Free garage parking; entrance on Pierce Street between Ellis and Eddy. For more information, contact Allison at ajgreen@bjesf.org or (415) 567-3327, ext 703

Bernard Zakheim: The Art of Prophetic Justice
J Weekly article
October 3, 2012 - February 3, 2013

In the 1930s, Bernard Baruch Zakheim (1896-1985) was one of the leading artists in the Bay Area and one of the foremost Jewish artists in the country. He was also among the most controversial. Today he is best known for his public murals, which reflect the political and social fault lines of the Depression era. His sculptures, oils, watercolors, set designs, and sketches, which span more than six decades, also frequently depict oppression and injustice, resistance and rebirth. The Jewish symbols of his youth in Warsaw, the narrative fresco technique he encountered in Mexico City, and the Post Impressionism he absorbed in Paris, all served his artistic plea for human dignity.

The twelve-panel exhibition, curated by Fred Rosenbaum and Rosanna Sun, was a project conceived by Lehrhaus Judaica in cooperation with The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art & Life, The Bancroft Library, UC Berkeley, and the Jazz Heritage Center. Support was provided by The Koret Foundation, The Laszlo N. Tauber Family Foundation, and The Fleishhacker Foundation.

Program made possible, in part, by Richard Krieg in honor of David Medlin
Co-sponsored by Lehrhaus Judaica. Co-presented by the Jewish Community High School of the Bay, the Mechanics' Institute Library & Chess Room, The Workmen's Circle/Arbeter Ring of Northern California, and The Mexican Museum

Zakheim in Depression-Era San Francisco
A presentation by Fred Rosenbaum
Thursday, October 25, 7 pm

Historian Fred Rosenbaum, curator of the exhibition, will focus on Zakheim's most productive period, the early 1930s, and the Coit Tower murals that put him at the center of the greatest public art controversy in San Francisco's history.

Wide-Angle Lens: Jewish Photographers in the 1940s and 1950s
Photographs from the Collection of Michael and Joyce Axelrod
October 3, 2012 - February 3, 2013

The Michael and Joyce Axelrod photography collection focuses on mid-twentieth century street photographers, photojournalists, and Photo League members. This selection of pieces from the 1940s and 1950s highlights the work of Esther Bubley, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Sid Grossman, Herman Leonard, Ruth Orkin, Walter Rosenblum, and Weegee (Arthur Fellig), among the most important Jewish artists of this period. Drawn to social causes and dedicated to documentary photography, these artists explored an eclectic range of subjects, portraying the famous in formal portraits and intimate snapshots, capturing the spontaneity of street life, and celebrating the soaring beauty of New York's urban landscape.

Wide-Angle Lens includes rare photographs by Alfred Eisenstaedt of J. Robert Oppenheimer and Albert Einstein lecturing in their classrooms at Princeton, as well as Ruth Orkin's 1950 photograph from the opening night of Member of the Wedding. Other highlights are Walter Rosenblum's cityscape, where a small child sails happily on a swing with the Manhattan Bridge looming behind her, and Weegee's iconic image of Louis Armstrong. Together, these images record ordinary and extraordinary people and places with equal sensitivity and curiosity.

Michael and Joyce Axelrod have collected photographs for more than twenty years.
Pieces from their collection have been donated to, and exhibited in, major museums and universities in the U.S. and have traveled with exhibitions to Europe and Canada. This is the first time photographs from their collection have been exhibited in San Francisco.

Curated by Elayne Grossbard for the Jewish Community Library

Program made possible, in part, by Marc and Marci Dollinger in honor of the bat mitzvah of their daughter Shayna

Help with Your Family Tree: Brainstorming with the Mavens
One Sunday Per Month, 12 - 2 pm
OCTOBER 7

Whether you're trying to find your great-grandmother's elusive town or your grandfather's passenger manifest, take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection to countless searchable databases - all with one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Longtime Library volunteer staffer Judy Baston and other veteran researchers from the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society begin with a brainstorming and problem-solving roundtable, followed by individual attention using the Library's resources. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library.

Registration requested but not required; call (415) 567-3327 x 704.

Other dates are:
NOVEMBER 11 • DECEMBER 2 •
JANUARY 6 • FEBRUARY 3 • MARCH 3

FILM CLASS
Israel's Breakthrough Cinema

Due in part to legislation in 2001 that dramatically increased public subsidization of filmmaking, the last decade has seen Israel transform into a remarkable producer of quality cinema. There has been an Israeli finalist for Best Foreign Film in four of the last five Academy Awards. Continuing from last winter's series, we will watch and discuss two of Israel's most successful recent films.

Footnote (2011)
Thursday, October 11, 7 pm

Writer/director Joseph Cedar managed to make a global hit out of mining tensions in the small world of Talmudic scholarship. The winner of nine Ophir Awards, the film focuses on a father and son who are both scholars in Talmudic studies at Hebrew University, but whose personalities and interests are at odds. When there is a mix-up in the awarding of the prestigious Israel Prize, the resentment and bitter humor soar.
105 minutes, in Hebrew with English subtitles.

The second film will be The Band's Visit (2007) on Thursday, January 31, 7 pm

Taught by Library Director Howard Freedman. Film will be shown in video projection.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 15, 7 P.M.
Jews and Ukrainians in Russia's Literary Borderlands:
From the Shtetl Fair to the Petersburg Bookshop
A presentation by Amelia Glaser

Throughout the nineteenth and early twentieth century, Jews, Ukrainians, Poles, and Russians lived together in the territory known as the Pale of Settlement, the region of Eastern Europe that now covers much of Ukraine, Belarus, and the Baltic States. Although these communities spoke different languages, followed distinct cultural habits, and practiced different religions, members of these communities did meet at markets and fairs. The stories that Jewish, Russian, and Ukrainian writers, such as Sholem Aleichem, Isaac Babel, Nikolai Gogol, and Hrihorii Kvitka, tell about these marketplace encounters help us to understand a complex history of coexistence and antagonism in the nineteenth century and after.

Amelia Glaser's presentation is based on her recent book, Jews and Ukrainians in Russia's Literary Borderlands: From the Shtetl Fair to the Petersburg Bookshop

Amelia Glaser is an associate professor of Russian and comparative literature at the University of California, San Diego, where she is currently the director of Russian and Soviet Studies. Her previous book, Proletpen: America's Rebel Yiddish Poets, was recently released in paperback. Professor Glaser received an MA in Yiddish from the University of Oxford and a Ph.D. in comparative literature from Stanford University.

Co-presented by the Kritzer/Ross Émigré Program at the JCCSF in conjunction with New Life newspaper and KlezCalifornia

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 7 P.M.
The Music of Hans Gál, Robert Kahn, and Ernest Bloch
A performance with commentary by
Rebecca Rust, Friedrich Edelmann, and Vera Breheda

Hans Gál and Robert Kahn, both famous musicians and composers, fled Nazi Europe for Britain in the 1930s to escape anti-Semitic persecution. Their music was banned and prohibited from being published or performed during the Nazi period. This concert is an opportunity to hear some less familiar and rarely performed works by these important composers, as well as Ernest Bloch's "Meditations Hébraïque" and "Prayer." The musicians will also read selections from Hans Gál's book, Music Behind Barbed Wire (1940) and Robert Kahn's essay Recollections of Brahms.

Hans Gál (1890-1987) was a teacher, pianist, and composer of operatic, orchestral and chamber works. He was dismissed as director of the Mainz Conservatory in 1933 upon the rise of the Nazis, and fled for Vienna. When Germany annexed Vienna in 1938, he fled for Great Britain, and was interned on the Isle of Man as an "enemy alien." He eventually settled in Edinburgh and taught for many years at the University of Edinburgh.

Robert Kahn (1865-1951) was a German composer and pianist, and was a friend and informal student of Johannes Brahms. He was forced to resign from the Prussian Academy of Arts in 1934 because he was Jewish. After fleeing Germany in 1938, he spent the rest of his life in relative obscurity in England, but produced a voluminous collection of piano music.

Ernest Bloch (1880-1959) is considered one of the great twentieth-century Jewish composers. Born in Switzerland, he spent two decades of his life in the Bay Area, teaching at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and UC Berkeley.

Rebecca Rust (cello), born in the Bay Area, was a student of Margaret Rowell, Bernard Greenhouse, and Mstislav Rostropovitch, and now lives in Germany with her husband, Friedrich Edelmann. She has recorded both rare and standard repertoire on her twelve CDs.

Friedrich Edelmann (bassoon), born in Germany, was a student of Alfred Rinderspacher, Klaus Thunemann, and Milan Turkovic. As principal bassoonist with the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, he played for twenty-seven years under conductors Erich Leinsdorf, Lorin Maazel, James Levine, and Daniel Barenboim. He has recorded six CDs.

Vera Breheda (piano), received her early musical training at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and at age 14 made her debut with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. In 1983 she gave her New York recital debut at Carnegie Hall. Performing music of many styles, from Baroque to twentieth century, Breheda has most recently recorded Piano Works of Johannes Brahms.

Co-presented by the Goethe-Institut San Francisco

The Oy Way: http://theoyway.com/
Following the Path of Most Resistance
A presentation by Harvey Gotliffe
Sunday, October 28, 1:30 pm

In an increasingly hurried, harried, and hectic electronic world, simple Yiddish expressions offer profound wisdom and have helped provide physical, emotional, and mental stress relief to everyone from college students to their bubbes and zeydes. In his new book, The Oy Way, Harvey Gotliffe draws on his extensive background in tai chi to pair easy-to-learn Yiddish expressions with a rhythmic, flowing form of movement. Learn Yiddish expressions while joyously engaging in a restorative, meditative, exercise experience. It will be a mekhaye (pleasure), as the gentle movements help participants feel relaxed and a bisl more limber. Be prepared to laugh, learn, and go with the flow. Harvey Gotliffe, Ph.D. is the editor and publisher of The Ho-Ho-Kus Cogitator and a regular contributor to The Huffington Post. His books include My Father Was Born on Trafalgar Street and The Ben and Zen Now and Then Writing Almanack. Gotliffe taught at San Jose State University from 1986 to 2008, and since 2000 has worked closely with Holocaust survivors in the Bay Area.

Co-presented by KlezCalifornia

Shanghai - A Miraculous Life
A presentation by Leah Jacob Garrick
Thursday, November 1, 7 pm

Baghdadi Jews began arriving in the commercial port city of Shanghai in the 1840s, creating an illustrious community that lasted for a century. Prominent Sephardic families such as the Sassoons, Kadoories, and Hardoons thrived there and were able to help provide for Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution when they flooded Shanghai during the Second World War.

Leah Jacob Garrick was born in Shanghai, the fourth generation of her family to live there. She had a "typical colonial upbringing - English girls' schools, servants, and afternoon tea," all incorporated into an observant Sephardic Jewish lifestyle. She lived through the war years under Japanese occupation and came to the United States as a student in 1947. She has returned to Shanghai as a visitor several times.

Leah Jacob Garrick established the Northern California branch of Volunteers for Israel and volunteered twice in the Israel Defense Forces. Her first of many visits to Israel was on a Hadassah scholarship as a Young Judaea leader in 1957. She has lectured about the Jews of Shanghai locally and in many countries, including Australia, China, Israel, and Spain.

Program made possible, in part, by Michael and Jane Rice
Co-presented by Lehrhaus Judaica and Hadassah, San Francisco Chapter

Help with Your Family Tree: Brainstorming with the Mavens
One Sunday Per Month, 12 - 2 pm
NOVEMBER 11

Whether you're trying to find your great-grandmother's elusive town or your grandfather's passenger manifest, take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection to countless searchable databases - all with one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Longtime Library volunteer staffer Judy Baston and other veteran researchers from the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society begin with a brainstorming and problem-solving roundtable, followed by individual attention using the Library's resources. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library.
Registration requested but not required; call (415) 567-3327 x 704.

Other dates are:
DECEMBER 2 • JANUARY 6 • FEBRUARY 3 • MARCH 3

The Forgetting River:
A Modern Tale of Survival, Identity, and the Inquisition
A presentation by Doreen Carvajal
Tuesday, November 13, 7 pm

Despite growing up Catholic in the Bay Area and having vivid childhood memories of Sunday sermons, catechism, and the rosary, Doreen Carvajal never felt the familial connection with Catholicism. She then learned in adulthood that her family may be descended from conversos, Jews who were forced to renounce their faith and convert to Christianity. Carvajal's search for answers about her family's secret past led her to move to Arcos de la Frontera, a historic pueblo on the southern frontier of Andalusia, where reminders of Spain's repressed Jewish heritage endure. Her new memoir, The Forgetting River, records her research (which ranged from DNA testing to studying Inquisition-era documents now housed at UC Berkeley) and the impact of this quest on her identity.

Doreen Carvajal is a Paris-based reporter for The New York Times and a senior writer for the International Herald Tribune with more than 25 years of journalism experience. She grew up in Lafayette, California and was an undergraduate at UC Berkeley and San Jose State University.

Co-presented by the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society and The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, The Bancroft Library, UC Berkeley

The Invitation
A presentation by Anne Cherian
Thursday, November 15, 7 pm

Author Anne Cherian was born and raised in India. Her Jewish mother, the granddaughter of a rabbi, grew up in Berkeley, and her father was a Jacobite Syrian Christian from India. During her youth, Cherian's close circle of friends included Baghdadi and Bene Israel Jews. In 1982, she was finally able to meet her mother's family when she began her graduate studies at UC Berkeley.

Cherian's new novel, The Invitation, explores the themes of identity, assimilation, family, friendship, and success among a group of first generation Indian immigrants. The novel is set in California and begins when Vikram invites three of his college friends from UCLA to celebrate his son's graduation from MIT. The friends accept out of obligation and curiosity; all are Indian immigrants, and one is now married to a Jewish man who is exploring his heritage. At Vikram's Newport Beach mansion, the showmanship they anticipate dissolves as each is forced to deal with his or her own problems and to re-evaluate the costs of assimilation.

Anne Cherian graduated from Bombay and Bangalore Universities and received master's degrees from UC Berkeley in comparative literature and in journalism. Her debut novel, A Good Indian Wife, won the 2009 South Asian Excellence Literature Award. She lives in Los Angeles and visits India regularly.

Co-presented by SACHI (Society for Art and Cultural Heritage of India)

Two Among the Righteous Few:
A Story of Courage in the Holocaust
A presentation by Marty Brounstein
Sunday, November 18, 1:30 pm

Frans and Mein Wijnakker saved the lives of at least two dozen Jews living in southern Holland during the Holocaust and World War II. This courageous Catholic couple led a simple life in a small town, but took risks to help others in dire need. Those saved lived in the Wijnakkers' home along with them and their four young children. Marty Brounstein commemorates this story in his new book which is based on interviews, research, and audiotapes that Frans Wijnakker made before his death in 1994. Brounstein will also discuss his own special personal connection to this remarkable story.

Marty Brounstein is a speaker and management consultant based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He started his career as an educator, with an emphasis on teaching history, including the Holocaust. He has published seven books in the field of management and communication.

Program made possible, in part, by Larry Burgheimer
Co-presented by The Holocaust Center of Jewish Family and Children's Services, The Farkas Center for the Study of the Holocaust at Mercy High School, San Francisco, and Hadassah, San Francisco Chapter

Help with Your Family Tree: Brainstorming with the Mavens
One Sunday Per Month, 12 - 2 pm
DECEMBER 2

Whether you're trying to find your great-grandmother's elusive town or your grandfather's passenger manifest, take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection to countless searchable databases - all with one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Longtime Library volunteer staffer Judy Baston and other veteran researchers from the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society begin with a brainstorming and problem-solving roundtable, followed by individual attention using the Library's resources. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library.
Registration requested but not required; call (415) 567-3327 x 704.

Other dates are: JANUARY 6 • FEBRUARY 3 • MARCH 3

Moses on the Mesa
A presentation and screening with Paul Ratner
Thursday, December 6, 7 pm

Paul Ratner's new twenty-minute fiction film, Moses on the Mesa, is inspired by the incredible life of Solomon Bibo (1853 - 1934). A Jewish immigrant who left Germany as a teenager in 1869 to seek out his fortune in the dangerous Wild West, he became governor of the indigenous tribe of the Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico, one of the oldest settlements in North America. Solomon Bibo married a Native American woman and became known to the Indians as "Don Solomono." In 1898, Bibo moved his family to San Francisco to seek better education for his children; his oldest son celebrated his bar mitzvah at Ohabai Shalome (the Bush Street Synagogue), and his youngest son attended religious school at Congregation Emanu-El. Just as Solomon Bibo adjusted to the American frontier, his wife, Juana, adapted to life in San Francisco.

Writer and director Paul Ratner will present his short film and discuss some of the dilemmas he faced in bringing this story to the screen.

Paul Ratner, born in the former Soviet Union, had his first interactions with indigenous people in early childhood when his family lived in Siberia. After studying film at Cornell and Chapman Universities, he worked in film and television and has made his own short films, music videos, and documentaries. Ratner was awarded a Six Points Fellowship for Emerging Jewish Artists for the making of Moses on the Mesa.

Co-presented by Lehrhaus Judaica and Congregation Emanu-El

Moses: A Stranger Among Us
A presentation by Maurice D. Harris
Thursday, December 20, 7 pm

Meet Moses the adopted child. Moses the ex-con. Moses the failure. Moses the intermarrier. In his new book, Moses: A Stranger Among Us, Rabbi Maurice Harris leads us to look beyond the familiar portrayals of Moses and discover how Moses' lesser-known attributes and experiences provide us with surprisingly fresh ethical and spiritual guidance. Combining deep respect for the Biblical text with a willingness to question tradition, Rabbi Harris explores the nature of sacred mythic storytelling and reveals a complex Moses whose life story can help us better understand today's complex social issues.

Maurice D. Harris was ordained at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 2003, and served as associate rabbi and head of school at Temple Beth Israel in Eugene from 2003 to 2011. He currently teaches as an adjunct instructor in the Harold Schnitzer Family Program in Judaic Studies at the University of Oregon.

Co-presented by Or Shalom Jewish Community and the Jewish Reconstructionist Movement

Help with Your Family Tree: Brainstorming with the Mavens
One Sunday Per Month, 12 - 2 pm
JANUARY 6

Whether you're trying to find your great-grandmother's elusive town or your grandfather's passenger manifest, take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection to countless searchable databases - all with one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Longtime Library volunteer staffer Judy Baston and other veteran researchers from the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society begin with a brainstorming and problem-solving roundtable, followed by individual attention using the Library's resources. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library.
Registration requested but not required; call (415) 567-3327 x 704.

Other dates are: FEBRUARY 3 • MARCH 3

The Drama of Yiddish on the Hebrew Stage
A presentation by Donny Inbar
Thursday, January 10, 7 pm

Official Zionism frowned upon the spoken Yiddish of the Diaspora, fearing it would interfere with the efforts to transform Hebrew from a frozen religious tongue into a living secular modern language. At the same time, however, Yiddish culture maintained a strong presence in Eretz Yisrael. Since the early twentieth century, the repertoire of Hebrew theater has been abundant with plays from the Yiddish theater, as well as creative adaptations of Yiddish literature and satire. Drawing from his own extensive research, Dr. Inbar will share anecdotes, shatter some myths, pay homage to Abraham Goldfaden (the father of Yiddish theater), and discuss the love-hate relationship between Hebrew and Yiddish. His presentation will also include rare video clips and recordings of Yiddish plays from stage and screen.

Donny Inbar, associate director for arts and culture at the Jewish Community Federation's Israel Center, received his Ph.D. from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. He taught Jewish culture at California universities and directed and translated plays in Israeli professional theater. He previously served as the cultural attaché for the Israeli Consulate in the Bay Area. His article "No Raisins and Almonds in the Land of Israel: A Tale of Goldfaden Productions Featuring Four Hotsmakhs, Three Kuni-Lemls, Two Shulamits, and One Messiah" was recently published in the book Inventing the Modern Yiddish Stage: Essays in Drama, Performance, and Show Business.

Co-presented by the Israel Center, Israeli House of the Consulate General of Israel, KlezCalifornia, The Workmen's Circle/Arbeter Ring of Northern California, and Lehrhaus Judaica

Jewish Eastern Europe: A Family Journey
A presentation by Marc Dollinger
Thursday, January 17, 7 pm

Three profound stories animate Eastern European Jewish history. For centuries, the Pale of Settlement served as the world's center of Jewish life. In Russia, Poland, and its neighboring (and ever changing) countries, Jews lived, studied, and developed a vibrant Yiddish - speaking culture. The Shoah destroyed that world, with the vast majority of its Jews murdered by the Nazis. Facilitated by the fall of Communism, a new, third chapter, is emerging, as a generation of hidden Jews seeks knowledge about their Jewish ancestry. This past summer, Professor Marc Dollinger journeyed with his family to six Eastern European countries, a bat mitzvah trip that would enable his daughter Shayna to learn what it means to have a Yiddish name. Using pictures, videos, and stories from his trip, Professor Dollinger will discuss Eastern European history as well as current efforts to revitalize Jewish life.

Dr. Marc Dollinger holds the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Endowed Chair in Jewish Studies and Social Responsibility at San Francisco State University. He serves on the California advisory committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights, the board of the Jewish Community High School of the Bay, and is academic vice president of Lehrhaus Judaica.

Program made possible, in part, by Judy Baston

Co-presented by the Taube Foundation for Jewish Life & Culture, the Department of Jewish Studies at San Francisco State University, the Jewish Community High School of the Bay, Lehrhaus Judaica, The Holocaust Center of Jewish Family and Children's Services, KlezCalifornia, the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society, and the 28th Jewish Music Festival

The Last Testament:
A Memoir by God (with David Javerbaum)
A presentation by David Javerbaum
Thursday, January 24, 7 pm

As the world heads for its Mayan-predicted end, God breaks a long literary silence to give us The Last Testament. As dictated to eleven-time Emmy Award-winning comedy writer David Javerbaum, it is the ultimate celebrity autobiography and a tale of courage, adversity, and triumph. Sometimes preachy, sometimes holier-than-thou, but always lively, The Last Testament records Javerbaum's encounter with the Omnipotent and their discussions about Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. "The Divine Author" takes us behind the scenes of Genesis and shares candid views on evolution, prayer, and Broadway musicals.

David "DJ" Javerbaum is a former head writer and executive producer of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He is the co-author of America: The Book and Earth: The Book, and is the author of the pregnancy parody What to Expect When You're Expected. He won a 2010 Grammy for songs he composed for Stephen Colbert and wrote the opening numbers for the 2011 Tony Awards and Emmy Awards.

The Watchmaker's Daughter: A Memoir
A presentation by Sonia Taitz
Sunday, January 27, 1:30 pm

"You could say that my father was a watchmaker by trade, but that would be like saying that Nijinsky liked to dance." So begins Sonia Taitz's spirited memoir, a fiercely tender tribute to her parents: her father, the meticulous watchmaker from Lithuania who survived Dachau because of his skill, and her mother, a gifted pianist whose career was cut short by war. Growing up in Manhattan's Washington Heights as the child of survivors, Taitz pits her rebellious spirit against her parents' cautious conservatism. As her parents pass on and she raises children of her own, Taitz comes to a new understanding, and final appreciation, of both her parents.

Sonia Taitz is an essayist, playwright, and the author of the novel In the King's Arms and the memoir Mothering Heights. Her writing has been featured in The New York Times, O: the Oprah Magazine, Psychology Today, and other publications. She earned a J.D. from Yale Law School and an M.Phil. in English Literature from Oxford.

Co-presented by The Holocaust Center of Jewish Family and Children's Services and Hadassah, San Francisco Chapter

Help with Your Family Tree: Brainstorming with the Mavens
One Sunday Per Month, 12 - 2 pm
FEBRUARY 3

Whether you're trying to find your great-grandmother's elusive town or your grandfather's passenger manifest, take advantage of the Library's extensive reference collection and Internet connection to countless searchable databases - all with one-on-one guidance from experienced genealogists. Longtime Library volunteer staffer Judy Baston and other veteran researchers from the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society begin with a brainstorming and problem-solving roundtable, followed by individual attention using the Library's resources. Bring your materials and your questions to the Library.
Registration requested but not required; call (415) 567-3327 x 704.

Monkey Mind: A Memoir of Anxiety
A presentation by Daniel B. Smith
Thursday, February 14, 7 pm

Anxiety once paralyzed Daniel Smith while eating a salad, convincing him that a choice between blue cheese and vinaigrette was as dire a choice as that between life and death. In Monkey Mind, a tragicomic memoir about anxiety, Smith articulates what it is like to live with anxiety and its self-destructive absurdities. With honesty and wit, he exposes anxiety as a pudgy, weak-willed wizard behind a curtain of dread and tames what seemed to him, and to the tens of millions of others who suffer from anxiety, a terrible affliction. Smith also investigates the relationship between anxiety and his Jewish heritage; while recognizing that there is no race or ethnic group that does not suffer from anxiety, he observes that Jews may be particularly good at this kind of suffering.

Daniel Smith is the author of Muses, Madmen, and Prophets: Hearing Voices and the Borders of Sanity. He has written for publications including The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine, and Slate, and his TV appearances include The Colbert Report. Smith has taught at Bryn Mawr College and holds an endowed chair in English at The College of New Rochelle.

Co-presented by the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco

FILM CLASS
Israel's Breakthrough Cinema
Second and last film of the fall/winter season

The Band's Visit (2007)
Thursday, January 31, 7 pm

A low-key film with subtle comic moments, Eran Kolirin's debut revolves around the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra, who have traveled from Egypt to play a concert at an Arab cultural center in Israel. Because of a communication problem, they instead find themselves stranded in a depressing development town in the Negev desert. With no bus set to arrive until the following day, the band members must depend on the hospitality of the local population. The film won eight Ophir Prizes awarded by the Israeli Film Academy.
84 minutes, in English, Arabic, and Hebrew with English subtitles.

Taught by Library Director Howard Freedman. Film will be shown in video projection.

To see our past season of events, click here for the spring 2012 program catalogue.