Jewish noir is a genre which I generally enjoy. The Jewish people like to think of themselves as the “chose ones”, but that title is a mixed blessing and a curse. It’s interesting to read how the definition of noir changed from economic desperation and government corruption to stories about simply fitting in, belonging and all the drama and trauma that it entails.

The unique book “The Fifth Servant” a smart mystery which is funny and interesting. The book is an interesting read about the Jewish ghetto in Prague

There is great insight on how Jews were persecuted and the struggles they faced. However, the author uses these adversities to highlight the Jewish spirit

After finishing the book, the first thing that stood up in my mind is the quality of the writing. In these short stories, sometimes a whole world was discovered

Article first published as Book Review: No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel on Blogcritics. About: No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel is a fictional book taking place during World War II. The book follows a small group of Jewish villagers who lives in a town on a river bank. The pub­lisher is giv­ing away one advanced readers copy (ARC) of this book— enter at the end of the post. 336 pages Publisher: Riverhead Hardcover ISBN: 1594487944 My rating for No one is Here Except All of Us – 4 Great price on this book in paper or elec­tronic for­mat through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account Check out this & more World War II books on Man of la BookStore Thoughts: No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (website) is a very lyrical and poetic book. The story flows, is unique and fascinating. Most of the time I read the book I felt as if I, or the protagonist, were dreaming, however, upon reading the author’s note it turned out that many of the events are based on what Ms.Ausubel’s great grandmother experienced during World War II. The premise of the book is interesting, something I haven’t read yet….

Here are the books I enjoyed the most this year. This list is of books I read, not only published in 2011. First and foremost – this is THE best book I’ve read this year. From some reason it didn’t get much attention in the US. We, The Drowned by Carsten Jensen “We, The Drowned” (Web­site) by Carsten Jensen is a spell­bind­ing, award win­ning (Danske Banks Lit­ter­atur­pris) fic­tional book which spans 100 years in the lives of the inhab­i­tants of the small Dan­ish coastal town Marstal. Jensen’s debut novel is already hailed as an instant clas­sic and right­fully so. Non-Fiction: Auschwitz by Dr. Miklós Nyiszli Auschwitz: A Doctor’s Eye­wit­ness Account by Dr. Mik­lós Nyis­zli is a non-fiction mem­oir of a Jew­ish Hun­gar­ian med­ical doc­tor who per­formed “research” on other Jews with the evil Dr. Josef Men­gele aka “Angel of Death”. This is not an easy book to read, but an impor­tant one. Elizabeth and Hazel by David Margolick Eliz­a­beth and Hazel: Two Women of Lit­tle Rock by David Mar­golick is a non fic­tion book about two ladies who were made famous by the press. The book looks his­tory square in the eye and doesn’t flinch. Gated Grief by Leila Levinson “Gated Grief: The Daugh­ter of a GI Con­cen­tra­tion Camp Lib­er­a­tor Dis­cov­ers a Legacy of Trauma” by Leila Levin­son who started the…

Ever wanted to know what to get the men in your life besides tools, a silly tie or something which will end up in the attic on January 1? Here are the answers to your prayers. For the “I want to read just one book I could talk about in parties” type of guy: 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami For the “I like emotional books but want people to think I’m reading a war novel” manly man: The Polski Affair by Leon H. Gildin For your “I like intellectual books” boyfriend who wants to impress you: Georg Letham: Physician and Murderer by Ernst Weiss For the “hey dude, it’s a classic” guy:The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller For your uncle that grew a stomach and converted to Buddhism: Across Many Mountains by Yangzom Brauen or Fire Monks by Colleen Morton Busch For your second cousin that keeps saying how he hates the classics: Dracula by Bram Stoker For your neighbor that decorates his house the day after Halloween: Jacob T. Marley by R. William Bennett For your long lost cousin. living in a log cabin and still believes that the South shall rise:The Civil War: A Visual History For your brother…

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z – A – Anderson, Steve – Historical fiction author talking about his ideas, research and social media. Atkin, Ann – Author of the “Flash His­tory” series talks about biographies, history and more. – B – Baer, Nadja and David Cohen – Talking about the graphic adap­ta­tion of the U.S. Con­sti­tu­tion. Belfer, Lauren – Author of “A Fierce Radi­ance” talks about research, writing and book promotions. Benn, James R. – Historical fiction author of the Billy Boyle WWII series talks about social media, cover art and more. Berger, W.K. – A published non-fiction author who decided to publish his first fiction book independently. Block, Stefan Merill – Author of “The Storm at the Door” talks about fictionalizing his grandparents’ lives, family and social media. Braude, Joseph -Author of the nonfiction book “The Honored Dead” (and several others) talks about social media, the Middle East and other subjects. Busch, Colleen Morton – Author of the nonfiction book “Fire Monks” talks about Zen, Buddhism, Social Media and fire fighting. – C – Cohen, David and Nadja Baer…