Hundreds of books, more than 50 authors guest speakers including Jeffrey Toobin, Peter Max and Michael Feinstein. It’s all good and it’s coming to the Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit’s 62nd Annual Jewish Book Fair running November 6-17, with events at The Berman Center for the Performing Arts and at the JCC in West Bloomfield and in Oak Park.
“You Want ‘Em, You Can’t Get ‘Em.” Those who remember the first songs written by Ira and George Gershwin won’t want to miss a conversation with celebrated entertainer and author Michael’s Feinstein. His new book, The Gershwins and Me: A Personal History in Twelve Songs, includes never-before-heard anecdotes, fascinating stories about the Gershwins’ music and examples of the rare Gershwin memorabilia that Feinstein has collected over the years .
Feinstein will speak and perform at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Nov ember 17, at Closing Night of the 62nd Annual Jewish Book Fair, chaired by Terry Hollander and Sue Lutz, with Director Shari Lebo.
Other special book events include a Comedy Night, Irwin Shaw Night, Kristallnacht Day of Remembrance, Annual Book Club Night, Spotlight on Business, Tea & Fiction and Bubbies.
Bagels & Books
Opening Night will star CNN correspondent Jeffrey Toobin, who will discuss his book The Oath at 8:00 p.m., Wednesday, November 6. The Oath takes readers inside the Supreme Court and the White House in a riveting look at the relationship between the Supreme Court and President Barack Obama.
The Patron Night guest will be artist Peter Max, author of The Universe of Peter Max, who will speak at 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, November 12. (A private strolling dinner prior to the Peter Max event also is available for Book Fair Patrons. For information, please contact Book Fair Assistant Director Andy Roisman at aroisman@jccdet.org or 248.432.5442.)
“The Detroit Jewish Book Fair has hosted almost every major Jewish literary figure of both this and the last century,” said JCC Executive Director Mark A. Lit. “But what about a cultural icon, born in Berlin, Germany, only to escape the fomenting Nazi movement, travel to Shanghai and then to Haifa, and finally move to Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, for his high school education. I am so looking forward to hearing the story of the great painter, Peter Max, or as he was known in his earlier years, Peter Max Finkelstein!”
A Reader’s Buffet
“Three courses. Four chefs. Only one chance to win.” If these words mean anything to you, be sure to mark your calendar for 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, November 13 when Food Network insider Allen Salkin will discuss his new book From Scratch, which tells the juicy story of a tiny start-up that is now a $1 billion+ industry. (“Three courses…” for those who don’t know are the opening lines to “Chopped.”) Food lovers also will want to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Weight Watchers with Florine Mark, discussing the new 280 Delicious Recipes for Every Meal, (11 a.m., Thursday, November 7) and a food tasting with Kim Kushner, author of Modern Menu: Simple, Beautiful, Kosher (2 p.m., Wednesday, November 13).
And speaking of scoops, don’t miss What Jefferson Read, Ike Watched, and Obama Tweeted: 200 Years of Popular Culture in the White House with Tevi Troy at 4 p.m., Sunday, November 10. The deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under President George Bush, Troy will reveal the way in which popular culture has influenced presidents, from Lincoln’s love of theatre to Obama’s favorite TV show, “The Wire.”
Timely topics
For history fans, the Book Fair presents T.K. Thorne, a Jewish woman who served with the Birmingham, Alabama, police force in the 1960s and whose book Last Chance for Justice recounts the murder of four little girls at a church bombing in 1963; Richard Breitman, co-author of FDR and the Jews; Seth Lipsky, author of The Rise of Abraham Cahan; Ari Weinzweig, author of Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 2: A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Being a Better Leader; Matthew Levitt, author of Hezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon’s Party of God; Sheri Fink, author of Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital; Mark Cohen, author of Overweight Sensation: The Life and Comedy of Allan Sherman; and Paul Offit, author of Do You Believe in Magic, which takes a look at medical “treatments” ranging from laetrile to herbs to avoiding vaccines.
The Book Fair will offer the best of fiction with Jillian Cantor, the author of Margot (which imagines the life of Anne Frank’s famous sister); Jessica Soffer, author of Tomorrow There Will be Apricots (the story of two women who discover their lives are intertwined); and Eric Gale’s The Bully Book.
And that’s just to start!
Most events are free and open to the public; some presentations require tickets. For a complete schedule, please visit www.jccdet.org/bookfair. To purchase tickets, visit theberman.org or call (248) 661-1900.
