Kayla is a piano prodigy. From a very young age, she has struggled to balance her musical life with family tensions and mental illness. Not to mention the mysterious stalker. Join me for a wide-ranging talk with Bruce Berger about music, mental illness, and family dynamics.

Read the transcript

Support the Young Musicians Foundation

Support the author, AJL, and independent book stores by buying their book here.

Thanks to:

• The Association of Jewish Libraries
• Heidi Rabinowitz, podcast mentor
• Dee Yan Key for use of their Freylekh (downloaded from https://freemusicarchive.org/home)

If you enjoyed this podcast, you might also like the AJL sister podcast, The Book of Life, a podcast about Jewish kidlit, mostly.

It is the late1890's London and all is not well. A dense fog is creeping through the streets transforming people into other-worldly creatures and the "Elegents" walk the streets killing at will. Can a neer-do-well second son of a banker and a young Jewish woman solve these horrific mysteries and perhaps save the bank along the way? Join me for a conversation with multi-genre author David Liss.

You can read the transcipt.

Support the author, AJL, and independent book stores by buying their book here.

Thanks to:

• The Association of Jewish Libraries
• Heidi Rabinowitz, podcast mentor
• Dee Yan Key for use of their Freylekh (downloaded from https://freemusicarchive.org/home)

If you enjoyed this podcast, you might also like the AJL sister podcast, The Book of Life, a podcast about Jewish kidlit, mostly.

Mirta Trupp writes "Jewish Historical Fiction : For those who like a little Yiddishkeit with their Period Drama." I had a great conversation about her latest book, Celestial Persuasion, a Jane Austen fan fiction as well as a great stand-alone work.

Read the transcript

Check out her site, https://mirtainestruppauthor.com/

Follow her on Goodreads and Instagram; buy her books

Thanks to:

• The Association of Jewish Libraries
• Heidi Rabinowitz, podcast mentor
• Dee Yan Key for use of their Freylekh (downloaded from https://freemusicarchive.org/home)

If you enjoyed this podcast, you might also like the AJL sister podcast, The Book of Life, a podcast about Jewish kidlit, mostly.

Can secrets bring a family together? or tear them apart? In Rachel Beanland's novel, Florence Adler Swims Forever, Florence's family must figure out how to grieve her untimely death, while keeping it a secret from her bed-bound pregnant sister. Based on a true incident from her family history, Rachel imagines what life would have been like for the Adler family in Atlantic City in 1935.

Read the transcript of the conversation.

Check out Rachel's website (https://rachelbeanland.com/)

Support the author, AJL, and independent book stores by buying their book here.

Thanks to:

• The Association of Jewish Libraries
• Heidi Rabinowitz, podcast mentor
• Dee Yan Key for use of their Freylekh (downloaded from https://freemusicarchive.org/home)

If you enjoyed this podcast, you might also like the AJL sister podcast, The Book of Life, a podcast about Jewish kidlit, mostly.

Talia Carner is a longtime global activist on women's economic and health issues, and also a longtime multi award winning writer. I learned so much after speaking with her about Sholem Aleichem, The Third Daughter, and sex trafficking. We also get a sneak peek at her upcoming novel.

You can support Talia, independent book stores, and AJL by buying her books.

Check out her website especially the translation of the "Man from Buenos Aires" by Sholem Aleichem, which was one of the inspirations for the Third Daughter.

Talia also has resources to Take Action Against Trafficking.

Read about the Boats of Cherbourg, the setting for her upcoming novel.

Thanks to:

• The Association of Jewish Libraries
• Heidi Rabinowitz, podcast mentor
• Dee Yan Key for use of their Freylekh (downloaded from https://freemusicarchive.org/home)

If you enjoyed this podcast, you might also like the AJL sister podcast, The Book of Life, a podcast about Jewish kidlit, mostly.

Mary Marks created the spunky, middle-aged, plump and curvy, quilting protagonist Martha Rose. Martha and her circle of quilting friends seem to bump into dead bodies with alarming frequency. Luckily, they are able use their observational skills, intuition, and persistence to "help" the police catch the killers.

Join me for a far-reaching conversation about Jewish practice, representation of female characters, quilting, and finding love in her 70's!

Check out her website and buy her books.

Follow her on Facebook to see her quilts.

Thanks to:

• The Association of Jewish Libraries
• Heidi Rabinowitz, podcast mentor
• Dee Yan Key for use of their Freylekh (downloaded from https://freemusicarchive.org/home

If you enjoyed this podcast, you might also like the AJL sister podcast, The Book of Life, a podcast about Jewish kidlit, mostly.