In stores now! This Side Up!

October 12, 2011

Mordechai Schmutter is a freelance writer, which means that he’s available for weddings, bar mitzvahs, and any event where you want your guests to sit around and watch someone write.  He can also write speeches for said events, as well as various other copies for businesses, entertainment purposes, and personal use.    He spends a lot of his time standing in front of a classroom and trying to convince high school students to let him teach them to write.  Mordechai is also the author of the books, Don’t Yell “Challah!” in a Crowded Matzah Bakery,  A Clever Title Goes Here, and a brand new release, This Side Up! which can be purchased online by clicking here.

Here’s an excerpt to enhance your simachas Yom Tov:

Sukkos Gelt

 We are lucky to live in an age (29, if anyone asks) where we have tons of inventions to make Jewish life easier, such as shtenders and Havdalah candles and seedless watermelon.  We also have gefilte fish, which was created so that people could avoid picking out bones on Shabbos.  I think that’s amazing.  I mean, people didn’t like picking seeds out of the watermelons either, but no one decided to take them apart, pull out the seeds, grind up the rest and serve them in loaves with a piece of carrot on top.

Sukkos, in particular, has a lot of inventions associated with it, and they come out with ten new ones every year, kind of like they do on Pesach with Haggados.  Also chumros.

Take s’chach mats, for example.  This was something we didn’t even know we needed.  For years, everyone used bamboo for their sukkos, and everything was fine, except for the occasional pole coming through a window.  You bought the poles at a sukkah outlet, and you tied them to the roof of your car and drove home very carefully, with one hand on the roof, just in case.[1]  But poles were versatile, and it was easy to hang decorations from them, like fake fruit and bee traps.  (Bees love honey, so bee traps are another great invention, although they’re a lot more effective if you put them OUTSIDE your sukkah.  The same goes for bear traps.)  But then someone came up with the idea of s’chach mats, where you stand at one end of the sukkah and just roll the whole thing out like a tablecloth, and voila – it sags all over the place.  Especially when you try to hang heavy things, such as bee traps.  Also, if you don’t tie the mat down, it catches the wind like a sail and blows off down the street.    Keep Reading…


NEW! The Ben Ish Hai

October 11, 2011

There’s a whole lot more to the Sephardic legacy than some hot and spicy, Middle-Eastern recipes for s’chug and kibbeh!

It’s no secret that Sephardic Jewry has a rich and unique heritage all of their own, with the crown jewels being the towering Sephardic hachamim whose holiness and greatness in Torah were renowned throughout the entire Jewish world. Now, with the release of Ben Ish Hai, you can get a close-up view of the life and times of one of the most famous of these gedolim: the Ben Ish Hai, Rabbenu Yosef Haim.

Author Yehuda Azoulay has long been known for his beautiful books on the Sephardic hachamim. As the author of A Legacy of Leaders Volumes I and II, as well as founder of the Sephardic Legacy Series, he has made it his goal to make known to the Jewish world the greatness of our Sephardic Torah leaders. In Ben Ish Hai, Azoulay paints an accurate and vivid portrait of the Ben Ish Hai in a most compelling way.

You’ll be amazed at the life of this holy tzaddik; the brilliance of his halachic responsa, his prolific writings, his humility, yiras Shamayim, and ruah hakodesh. You’ll be awed by the stories you’ll read which depict the high level of holiness on which the Ben Ish Hai led his life. You’ll be enlightened, inspired…and proud to be part of the nation of this great man.

Keep the spiritual high of the Yamim Noraim aflame. Invest in a book that will inspire you to no end—Ben Ish Hai.

Click here to purchase online.


New Release – A Time to Laugh, A Time to Listen Vol. III

October 10, 2011

All those A Time to Laugh, A Time to Listen fans out there, take note! The third book in your favorite series has just been released!

Following the much-loved style of his previous two books,A Time to Laugh, A Time to Listen Volumes 1 and 2, author Rabbi Yehoshua Kurland has once again written a book of essays on various aspects of Jewish life, each beginning with a great joke and then leading into a thought-provoking article brimming with Torah-true hashkafah and life lessons.

In true Rabbi Kurland fashion, A Time to Laugh, A Time to Listen Volume 3 will make you laugh, learn…and come away inspired.

Click here to purchase online.

Enjoy a sample l’kavod Sukkos:

Sukkos – No More Questions

A man walked into a lawyer’s office and inquired about the lawyer’s rates.

 “One hundred dollars for three questions,” replied the lawyer.

 “Isn’t that awfully steep?” asked the man.

 “Yes,” the lawyer replied, “and what was your third question?”

Too many questions can be quite costly. Some people spend a lifetime searching, with their queries never answered. Others aren’t really interested in answers, as the absence of resolutions can serve as a solid rationalization for complacency and stagnation, and camouflage the need for change and reassessment. Keep Reading…


In Stores Now!!! – Don’t Judge By What You See

October 6, 2011

“Mommy, look! That girl is in a wheelchair!”

As parents, few comments of our kids make us cringe the way announcements such as the above do. Of course, such comments are usually accompanied by loud stage-whispers and lots of finger-pointing at the handicapped child, as our kids struggle to comprehend such a different-looking human being.

But what if our children understood that “different-looking” doesn’t necessarily mean “different”? What if they could accept the fact that those with handicaps can be just as fun, friendly, and on-the-ball as any of them?

That is the aim of our newest kids’ book, Don’t Judge By What You See. An adorable story told in rhymes, Don’t Judge By What You See clearly conveys to children the important lesson of not judging those whom they see—especially those with physical handicaps—by their externals, but rather seeing people for who they truly are inside. Written by Ashira Greenberg, who herself has cerebral palsy, and stunningly illustrated by artist Racheli Edelstein, this book is one that all responsible, thinking parents will want to buy for their children.

Click here to purchase online.


NOW AVAILABLE!!! New Novel – The Freedom to Be

October 2, 2011

It’s rare when a manuscript is so gut-wrenching yet simultaneously heartwarming, that it causes editors, proofreaders, and typesetters alike to cry while working on it. Rare—but it does occasionally occur, as it did with The Freedom to Be.
At nearly 700 pages long, The Freedom to Be is a whopper of a novel, but we guarantee that while reading it, you won’t ever feel the book’s true length. You will become so engrossed in it, so intertwined with the lives, thoughts, and feelings of Efraim, Shoshana, Hadassah, Duvid’l, and all the other characters, so involved in every nuance of the beautifully-written plot—that time will cease to exist for you as you read, and the pages will just slip by…
Trust me—I speak from experience, having made the (unwise) decision to read this book at night. Suffice it to say that it was a very tired me who showed up at work the next day!
But it was worth it—as you will see for yourself. The Freedom to Be is not your typical novel. It is a tear-jerker, an exhilarating pleasure for your mind, and a literary delight all at once. It takes “reading a novel” to a new level, making it into an actual experience, one that you will relish and savor for a long time afterward…
This Sukkos, treat yourself to THE novel of the season…of the year…of our times. The Freedom to Be: not your ordinary novel.

Click here to purchase online.


Just Released! – Onions Always Make Me Cry

September 28, 2011

Have a teenage girl at home who’s been helping out enormously with Yom Tov and is deserving of a treat? Or are you that teenager yourself? (Teens-at-heart, you can answer “yes” to that question, too!) In either case, you’ll be thrilled to hear about our latest release—a teen book titled Onions Always Make Me Cry. A compilation of some of the best stories from the popular Shoshanim magazine for teens, Onions Always Make Me Cry will provide you with hours of reading pleasure and entertainment. Whether it’s the story of Goldie, who’s always been a quiet, studious type of girl, until one day she finds herself running for the G.O. elections, or the story of Sara’le, who thought she landed the job of her dreams one summer, until reality begins showing her otherwise, you’ll relate to the characters in this book as only a teen can—and you’ll love every bit of it!

Be prepared to laugh. Be prepared to cry. In Onions Always Make Me Cry, there’s something for your every mood!

Click here to order online.


The Meshulach – In Stores Now!

September 27, 2011

Mention the name “Meir Uri Gottesman” to any avid reader, and chances are you’ll immediately see a gleam come to the person’s eyes. Gottesman? His books are in a class of their own, devoured by thousands of fans across the globe; Jewish literary classics in every sense of the term.

What is this author’s secret? What is so electrifying about his books, to the point where throngs of eager readers converge upon them the moment they are released? Well, dear reader, you need only to join those throngs in the bookstores, snapping up copy after copy of The Meshulach, Gottesman’s newest book, to find the answer to that yourself…

In the Meshulach, a powerful collection of three not-to-be-forgotten novellas, Gottesman leads us into a mystical world, where everything and anything is possible… A billionaire philanthropist forced to disguise himself as a penniless panhandler and begin a journey into his own self… An old jalopy of a car that becomes suddenly blessed with bizarre powers… A thin, brittle, and homely pine tree in the heart of one of the most exclusive streets in Toronto, whose owner, Chaim Heller, refuses to heed his neighbor’s demands that he chop it down…

We won’t spoil any endings for you, but suffice it to say that while reading The Meshulach, with author Meir Uri Gottesman in the driver’s seat, you are headed to destinations  more wondrous and far-out than you’d have ever imagined…

Click here to order online.


NEW- Balabusta’s Daily Organizer 2011-2012

September 23, 2011

Stressed out? Overwhelmed? Feeling that you have so much to do but no time to do it all? We have the solution for you!

The Balabusta’s Daily Organizer: the ideal planner and calendar for the busy Jewish housewife.

For 3 years now, frum women of every type and stripe have come to know and love this amazing organizer, which, though slim and handy, somehow has everything in it. It includes a weekly calendar, complete with Jewish and secular dates and all the Yamim Tovim and (l’havdil) legal holidays, menu planning lists, to-do lists, grocery lists, candle-lighting times in many Jewish communities, tips, and so much more. Little wonder that so many of you have been after us, asking when this next edition would be released!

Click here to order online!


Grow More! – In Stores Now!

September 23, 2011

Who isn’t looking for ways to improve and grow at this time of year? With the blasts of the shofar ringing in our ears these days, Jews everywhere, whether man or woman, are doing their utmost to merit a sweet and healthy new year.

Grow More!, by noted author Rebbetzin S. Feldbrand, is an excellent tool for achieving true personal growth. A comprehensive book on self-improvement, Grow More! will provide you with powerful, down-to-earth ideas to keep you inspired and motivated each day. Topics such as humility, truthfulness, and hakaras hatov are explored in easy-to-read segments, with many practical examples included to further underscore the points made.

This year, capitalize on your strengths! Reach your goals! Discover who you are, and…grow more!


NEW! A Patchwork Life

September 15, 2011

All of you overworked ladies out there, get ready for a great, well-deserved treat! We have a book for you that is just begging to be savored over a cup of hot coffee and a slice of fresh cake, with your feet up…and we have a feeling that you will be more than happy to give in to that plea!

Author Libby Lazewnik needs no introduction; as any reader can tell you, her name is synonymous with fantastic books of the highest caliber of writing. Now we present to you her latest offering: A Patchwork Life, a collection of fictional short stories. Having all been previously published in Binah magazine, these stories were devoured and gushed about by countless women just like you—so we already know that you are going to love this book!

Are you a mother feeling the twinge of Empty Nest Syndrome? An excited kallah with a thorn in your side called your prospective sister-in-law? A kindhearted neighbor to someone whom you feel needs your help? No matter what your age or stage may be, the characters and plots in A Patchwork Life will resonate with you on some level, providing you with hours of unadulterated pleasure, entertainment, and relaxation…

Ahh! Enjoy!

Click here to purchase online.