Did we mention that garage parking is free and no RSVP is required?

For more information, contact Allison Green at 415.567.3327 x 703. This fall, the Library highlights Sephardic culture through lectures, musical performances, and an exhibit of photographs of Jews from Greece, Turkey, and the other Balkan countries. In other offerings, writers explore Jewish history and identity through poetry, art, literature, and food, and the Jewish Film Class celebrates Tel Aviv at 100. Exhibition:
Images of a Lost World: Pictures and Stories of Balkan Sephardic Life
Through January 31, 2010

Greece, Bulgaria, Bosnia, Macedonia, Turkey-most of us have little familiarity with the rich Jewish life that thrived in these lands prior to the Holocaust. The panels of Images of a Lost World present family memories and photographs that celebrating both what remains and what has been lost from this world. Eschewing the conventional presentation of history in favor of personal narrative, the exhibition introduces us to individuals like Eli Perahya and his wife Elsa from Istanbul, who became friends when they founded an orchestra; brothers Mico and Danny Alvo, who managed to escape the Salonika ghetto together, and Delicia Eshkenazi dressed in her Serbian costume for a Purim party.

Images of a Lost World was created by Centropa, a Vienna-based organization seeking to preserve the images and stories of the elderly Jews of Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkan countries. Under the leadership of Edward Serotta, the organization has collected more than 1,350 oral histories to date.

Yiddishlands: A Memoir
A talk and reading by David G. Roskies
Monday, November 2, 7:30 pm

In retelling his remarkable family saga, beginning with a flashback to his grandmother's storybook wedding in 1878, Roskies brings to life the major debates, struggles, and triumphs of the modern Yiddish experience. By painting vivid portraits of the great writers and cultural leaders from the Old World of Vilna to the New World of Montreal and New York, Yiddishlands illustrates how Yiddish culture is transmitted through story, song, study, and most importantly, the family.

David G. Roskies is the Sol and Evelyn Henkind Chair in Yiddish Literature and Culture and professor of Jewish literature at the Jewish Theological Seminary. His books include Against the Apocalypse: Responses to Catastrophe in Modern Jewish Culture and A Bridge of Longing: The Lost Art of Yiddish Storytelling.

Co-sponsored by The Jewish Theological Seminary and KlezCalifornia Hidden Children of the Holocaust: Belgian Nuns and Their Daring Rescue of Young Jews from the Nazis
A talk and reading by Suzanne Vromen
Wednesday, November 4, 7:30 pm

In the terrifying summer of 1942 in Belgium, when the Nazis began the brutal roundup of Jewish families, parents searched desperately for a safe haven for their children. Convents offered the greatest safety as Belgium was a Catholic country; the Church remained virtually untouched. The instructions to accept Jewish children did not come from the Catholic hierarchy, but from the nuns, and each convent acted independently. In Hidden Children of the Holocaust, Vromen presents research based on her interviews with men and women who were hidden as children, the women of the Resistance, and the Mothers Superior and nuns who sheltered the more than 1,200 children.

Suzanne Vromen is professor of sociology emerita at Bard College. Co- sponsored by the Belgian Consulate and the Holocaust Center of Northern California Kat Parra and the Sephardic Musical Experience Ensemble
Thursday, November 5, 7:30 pm

Known for her Latin jazz vocals, Kat Parra now turns her attention to the vibrant music of the Sephardic Jews. Parra initially became interested in this rich musical heritage when she discovered her own personal connection to Spanish Jewry. With her group, the Sephardic Music Experience Ensemble, she explores Sephardic music in a contemporary way, combining Middle-Eastern sounds with Afro-Cuban and Brazilian rhythms. Parra will be performing songs from her recently released CD, dos amantes.

Kat Parra was voted Best Latin Jazz Vocalist of 2008 by Latin Jazz Corner and her CD Azucar de Amor was nominated for the 2009 Latin Jazz Album of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association. Parra has performed at Jazz festivals in Brazil, Mexico, Chicago, and the San Francisco Bay Area. Wake Up with The PJ Library ®
A program featuring Diana Shmiana
Sunday, November 8, 10 - 11 am

Wake up and cheer...Diana Shmiana is here! Join us as Diana brings her show "The Book of Wonders" to the BJE Jewish Community Library in San Francisco. From the moment Diana finds a mysterious book, a world of wonders beckons with Jewish stories, songs, puppets and magic. This show is loads of fun with a delightful concoction of songs, clowning, storytelling, puppetry, magic, and lots of hilarious shtick. Diana rocks the house every time!. Especially designed for preschoolers. Kosher snacks will be provided.

Diana Shmiana is a trained storyteller, clown, & singer. From a young age she loved to sing, dance, dress up in costumes, and act very, very silly. Diana Shmiana has been entertaining children since 1997 when she launched her company Shpiel-o-Rama Productions. One of the few trilingual entertainers on the children's circuit, Diana Shmiana performs in English, Spanish, & Hebrew. She has performed hundreds of shows in 5 languages on 3 continents and in at least 60 cities throughout the U.S. She now counts 1000's of children, parents, librarians, & educators among her devoted fans.

This program is sponsored by the BJE Jewish Community Library and The PJ Library®, a program of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties, which sends free Jewish books and music once a month to Bay Area families with children under the age of 7. To learn more and enroll, visit www.pjlibrary.org.

The PJ Library® in San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties is generously funded by the Jim Joseph Foundation, the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, and the Jewish Community Endowment Fund of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties. Genealogy - One-on-One Help with your Family Tree
Sunday, November 8, 12 - 2 pm

Take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection and one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library. RRegistration requested but not required, call 415-567-3327 ext. 704. Torah Queeries: Weekly Commentaries on the Hebrew Bible

A conversation with editor Gregg Drinkwater and Bay Area contributors Rabbi Camille Shira Angel, Rachel Brodie, Rabbi Menachem Creditor, and Reuben Zellman
Thursday, November 12, 7:30 pm

In this ground-breaking collection of Torah commentaries, rabbis, scholars, and writers interpret the Torah to speak to modern concerns of sexuality, identity, gender, and LGBT life. Combining intellectual rigor and personal passion, Torah Queeries offers cultural critique, social commentary, and a vision of community transformation as it explores the intersection of queerness and Judaism. For more information about Torah Queeries please click here.

Gregg Drinkwater is the executive director of Jewish Mosaic: The National Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity. Gregg was previously the news editor for San Francisco-based PlanetOut Inc.

Rabbi Camille Shira Angel has been the spiritual leader at Congregation Sha'ar Zahav in San Francisco since 2000. She is the author of Intimate Connections: Integrating Human Love with God's Love, a curriculum that sensitizes students to the lesbian/gay experience using Jewish values.

Rachel Brodie is the co-founder and Executive Director of Jewish Milestones and co-author with Vicky Kelman of Jewish Family Education: A Casebook for the Twenty-first Century.

Rabbi Menachem Creditor serves as rabbi of Congregation Netivot Shalom in Berkeley. He is the founder of ShefaNetwork: The Conservative Movement Dreaming from Within, co-founder of KeshetRabbis: The Alliance of Gay-Friendly Conservative/Masorti Rabbis, and author of The Tisch: A Jewish Spiritual Commentary.

Reuben Zellman will complete his rabbinical studies at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 2010. He currently serves Congregation Sha'ar Zahav in San Francisco and Congregation Beth El in Berkeley.

Co-sponsored by Jewish Mosaic: The National Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity, Congregation Sha'ar Zahav, Keshet Chavurah of Congregation Beth Sholom, and the LGBT Alliance of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties Henna Lounge:
A demonstration and hands-on workshop with Darcy Vasudev
Sunday, November 15, 1 - 3 pm

We add color to our season of exploring Sephardic culture with a henna workshop. Many Sephardic Jews, particularly those from North Africa, included henna painting as part of the bride's pre-wedding festivities to symbolize fertility and to protect against the evil eye. Henna was also used as part of the Purim holiday.

Jewish traditions of henna reflect local styles and include intricate geometric motifs along with highly stylized designs representing eyes, hamsas, trees, water and stars. Henna artist Darcy Vasudev will demonstrate henna painting and participants will have the opportunity to make their own designs.

Darcy Vasudev is a professional henna artist who has been creating henna designs for fifteen years, developing her own techniques and recipes based on her studies in India. The Jewish Film Class: Set in Tel Aviv

The 100th anniversary of the founding of Tel Aviv has brought renewed attention to the city's distinctive character. This installment of the Library's popular film class will focus on three recent films set in Tel Aviv, and will consider how the city itself is presented. Come for a group viewing, incisive analyses, and spirited discussion. Taught by Library Director Howard Freedman.

Yana's Friends (Film 1)
Thursday, November 19, 7 pm Auditorium, Second Floor

It is 1991, and an unprecedented number of Russian Jews have come to Israel just in time to experience the first Gulf War. Against this backdrop, Yana, a pregnant, young, recent immigrant, is facing the reality that her husband has returned to Russia and abandoned her with his debts. Meanwhile, she grows close to her neighbor Eli, an aspiring filmmaker of questionable moral fiber, and to other newly arrived Russians struggling to adapt to Israeli society. This winner of five Israeli Academy Awards manages to maintain lightness and humor while addressing the fright of war and the hardship of immigrant life.

Israel, 1999. 90 minutes, in Hebrew and Russian with English subtitles. Video Projection. "Sundays at 2:00" Drop-in Book Club
November 22, 2009, 2 - 3 pm
The Puttermesser Papers by Cynthia Ozick

Book Group Coordinator Jim Van Buskirk will facilitate a lively discussion one Sunday a month at 2 am at the Jewish Community Library. Pick up your individual copy of the book during the month preceding the discussion and then come to one or all of the dates-and feel free to invite your friends! There is no charge for materials or attendance.

Taking Back God: American Women Rising Up for Religious Equality
A talk and reading by Leora Tanenbaum
Wednesday, December 2, 7:30 pm

In Taking Back God, Tanenbaum, an observant Jew, recounts the stories of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim women living in the United States who love their religion but are deeply troubled by their status as women within their faith. Rather than abandoning their faith, they seek to honor tradition while expanding it to embrace modern values. Tanenbaum will talk about the women she interviewed and their remarkable determination to effect change.

Leora Tanenbaum is the author of Slut! Growing Up Female with a Bad Reputation and Catfight: Rivalries Among Women-from Diets to Dating, from the Boardroom to the Delivery Room. She regularly discusses girls' and women's issues on TV news and entertainment shows. Café Balkana
A performance by Jewlia Eisenberg
Thursday, December 3, 7:30 pm

In the 1930s, cafés in Greek and Turkish port cities like Salonika and Izmir were a meeting place for working people and underworld elements. The musicians performing at these "cafés aman" (music cafés) were Greeks, Jews, Slavs, Turks, and Vlachs and the music that came out of them synthesized Turkish scales, Balkan meters, Hebrew chant, and words in Greek, Turkish and Ladino. Café Balkana draws from both the violent, sexy rebetika music sung by Jewish women and the romantic and funny Sephardic folk music with its roots in Spain, North Africa, and the Balkans. Jewlia will perform the songs of the café aman, where rebetika meets Salonikan Jewish music.

Jewlia Eisenberg is a composer, extended-technique vocalist, lay cantor. She is the founder of the group Charming Hostess, whose most recent CDs include Sarajevo Blues and Punch.

Co-sponsored by the 25th Jewish Music Festival Genealogy - One-on-One Help with your Family Tree
Sunday, December 6, 12 - 2 pm

Take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection and one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library. Registration requested but not required, call 415-567-3327 ext. 704. The Sephardic Romancero: Tradition and Creativity
A talk with musical examples by Samuel G. Armistead
Thursday, December 10, 7:30 pm

The Sephardim, exiled from Spain in 1492, took with them to their new homelands the historically important poetic tradition of the Romancero, which had its origins in Medieval Spanish epic poetry. Academic specialists in Pan-Hispanic literature have tended to stress the antiquarian features of the Sephardic Romancero, viewing these songs as fascinating ancient remnants. However, for all its traditionality, the enduring practice of oral popular poetry, which included the composition of new ballads in the lands in which the Sephardim settled, is also a testament to the dynamic creativity of Sephardic culture.

Samuel G. Armistead is Distinguished Professor of Spanish at UC Davis and has dedicated his life to the study of Hispanic traditional poetry. He is currently working to complete a sixteen-volume study of the folk literature of the Sephardic Jews. Co - sponsored by 25th Jewish Music Festival "Sundays at 2:00" Drop-in Book Club
December 13, 2009, 2 - 3 pm
Enemies, A Love Story by Isaac Bashevis Singer

Book Group Coordinator Jim Van Buskirk will facilitate a lively discussion one Sunday a month at 2 am at the Jewish Community Library. Pick up your individual copy of the book during the month preceding the discussion and then come to one or all of the dates-and feel free to invite your friends! There is no charge for materials or attendance. The Jewish Film Class: Set in Tel Aviv
Noodle (Film 2)
Thursday, December 17, 7 pm Auditorium, Second Floor
Taught by Library Director Howard Freedman.

After her Chinese maid asks her to watch her young son while she runs an errand, twice-widowed El Al flight attendant Miri Calderon suddenly finds herself saddled with a six-year old boy who speaks no Hebrew. Once she figures out that the woman has been deported back to Beijing, Miri becomes determined to reunite the child with his mother.

Israel, 2007. 89 minutes, in Hebrew with English subtitles. Video Projection

The Jewish Film Class: Set in Tel Aviv
Jellyfish (Film 3)
Thursday, January 7, 7 pm Auditorium, Second Floor
Taught by Library Director Howard Freedman.

Co-directed by popular writers (and husband and wife) Etgar Keret and Shira Geffen, this unconventional film follows three very different Tel Aviv women: an aimless young waitress who finds an abandoned little girl at the beach; a bride who breaks her leg at her wedding reception; and a caregiver separated from her young son in the Philippines. As the woman struggle with difficult and unexpected situations, their occasionally intersecting stories weave a powerful portrait of modern Israeli life.

Israel, 2007. 78 minutes, in Hebrew with English subtitles. Video Projection Genealogy - One-on-One Help with your Family Tree
Sunday, January 10, 12 - 2 pm

Take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection and one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library. Registration requested but not required, call 415-567-3327 ext. 704. "Sundays at 2:00" Drop-in Book Club
January 24, 2010, 2 - 3 pm
The Centaur in the Garden by Moacyr Scliar

Book Group Coordinator Jim Van Buskirk will facilitate a lively discussion one Sunday a month at 2 am at the Jewish Community Library. Pick up your individual copy of the book during the month preceding the discussion and then come to one or all of the dates-and feel free to invite your friends! There is no charge for materials or attendance.

Genealogy - One-on-One Help with your Family Tree
Sunday, February 7, 12 - 2 pm

Take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection and one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library. Registration requested but not required, call 415-567-3327 ext. 704.

"Sundays at 2:00" Drop-in Book Club
February 21, 2010, 2 - 3 pm
What Happened to Anna K by Irina Reyn

Book Group Coordinator Jim Van Buskirk will facilitate a lively discussion one Sunday a month at 2 am at the Jewish Community Library. Pick up your individual copy of the book during the month preceding the discussion and then come to one or all of the dates-and feel free to invite your friends! There is no charge for materials or attendance.