounters the Eternal and realizes he has his place on the team and in history. Through it all, he discovered his God given significance and found it was not only the best way to play in the Big Leagues; it was the way to live a Big League life. Welcome to the Big Leagues tells the baseball story, and at the same time it helps every man learn the same lessons. He needs to make his Top-10 list, encounter the Eternal and know his place on the team and in history. Every man can experience his God given significance. Many men are changed by the world, but the man who knows his significance, that his life matters, is a man who will change the world. He is in the Big Leagues.

Alex Wolff canvasses the globe and travels to 16 different countries (and 10 states in the U.S.) to find out exactly why basketball has become a worldwide phenomenon. Whether it's in a pick-up game on the Royal court in Bhutan, in the heart of a former female college player of the year turned cloistered nun, in the tragedy of the legendary junior national team in war torn Yugoslavia, or in the life's work of one of the greatest players to ever play in the NBA, Alex Wolff discovers that basketball can define an individual, a race, a culture, and in some instances even a country. Fusing John Feinstein's talent for finding the human drama behind sport with Bill Bryson's travelogue style, Wolff shows how the power and love of basketball extends to the four corners of the earth and engages people of all cultures, races, genders, and generations.

There is no question that the physical and mental demands of the sport of baseball are rigorous. Not only is it difficult to successfully hit a ninety-mile-per-hour fastball in front of a crowd of passionate spectators, but it is also challenging to navigate an often confusing system that leads players through youth leagues, high school, college, and for a lucky few, the Minor and Major Leagues. Rod Humphries, sports journalist, television writer, and former administrator of a worldwide professional tennis tour, shares his personal experiences and advice from experts in this complete insiders guide designed to help players, their parents, and baseball fans understand how Major Leaguers pay their dues. Humphries, who closely studied the entire baseball assembly line when his son was drafted out of high school by the Houston Astros, offers valuable information on: The professional baseball structure Little League vs. select/travel ball Player analysis and recruitment Scholarships and coaching camps Draft day decisions, salaries, and career chances Little League to the Major Leagues provides proven tips and time-tested advice for any family or player who dares to dream of journeying beyond youth baseball to high school, college, and the professional game.

Discover What Made Baseball America’s Pastime #1 New Release in Baseball Statistics Baseball Memories & Dreams celebrates the iconic moments, heroes, and trends that define baseball for its millions of fans This compendium of baseball writing covers it all—recollections of Hall of Famers and narratives from top baseball writers; stories on the rich iconography and history of the game across the full diversity of players, teams, and leagues; and reflections on the way America’s pastime has shaped our culture. Selected from the Baseball Hall of Fame’s member magazine, Baseball Memories & Dreams brings to life the best of baseball. More than just a baseball history book. Revel in America’s pastime and explore baseball history in articles written by notable sports writers, Hall of Famers, media personalities, and the Hall’s own expert historians. Baseball Memories & Dreams showcases the best of baseball facts, baseball biographies, and baseball media personalities into a robust catalogue of known and unknown information. Get the inside scoop into the lives of baseball giants like Johnny Bench, Peter Gammons, John Grisham, Tim Kurkjian, Ichiro Suzuki, Joe Torre, and more. From their stories, gain insight into each individual life to see just what trials and hardships made these men into the best baseball players in history. With Baseball Memories & Dreams in hand, you’ll see America’s pastime in a new light. Inside, you’ll find over 70 articles on America’s pastime, highlighting: Baseball facts, baseball biographies, stats, and artifacts—and the history and lore behind them Coverage of Black, Hispanic, and woman players Stories about baseball’s great players, teams, and rivalries, as well as the moments that trace the game’s wide-ranging history If you enjoy baseball books—best sellers like The Baseball 100, Cloudbuster Nine, or Talking to GOATS—you’ll love Baseball Memories & Dreams.