Tablet Studios

On today’s Unorthodox dispatch, Liel prepares for a much-needed Shabbat with a joke by Columbia University professor Jeremy Dauber, an expert on Jewish humor, as well as a song by the Jewbador, Jim Knable, and a few timely words of wisdom from this week's parsha.

If you want to keep these minisodes going, we’d love for you to rate Unorthodox on iTunes and set up a recurring donation—we suggest $5/month, which is to say one fancy coffee a month—at tabletmag.com/donate

And, as always, if you want to keep up with all things Unorthodox, join our Facebook group here!

Shalom, friends. Stay well.

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This week, our hosts are connecting via Zoom conference to discuss their new remote realities and read a lot of listener mail. We also hear from Tablet writer Yair Rosenberg, who composed and recorded an album of original modern melodies for traditional Jewish songs (listen to the first single, a Mumford and Sons-esque “Shalom Aleichem,” here).

We’re going to continue dropping mini episodes in addition to our weekly Thursday episodes, so watch your podcast feeds for more (and subscribe on iTunes).

Our tour events for March and April 2020 have been postponed. Stay tuned for updates on rescheduled dates, and join our Facebook group to see much more of us, virtually, in the coming weeks.

Let us know what you think of the show! Email us at [email protected] or leave a message at 914-570-4869.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more.

Follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.

Get your Unorthodox T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies here.

Sponsors:

The Great Courses Plus is an online streaming service that offers unique perspectives from engaging experts at the top of their fields. Get an entire month of courses for free when you sign up at thegreatcoursesplus.com/UNORTHODOX.

Fleishigs magazine is like getting a gorgeous kosher cookbook delivered every month. Each issue features restaurant reviews, wine pairings, kosher destination wedding reviews, and more. Save Monday when you subscribe at fleishigs.com using discount code UNORTHODOX.

Kol Foods is the organic kosher butcher offering delicious meats from animals raised using healthy, ethical, and sustainable methods. Kol has everything you need for the Passover Seder and beyond, delivered safely to your door. Go to Kol Foods.com and use coupon code Unorthodox3020 to get 10% off your order.

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On today’s Unorthodox dispatch, producer Sara Fredman Aeder shares an audio diary recorded over the last week as her family has been living under quarantine in Westchester, NY.

If you want to keep these minisodes going, we’d love for you to rate Unorthodox on iTunes and set up a recurring donation—we suggest $5/month, which is to say one fancy coffee a month—at tabletmag.com/donate

And, as always, if you want to keep up with all things Unorthodox, join our Facebook group here!

Shalom, friends. Stay well.

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On today’s Unorthodox dispatch, we’re talking to Tablet’s book critic Adam Kirsch about what to read now that you might have a bit more time on your hands.

If you want to keep these minisodes going, we’d love for you to rate Unorthodox on iTunes and set up a recurring donation—we suggest $5/month, which is to say one fancy coffee a month—at tabletmag.com/donate. And, as always, if you want to keep up with all things Unorthodox, join our Facebook group here!

Shalom, friends. Stay well. 

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On the latest Unorthodox COVID-19 minisode, Mark pulls his daughter Klara, age nine, into his basement studio, where she offers reflections on how real-life self-quarantine differs from the good times she’d come to expect from the scarlet-fever chapter in Sydney Taylor’s classic children’s novel. Also, Mark reflects on attending twins’ double bat mitzvah on Shabbat morning ... despite all the shul closings around the country. With music from Coma Svensson.

If you want to keep these minisodes going, we’s love for you to rate Unorthodox on iTunes and set up a recurring donation—we suggest $5/month, which is to say one gourmet coffee a month—at tabletmag.com/donate. And, as always, if you want to keep up with all things Unorthodox, join our Facebook group here!

Shalom, friends. Stay well.

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Unorthodox producer Josh Kross tries to bring some light at the end of Shabbat with some help from our Facebook group and Stephanie's talk with Swipe Out Hunger's Rachel Sumekh about her organization's response to COVID-19.

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While the world is quarantining and canceling around us, we decided to bring you all a little Shabbat light.

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This week, it’s coronavirus vs. Purim, with a quarantine update from one of our producers.

Our Jewish guest is Wall Street Journal sports reporter Ben Cohen, who joins us to discuss his new book, The Hot Hand: The Mystery and Science of Streaks. The last of the host’s spouses to appear on the show, Ben tells us about his deep dive into the world of patterns, probability, and statistics, plus the many Israeli psychologists he encountered in his research, and, of course, life with Cat Stevens.

Our Gentile of the Week is Mo Rocca, who returns to the show to discuss his new book Mobituaries: Great Lives Worth Reliving, an outgrowth of his podcast of the same name. He tells us why he was inspired to dig through history to discover quirky and overlooked life stories, and what he learned about humanity along the way.

Our tour events for March 2020 have been postponed. Stay tuned for more information about livestream offerings and rescheduled dates.

Let us know what you think of the show! Email us at [email protected] or leave a message at 914-570-4869.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more.

Follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram and join our Facebook group.

Get your Unorthodox T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies here.

Sponsors:

The Great Courses Plus is an online streaming service that offers unique perspectives from engaging experts at the top of their fields. Get an entire month of courses for free when you sign up at thegreatcoursesplus.com/UNORTHODOX.

Fleishigs Magazine is like getting a gorgeous kosher cookbook delivered every month. Each issue features restaurant reviews, wine pairings, kosher destination wedding reviews, and more. Save monday when you subscribe at fleishigs.com using discount code UNORTHODOX.

Kol Foods is the organic kosher butcher offering delicious meats from animals raised using healthy, ethical, and sustainable methods. Kol has everything you need for the Seder, including Seder plate bones. Go to KolFoods.com and use coupon code Unorthodox3020 to get 10% off your order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we’re getting into the festive Purim spirit.

Our first guest is fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi, who tells us about growing up gay in Brooklyn’s Syrian Jewish community, how his years at Yeshiva at Flatbush instilled in him a strong work ethic, and getting his first taste of high fashion at synagogue. For more from Isaac, check out his memoir, I.M. (You can read Adam Kirsch’s review for Tablet here.)

Next Stephanie talks to Simi Polonsky and Chaya Chanin, the sisters behind The Frock NYC, which offers high end, unique, modest clothing. They tell us about growing up Orthodox in Australia and bristling against the restrictive clothing conventions of their religious community, and explain why they believe being modest and fashionable aren’t mutually exclusive.

Finally Rabbi Ari Lamm returns to the show to offer a truly unexpected take on the Purim story.

Let us know what you think of the show. Email us at [email protected] or leave a message at 914-570-4869.

Come see us on tour!

March 12 – Boca Raton, Florida: Book talk with Stephanie and Liel

March 17 – Long Island, New York: Book talk with Stephanie

March 19 – Virginia Beach, Virginia: Unorthodox live show

Like the book? Leave us a review on Amazon or Goodreads.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more.

Follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram and join our Facebook group.

Get your Unorthodox T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies here.

Sponsors:

Harry’s is a great shave at a great price. Get $5 off a Trial Set when you go to harrys.com/unorthodox.

Fleishigs Magazine is like getting a gorgeous kosher cookbook delivered every month, with recipes ranging from traditional orange beef and kugel to more out-there ideas like cholent pot-pie and liver tacos. Each issue features restaurant reviews, wine pairings, travel features, kosher destination wedding reviews, and more. Save money and subscribe at fleishigs.com using discount code UNORTHODOX.

“Declaring Israel’s Independence” is a free online course from the Tikvah Fund, taught by historian Martin Kramer. Immerse yourself in this sweeping study of the most dramatic days of 1948, when Israel’s founders tackled the deepest questions of Zionist statecraft as they wrote Israel’s Declaration of Independence. Enroll today at Declaration.TikvahFund.org/Tablet.

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 This week on Unorthodox: Jewish royal watching, Belgian parades, and more.

Liel speaks with Harvard professor emeritus Ruth Wisse about the reissue of her book Jews and Power. She shares her theory about how the impulse to want to be a mensch might be leaving Jews defenseless, why she thinks the Holocaust is being mistaught in American schools, and more.

Our Gentile of the Week is Antonia Eliason, an associate professor of law at the University of Mississippi who is running for U.S. Congress as a democratic socialist. She tells us what democratic socialism means, why she thinks her campaign has a shot in a red state, and gives us a bit of background on Jews and socialism. Her Gentile of the Week question is about Tisha B’Av today.

Let us know what you think of the show. Email us at [email protected] or leave a message at 914-570-4869.

Come see us on tour!

March 2 – New York, NY: Stephanie in conversation with Matti Friedman @ 92Y

March 6 – Amherst, Massachusetts: Stephanie @ Yiddish Book Center

March 12 – Boca Raton, Florida: Book talk with Stephanie and Liel

March 17 – Long Island, New York: Book talk with Stephanie

March 19 – Virginia Beach, Virginia: Unorthodox live show

Like the book? Leave us a review on Amazon or Goodreads.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more.

Follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram and join our Facebook group.

Get your Unorthodox T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies here.

Sponsors:

Get ready for Purim with an order of delicious tahini products from Soom Foods. Head to soomfoods.com and use the code UNORTHODOX to receive 15% off your order. Try the pantry sampler, which includes their tahini, chocolate sweet tahini halva spread, and silan date syrup.

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