Lee and Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater & the Simon Family JCC’s Lee and Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival 2020–2021*

*events shown only through March 3 To register for events, go to Jewishva.org/bookfest

All events are open to the community with RSVP or tickets required and will take place virtually. For more information and to register, go to JewishVA.org/Bookfest.

ISRAEL TODAY The Words of My Father with Yousef Bashir Thursday, February 25, 12 pm, free

The Jewish Community Relations Council of the UJFT, Simon Family JCC, Embassy of Israel, & Community Partners’ 10th Annual Israel Today series, as part of the Lee & Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival, presents The Words of My Father a conversation with author, Yousef Bashir.

Bashir’s story and the ideals of peace and empathy it upholds are a soothing balm for these dangerous and troubled times, and a reminder that love and compassion are a gift— and a choice. Pre-registration required. Don’t miss hearing from this vigorous advocate of Israeli-Palestinian peace. For more information and to register, go to JewishVA.org/IsraelToday or contact Batya Glazer, JCRC director, at bglazer@ujft.org.

Montreal–Toronto Express: Jewish Culture and Literature North of the Border—A Series Monday, March 1, free Chantal Ringuet at 3 pm Lisa Richter at 7:30 pm

In collaboration with Old Dominion University’s Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures as part of a fellowship with the Canadian Association of Jewish Scholars and the Vered Center of Jewish Studies at the University of Ottawa, presents a series on Canadian Jewish literature and poetry.

Chantal Ringuet is a Yiddish-Quebecois poet, and author of a popular recent book on Leonard Cohen. The acclaimed poet Lisa Richter is most well known for her writings about Ana Margolin. Pre-registration required. For more information and to register, contact Patty Shelanski, Arts + Ideas manager, at pshelanski@ujft.org or 757452-3184.

KONIKOFF CENTER FOR LEARNING Why Jews Do That: Or 30 Questions Your Rabbi Never Answered by Rabbi Avram Mlotek Wednesday, March 3, 7:30 pm, free

Aone-stop-shop for answers to all the questions most people have about Judaism, but were too shy or afraid to ask. Preregistration required. For more information and to register, go to JewishVA.org/KCL or contact Sierra Lautman, director of Jewish Innovation, at slautman@ujft.org or 757-965-6107.

PJ LIBRARY/ KONIKOFF CENTER FOR LEARNING Asteroid Goldberg: Passover in Outer Space An author talk with Brianna Sayres Thursday, March 11, 6 pm, free

An out-of-this-world Passover fantasy! When Asteroid and her parents get stuck for Passover, Asteroid plans a Passover seder for herself and her family that is truly out-of-this-world. With Jupiter’s moons for matzoh balls, the Big Dipper for a ladle and horseradish from Jupiter’s red spot, you’ve never seen a Passover seder like this one!

Brianna Caplan Sayres is living her childhood dream of being a children’s book author. Among her many picture books is the bestselling Where Do Diggers Sleep at Night? series published by Random House. Sayres is the founder of Intergalactic Afikoman, a new publisher of Jewish children’s books whose goal is to publish “out-ofthis-world Jewish books for today’s Jewish kids.

Citizen 865: The Hunt for Hitler’s Hidden Soldiers in America with author Debbie Cenziper Monday, March 15, 12 pm

In 1990, in a drafty basement archive in Prague, two American historians made a startling discovery: a Nazi roster from 1945 that no Western investigator had ever seen. The longforgotten document, containing more than 700 names, helped unravel the details behind the most lethal killing operation in World War II. In a story spanning seven decades, Citizen 865 is the gripping story of a team of Nazi hunters at the U.S. Department of Justice as they raced against time to expose members of a brutal SS killing force who disappeared in America after World War II.

Debbie Cenziper is an associate professor and the director of investigative reporting at Medill, and a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter and nonfiction author who writes for The Washington Post. Cenziper’s investigative stories have exposed wrongdoing, prompted Congressional hearings and led to changes in federal and local laws.