People of the Book Archives

2020-21

  • September Here I am: A Novel by Jonathan Safran Foer
  • October Family papers: A Sephardic journey through the 20th Century by Sara Abrevava Stein
  • November Saving Sophie by Ronald H. Balson
  • December Absurdistan by Gary Shteyngart
  • January The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff
  • February The Golem and the Jinni: A Novel by Helene Wecker
  • March I.M. Memoir by Isaac Mizrahi
  • April The Ministry of Special Cases by Nathan Englander
  • May The Third Angel by Alice Hoffman
  • June The Last Jews in Berlin by Leonard Gross

2019-20

  • September The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish
  • October The Ruined House by Ruby Namdar
  • November Naamah by Sarah Blake
  • December Spies of No Country by Matti Friedman
  • January Lioness: Golda Meir and the Nation of Israel by Francine Klagsbrun
  • February The Last Watchman of Old Cairo by Michael David Lukas
  • March The Family Tabor by Cherise Wolas
  • April Button Man by Andrew Gross
  • May The Secret Chord by Geraldine Brooks
  • June Not Our Kind by Kitty Zeldis

2018-19

  • September And After the Fire by Lauren Belfer
  • October 100 Suggestions for Secrets and Spiritual Activists by Rabbi Josh Bolton
  • November Memento Park by Mark Sarbas
  • December The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem by Sarit Yishai-Levi
  • January Away by Amy Bloom
  • February In the Land of the Invisible Women by Qanta Ahmed
  • March The Frozen Rabbi by Steve Stern
  • April Miss Burma by Charlene Craig
  • May The German Girl by Armando Lucas Correa
  • June The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish

2017-18

  • September Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
  • October Heat and Light by Jennifer Haigh
  • November Karolina’s Twins by Ronald Balson
  • December The Seven Good Years by Etgar Keret
  • January The Family Orchard by Nomi Eve
  • February In the Darkroom by Susan Faludi
  • March A Backpack, a Bear, and 9 Crates of Vodka by Lev Golinkin
  • April Two She-Bears by Meir Shalev
  • May Pastrami on Rye by Ted Merwin
  • June All Who Go Do Not Return by Shulem Deen

2016-17

  • September Leaving Berlin by Joseph Kanon
  • NovemberThe Family by David Laskin
  • December Moving Day by Jonathan Stone
  • January The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman
  • February Jews and Words by Amos Oz
  • March The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
  • April My Grandfathers Gallery by Anne Sinclair
  • May Lineup by Liad Shoham
  • June The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure

2015-16

  • September Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk
  • October Ten Green Bottles: The True Story of One Family’s Journey from War-torn Austria to the Ghettos of Shanghaiby Vivian Jeanette Kaplan
  • November The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barberry
  • December The Aleppo Codex: In Pursuit of One of the World’s Most Coveted, Sacred, and Mysterious Books by Matti Friedman
  • January The Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid
  • February The Catcher Was a Spy: the Mysterious Life of Moe Berg by Nicholas Dawidoff
  • March Henna House by Nomi Eve
  • April Little Failure by Gary Shteyngart
  • May Thirteen Days in September: the Dramatic Story of the Struggle for Peace by Lawrence Wright
  • June  All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

2014-15

  • September The Lion Seeker by Kenneth Bonert
  • October & November Like Dreamers by Yossi Klein Halevi
  • December Shlepping the Exile by Michael Wex
  • January Once We Were Brothers by Ronald H. Balson
  • February My Promised Land: The Triumph and Tragedy of Israel by Ari Shavit
  • March Hope : a tragedy by Shalom Auslander
  • April The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe
  • May Dissident Gardens by Jonathan Lethem
  • June To Algeria, With Love by Suzanne Ruta

2013-14

  • September Binocular Vision by Edith Pearlman
  • October Unorthodox by Deborah Feldman
  • November Lucky Child by Thomas Buergenthal & Eli Wiesel
  • December Clothes on their Backs by Linda Grant
  • January Scenes from Village Life by Amos Oz
  • February Spies of the Balkans by Alan Furst
  • March Mornings in Jenin by Susan Abulhawa
  • April The Lost Wife by Alyson Richman
  • May People of Forever Are Not Afraid by Shani Boianjiu
  • June I Am Forbidden by Anouk Markovitz

2012-13

  • September The Hare with The Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal
  • October The Last Brother: A Novel by Nahancha Appanah
  • November Start Up Nation by DAN SENOR & SAUL SINGER
  • December Burnt Bread and Chutney by Carmit Delman
  • January The Arrogant Years:  One Girl’s Search for Her Lost Youth, From Cairo to Brooklyn
  • February The Lemon Tree by Sandy Tolin
  • March What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank by Nathan Englander
  • April Movie Night Something on my OwnGertrude Berg and American Broadcasting
  • May In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson
  • June Walking Israel by Martin Fletcher

2011-12

  • September Yellow Wind by David Grossman
  • October Running the Books by Avi Steinberg
  • November 700 Sundays by Billy Crystal
  • December Lost Legends of New Jersey by Frederick Reiken
  • January Song of Songs
  • February Mazel by Rebecca Goldstein
  • March Enemies of the People by Kati Marton
  • April The List by Martin Fletcher
  • May Constantine’s Sword
  • June  Day after Night by Anita Diamant

2010-11

  • September Hunting Eichmann: How a Band of Survivors and a Young Spy Agency Chased Down the World’s Most Notorious Nazi by Neal Bascomb
  • October  By Fire, By Water by Mitchell Kaplan
  • November Friendly Fire:  A Duet by A. B. Yehoshua
  • December The Zookeeper’s Wife by Diane Ackerman
  • January  Rashi’s Daughters: Miriam by Maggie Anton
  • February The Prophet’s Wife by Milton Steinberg
  • March A Pigeon & a Boy by Meir Shalev
  • April The New Rabbi:  A Congregation Searches for its Leader by Stephen Fried
  • May  Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos
  • June Day After Night by Anita Diamant
  • June  La’s Orchestra Saves the World by Aexander McCall Smith
  • June  Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson

2009–10

  • June The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society, Mary Ann Shaffer
  • May The Girl from Foreign, Sadia Shepard
  • April He, She, It, Marge Piercy
  • March The Muslim Next Door: The Qu’ran, the Media, and That Veil Thing, Sumbul Ali-Karamali
  • February The Great Escape: Nine Jews Who Fled Hitler and Changed the World, Kati Marton
  • January A Murder in the Kibbutz, Batya Gur
  • December The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit, Lucette Lagnado
  • November All Other Nights, Dara Horn
  • October Other People’s Houses, Lore Segal
  • September The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, Michael Chabon

2008–09

  • June Rashi’s Daughers, Maggie Anton
  • May Other People’s Houses, Lore Segal
  • April The Yiddish Policeman’s Union, Michael Chabon
  • March Once Upon a Country, Sari Nusseibeh with Anthony David
  • February O Jerusalem, by Laurie King
  • January The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
  • December Septembers of Shiraz, Dalia Sofer
  • November My Father’s Paradise: A Son’s Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq, Ariel Sabar
  • October People of the Book, Geraldine Brooks
  • September The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million, Daniel Mendelsohn

2007–08

  • June A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini
  • May The Sex Wars, Marge Piercey
  • April Not Me, Michael Lavigne
  • March Twins, Tessa De Loo
  • February The Misunderstood Jew (pp. 199-229), Amy-Jill Levine
  • January The Misunderstood Jew (pp. 1-118), Amy-Jill Levine
  • December Everyman, Philip Roth
  • November Black, White and Jewish, Rebecca Walker
  • October History of Love, Nicole Krauss
  • September The Ornament of the World, Maria Rosa Menocal

2006–07

  • June The Caged Virgin, Ayaan Hirsi Ali
  • April The World to Come, Dara Horn
  • March Outwitting History, Aaron Lansky
  • February The Battle of God (pp. 167-372), Karen Armstrong
  • January The Battle of God (pp. 1-167), Karen Armstrong
  • December Family Orchard, Nomi Eve
  • November The Coffee Trader, David Liss
  • October China Dreams: Growing Up Jewish in Tientsin, Isabelle Maynard
  • September At the Entrance to the Garden of Eden, Yossi Klein Halevi

2005–06

  • June Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed, Philip Hallie
  • May The Covenant, Naomi Ragen
  • April A Tale of Love and Darkness, Amos Oz
  • March The Israelis (Sections 4 & 5), Donna Rosenthal
  • February The Israelis (Sections 1, 2, & 3), Donna Rosenthal
  • January The Plot Against America, Philip Roth
  • December How Israel Lost, Richard Ben Cramer
  • November A Simple Story, S. Y. Agnon
  • October The Song of Names, Norman Labrecht
  • September The Autobiography of God, Julius Lester

2004–05

  • June The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini
  • September Abraham, Bruce Feiler

2003–04

  • June Giving Up America, Pearl Abraham
  • May The Peddlar’s Grandson, Edward Cohen
  • April Far Euphrates, Aryeh Stolman
  • March The Golem of Auschwitz, Bernard Otterman
  • January Martyr’s Crossing, Amy Wilentz
  • December The Russian Debutante’s Handbook, Gary Shteyngart
  • November The Physician (last 4 sections), Noah Gordon
  • October The Physician, Noah Gordon
  • September The Brigade, Howard Blum

2002–03

  • June Teacha! Stories from a Yeshiva, Gerry Albarellis
  • May After a Long Silence, Helen Fremont
  • April The Celebrant, Eric Greenberg
  • March Henry Ford and the Jews, Neil Baldwin
  • February The Last Jew, Noah Gordon
  • January Sleeping Arrangements, Laura Cunningham
  • December The Mark of the Angel, Nancy Huston
  • November Lost in Translation, Eva Hoffman
  • October Jew vs. Jew, Samuel Freedman
  • September Paradise Park, Allegra Goodman

2001–02

  • June Shiksa Goddess, Wendy Wasserstein
  • May Nine Parts of Desire, Geraldine Brooks
  • April Coming Home to Jerusalem, Wendy Orange
  • March Louisa, Simone Zelitch
  • February Out of Egypt: A Memoir, Andre Aciman
  • January Mr. Mani, A.B. Yehoshua
  • December The Soup has Many Eyes, Joann Leonard
  • November In My Brother’s Image, Eugene Togany
  • October Jokes: Philosophical Thoughts on Joking Matters, Ted Cohen
  • September For the Relief of Unbearable Urges, Nathan Englander

2000–01

  • June The Human Stain, Phillip Roth
  • May I Married a Communist, Phillip Roth
  • April Hotel Bolivia, Leo Spitzer
  • March If I Told You Once, Judy Budnitz
  • February Chosen by God, Joshua Hammer
  • January To Know a Woman, Amoz Oz
  • December The Ladies’ Auxiliary, Tova Marvis
  • November The Vanishing American Jew, Alan Dershowitz
  • October Flora’s Suitcase, Dalia Rabinovich
  • September The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon, Richard Zimler

1999–2000

  • June Seize the Day, Saul Bellow
  • May Fugitive Pieces, Ann Michaels
  • April The Conversion, Aharon Appelfeld
  • March Storm Tide, Marge Piercy
  • February The Provincals: The History of the Jews in the South, Eli Evans
  • January Lazar Malkin Enters Heaven, S. Stern
  • December Roommates, Max Appel
  • November Turbulent Souls, Stephen Dubner
  • October The Reader, Bernhard Schlink
  • September Damascus Gate, Robert Stone

1998–99

  • June Liberating the Gospels, John Spong
  • May American Pastoral, Philip Roth
  • April The Red Tent, Anita Diamant
  • March As a Driven Leaf, Milton Steinberg
  • February Memoirs of a Fortunate Jew (an Italian Story), Dan Vittorio Segre
  • January Jepthe’s Daughter, Naomi Ragen
  • December Bread Givers, Anzia Yezierska
  • November Where She Came From, Helen Epstein
  • October Snow in August, Pete Hamill
  • September Stones from the River, Ursula Hegi

1997–98

  • June A Hole in the Heart of the World, Jonathan Kaufman
  • May The Prince of West End Avenue, Alan Isler
  • April The Mezuzah in the Madonna’s Foot, Trudi Alexy
  • March The Family Markowitz, Allegra Goodman
  • February An Orphan in History, Paul Cowan
  • January Fima, Amos Oz
  • December Mazel, Rebecca Goldstein
  • November Fima, Amos Oz
  • October My Name is Asher Lev, Chaim Potok

1996–97

  • June The Imported Bridegroom, Abraham Cahan
  • May The Color of Water, James McBride
  • April Boychicks in the Hood, Robert Eisenberg
  • March Romance Reader, Pearl Abraham
  • February Enormous Changes at the Last Minute, Grace Paley
  • January Enemies: A Love Story, I. B. Singer
  • December Silences, Tillie Olson
  • November An Interrupted Life…, Etty Hillesum