Author: ArtScroll Staff

ArtScroll’s Incredible Chanukah Titles: A Sneak Preview

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Chanukah is coming, sooner than you think! Have you started thinking about gifts? Here’s some great news: ArtScroll has close to thirty (!) books that have been recently published or are coming out in the next few weeks. With so much quality and so much variety, you’ll find the perfect gift for everyone on your list.

Let’s take a sneak peek at just a few highlights of our Chanukah list.

With the Daf Yomi Siyum HaShas coming immediately after Chanukah, what better way to celebrate a loved one’s siyum — or someone beginning Daf Yomi’s new cycle — than with a book that enhances their learning? The Introduction to the Talmud is a large-size volume that features hundreds of biographies of Tannaim and Amoraim, the Rambam’s introductions to the Mishnah and the Talmud, the Iggeres of Rav Sherira Gaon, the history of the yeshivos of Eretz Yisrael and Babylonia, and much more.

The first volume in the groundbreaking Schottenstein Edition Ein Yaakov, Berachos Volume 1, will enrich our understanding of the Talmud’s Aggadata, and it is designed to make it easy to sync its insights and notes with the daf that is being learned.  

Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis was one of the 20th-century’s most fascinating, charismatic, and spiritually inspiring Jewish women. The Rebbetzin is her vivid and absorbing biography, written by bestselling author Rabbi Nachman Seltzer.

Got any foodies on your Chanukah gift list? Wow them with Daniella Silver’s Variations or Miriam Pascal’s More Real Life Kosher Cooking, both new, both gorgeous.

Presents for the kids? For the littlest, we’ve got My Aleph-Beis Friends, a charming board book that will set them firmly on the wonderful road to reading. Kids Cooking with Chef Shiri: Easy Recipes, Fun Facts, Torah Tidbits and More! will get the young people cooking (great kid-friendly recipes), learning (fascinating Torah facts), and smiling (yes, there are even jokes too!). And The Weekly Parashah: Sefer Shemos will join Sefer Bereishis as the perfect Shabbos-table enhancer.

And so, so many more. Rav Chaim (Kanievsky) on Chumash, which belongs on every Shabbos table. A biography of Rav Yaakov Edelstein, that was a massive bestseller in its original Hebrew edition. The World That Was: Eretz Yisrael, a new volume in The World that Was series that takes us through 18 centuries of history.

With so many new titles — and so many classics, of course — ArtScroll has a gift for everyone. Including you!

Get all your books today at artscroll.com!

A Conversation with Miriam Pascal Author of the soon-to-be-released More Real Life Kosher Cooking

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AS: So exciting — a new cookbook just in time for Chanukah! How long does it take, from concept to published book?

MP: The thing about writing cookbooks and creating recipes is that I love doing it, and I don’t really know how to turn it off! So pretty much as soon as I wrapped up my previous cookbook, Real Life Kosher Cooking, my brain started coming up with ideas for another one. Two years later, here we are!

AS: What’s the process when you develop a recipe? Do you imagine the final end product and then explore how to get there? Or do you simply experiment with different tastes, colors, textures?

MP: Sometimes I develop a recipe very deliberately. I come up with an idea, I research it, I play around, I make it, I tweak it, and then I finally have the perfect recipe. Other times, it’s far more spontaneous. I’ll throw a little this and a little that together and then, when we eat it, if the end result is fantastic, I quickly write down everything I did so that I can remake it as a recipe.

AS: Have you ever had any real disasters in your kitchen?

MP: I’m human, so of course! I’ve had my share of burnt food and recipe flops, but by far the most devastating for me was when I finished photographing a roast, and I put it on the counter to put away later. I’m sure you can guess the end: I woke up the next morning and realized I hadn’t put it away. I was really sad to have to throw out a whole roast, but what could I do?

AS: Did fan feedback influence how you wrote your cookbook?

MP: Absolutely. In fact, I wrote about this in more detail in the introduction to my new book. For example, every time I published a recipe, so many people would ask me if it could be frozen. To ensure they wouldn’t even need to ask, I started to include detailed “plan ahead” information for each recipe, and it’s become a tremendously popular feature of my books!

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A Conversation with Rabbi Shai Graucher – Compiler of Rav Chaim on Chumash

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ArtScroll has just released Rav Chaim on Chumash (volume one – Sefer Bereishis), by Rabbi Shai Graucher – a collection of Rav Chaim Kanievsky’s writings on Chumash, together with stories about Rav Chaim and his illustrious family. We spoke with Rabbi Graucher about this exciting new project:

AS: How did you go about compiling Rav Chaim on Chumash?

RSG: After I saw the incredibly positive response to Rav Chaim’s sefer, Orchos Yosher, which ArtScroll published in English, and which included Maran’s Torah together with stories,  it was only natural to move on  to my next dream: a  sefer of Rav Chaim’s Torah – and stories — on Chumash.

I went through dozens of Rav Chaim’s sefarim, and, of course, his monumental sefer on the Torah, Taama D’Kra. Together with a team of talmidei chachamim, I began the process of choosing what should be included. Then came the editing, translating, and polishing, until we were satisfied that this will be a classic that will grace every Shabbos table.

AS: Tell us a little about your relationship with Rav Chaim.

RSG: My connection with Rav Chaim began when I was quite young. I still remember the first time I came to him for a berachah. He lifted his piercing eyes from the Gemara and stared directly at me, and I could feel my little boy’s neshamah start to tremble. I remember his words so clearly: “If you want to learn – you will learn,” followed by his berachah: “You should grow up to be a talmid chacham.” I don’t think I’ve ever experienced anything that touched me so deeply. Those words of his became my guiding light:  “If you want to learn – you will learn.” Baruch Hashem, after I married I created a close relationship with him. I took every opportunity to visit him. All through Elul I traveled every day from Yerushalayim to Bnei Brak for vasikin davening with him; during Selichos I would arrive an hour earlier.

AS: How did Rav Chaim react when you brought him the sefer?

RSG: He expressed satisfaction from the “zikui ha’rabim” – those were his words.  I made a “Shehecheyanu” on the sefer, we drank a l’chaim, and he gave me a berachah that I should merit to publish sefarim on all of Shas. With one dream fulfilled, I’ll be working on finishing the rest of this project and then – with the help of Hashem and Rav Chaim’s merit – there’s so much more to do!

Get your copy today on artscroll.com!

A Conversation with Rabbi Binyomin Pruzansky Author of Inspired: Heartwarming stories and uplifting insights to enlighten your life

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AS: Your new book, Inspired, has three elements – an inspirational Torah insight, stories, and “takeaways.” Can you tell the readers a little about each of these three parts?

RBP: People today are looking for real inspiration in their lives. In my new book I offer an uplifting insight that really speaks to the reader, followed by a powerful story that brings home the message, and a short takeaway quote to carry the inspiration into the reader’s heart.　

AS: Your stories are so varied. They range from the normal everyday stuff (a van breaking down on a highway that teaches a lesson in tefilah and bitachon) to the poignant (the incredible emunah of a bereaved parent) to the unbelievable (a tray of gefilte fish brings unexpected healing that shocks all the doctors). Is there a common thread among the more than 70 stories in Inspired?

RBP: I searched for stories that people can relate to in their everyday lives, so that people would say, “Hey, that story really could have happened to me.” The common thread is that it is these are down to earth stories that have a positive message that speaks to every person, whatever their challenges, whatever their background.

AS: These are complicated times we live in. How can we stay upbeat and, yes, inspired?

RBP: Although life can be quite complicated, a Yid has to open his eyes and see all the incredible berachah and hashgachah pratis happening to him on a daily basis. When we focus on the positive in our lives and see the hand of Hashem constantly guiding us, we will always live inspired.

AS: With all these great stories, do you have any personal favorites – and why?

RBP: My favorite story is about a young man named Manish who really wanted to get married, but nothing was happening. After hearing about the power of davening on Seder night, he cried out to Hashem — and days later he was miraculously answered. I love the story because I met Manish myself one day while shopping in the local grocery store where he works, and heard first-hand his story. His amazing emunah peshutah left me truly inspired.

Get your copy today at artscroll.com!

Everyone’s Entitled to My Opinion: The Wisdom and Wit of Rabbi Orlofsky

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I’m looking over a manuscript, and I’m smiling. Chuckling. Laughing out loud.

My husband, working at his computer across from me, looks up, puzzled. “What are you reading?” he asks.

“An incredible mussar insight,” I say, giggling.

His eyes light up in comprehension. “Oh, must be Rabbi Orlofsky,” he says.

If you are one of the tens of thousands who have heard Rabbi Dovid Orlofsky speak, you know what I’m talking about; if you haven’t yet had the privilege and pleasure, you’re in for a real treat, as you meet Rabbi Orlofsky in this newly published collection of his selected shiurim, Everyone’s Entitled to My Opinion: The Wisdom and Wit of Rabbi Orlofsky, adapted by Avraham Gindi.

Rabbi Dovid Orlofsky is quite a phenomenon in the Torah world. A globe-trotting lecturer and beloved teacher, he is known for his unique, a- story-and-a-joke-a-minute style – and, at the same, he is also hailed for the insight and depth of his Torah teachings. In the pages of this transformative new book, Rabbi Orlofsky takes a blunt, honest, always wise and often very funny look at our lives as observant Jews.

In Everyone’s Entitled to My Opinion, we will delve into the meaning of Shabbos, and our own Shabbos will be enriched.  We will discover how to have a happier home and raise successful children, and how to live full and meaningful lives as Torah Jews. We will learn, we will change and grow – and we will laugh.

Get your copy today at artscroll.com!

Share the Excitement! The Weekly Parashah: An illustrated retelling of the Chumash with Midrash

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As I write this column, The Weekly Parashah: An illustrated retelling of the Chumash with Midrash (Volume 1: Sefer Bereishis) has just reached the bookstores – and it’s already generating excitement and unprecedented buzz.

Here’s what one of our staffers had to say: “I took home a copy of the parashah book this week. It is really a beautiful book.  My kids absolutely love it!” When a well-known mechanech saw an advance copy, he called it “a game-changer, there’s never been anything like it.” And, perhaps most important, an 11-year-old reader who got to take a sneak peek had this reaction: “Wow!”

“Kiruv workers have long recognized the power of the Shabbos table to touch Jewish neshamahs and open them up to a love for Torah,” says Rabbi Nachman Zakon, author of The Weekly Parashah. “In today’s world, that’s true in our own families as well. With parents and children overscheduled and overstimulated all week long, it’s at the Shabbos table that we share our mesorah with the kids, it’s the place we give over to our children a love for Torah.”

Every facet of The Weekly Parashah was designed by its creative team to make it a positive experience for the entire family. With decades of chinuch experience, Rabbi Zakon knows what youthful readers want – and need. The narrative is vivid and lively, and – a must for today’s children – broken up into short, readable sections with intriguing subheads. Every page is livened up with sidebars such as Fascinating Facts, Who’s Who in the Parashah, and Questions, Anyone?. Torah in Our Lives shows boys and girls how relevant the Torah is to their everyday challenges and concerns, and Parashah Pointers gives a super-quick review of the parashah.

Today’s children expect great graphics – and they get them! Illustrator Tova Katz has outdone herself with stunning, detailed illustrations that the kids can pore over, while designer Yonina Hartstein has made every page a masterpiece.

The Weekly Parashah also includes a detailed index to the hundreds of sources, an invaluable resource for parents and educators. The first volume, Sefer Bereishis, is now available, and Sefer Shemos will be published in time for the Torah reading. The next three volumes are in preparation.

As we prepare to begin a new parashas hashavuah cycle, let’s show all of us, children and parents and guests alike, the beauty of Hashem’s Torah, with The Jaffa Family Edition: The Weekly Parashah.

Get your copy today at artscroll.com!

The Yaakov and Ilana Melohn Edition Or HaChaim on Chumash: Chazak, Chazak, V’Nischazeik!

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About three years ago, the premiere volume of the Yaakov and Ilana Melohn Edition Or HaChaim on Chumash was published.  Now, with the publication of Devarim 2 (Parashiyos Ki Seitzei – VeZos HaBerachah) ArtScroll is proud to announce the completion of the entire ten-volume set. CHAZAK, CHAZAK, V’NISCHAZEIK!

The elucidation of the beloved Torah commentary achieved immediate success. It was hailed as an invaluable tool by those who were already learning the classic commentary. And it was joyously welcomed by those who truly wanted to study it, but were daunted by its difficulty.

And difficult it was. The commentary, written by the 18th century Torah sage R’ Chaim ben Moshe ibn Attar, the Or HaChaim HaKadosh, is so rich, so wide-ranging, so broad and deep, it has been one of the foremost and revered commentaries on Chumash for nearly three centuries. But what makes it great also makes it challenging. The Or HaChaim points out countless nuances in the Chumash text, and he blends the pshat of the Chumash with the interpretations of Chazal as well as his own scintillating comments.  Famed for his knowledge of Kabbalah, R’ Chaim weaves many Kabbalistic concepts into the commentary, and also explains many of the fundamental principles of our faith.

Using the successful format of the Schottenstein Edition Talmud, the elucidated translation enables us to gain a clear understanding of the Or HaChaim’s commentary, and the notes provide explanations, sources, and deeper insights into his words. Every volume includes the text of the Chumash, Targum, and Rashi – all fully vowelized.

This, the final volume in the set, includes an extremely useful feature: a 76 page “Master Index” to the topics covered in the entire Or HaChaim commentary. Want to know what Or HaChaim has to say on the subject of techeiles? Doing research on the nature of the Oral Torah? Looking to enrich your understanding of Shabbos? Need a vort for a sheva berachos and want to wow everyone by quoting a classic?  The Master Index opens the wisdom of the Or HaChaim to us in an entirely new way, letting us access his words and ideas easily and quickly.

With the completion of the set, the Melohn Edition of the Or HaChaim on Chumash makes an unforgettable bar mitzvah or wedding gift and a fabulous addition to your own bookshelf.

CHAZAK, CHAZAK, V’NISCHAZEIK!

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ArtScroll Talks With Daniella Silver, Author of Variations

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AS: Variations. It’s an unusual title, and an unusual cookbook. Please tell our readers more about it.

DS: The idea of this cookbook is to have some fun by showing how versatile recipes can be, all the while staying true to my healthy and simple way of cooking. Each recipe showcases two different ways of either cooking or serving. We learn that recipes don’t have to stay within their original boundaries. It’s all about creativity and flair. A main dish can be recreated as an appetizer, and a batch of cookies can become a large cookie cake. The possibilities are endless! It actually took me a while to come up with the title. I wanted something that explained the two-dish concept. In the end I felt that Variations was short, to the point, and explained it in one word. It just worked!!

AS: This is your third cookbook, after The Silver Platter: Simple to Spectacular and The Silver Platter: Simple Elegance. Can you share some of the feedback you’ve gotten on those two bestsellers?

DS: I think the biggest compliment is how so many people have told me they are using my books for staple recipes in their homes. They are turning to them for easy, healthy, and reliable recipes. Hearing that is so rewarding.

AS: You use the word “simple” often in your cookbooks, and yet the photos show such gorgeous foods. What’s the secret?

DS: The only secret is simplicity. I don’t like to fuss in the kitchen and I use the word “simple” because I truly mean it. My dishes are simple to make, healthy, and quick to prepare. Simple, healthy, and quick meals can still look and taste amazing.

As: Here’s a tough one: Did you have any funny culinary disasters while developing recipes for your cookbooks?

DS: Of course! Here’s one: I had prepared my Corned Beef Biscotti for a photo shoot. My mom came over and before I told her it was meat she was about to eat, she thought the corned beef pieces were Craisins! It was pretty funny!

AS: With so many recipes — and two variations of each! — what are some of your personal favorites?

DS: No question: I love the Panko-Topped Kale Salad, Sesame Crusted London Broil, and Low-Fat Ginger Biscotti! Yum!

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ArtScroll Speaks With Rabbi Moshe Don Kestenbaum Author of Olam HaMiddos

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AS:  Your Hebrew sefer, Olam HaMiddos, is being studied enthusiastically by so many in the Torah world. Can you tell us how you came to write it, and why you think it’s been so successful?

RMDK: What perhaps makes this sefer special is that it contains thoughts and observations that were helpful for my own personal development, and were not created with the intention of committing them to writing. When I was in beis medrash in Yeshiva of Far Rockaway, my rebbi, Rav Yechiel Perr shlita, infused in us a love for mussar and I began to pay closer attention to my thoughts and feelings. I shared some of these ideas over the years, when I was teaching Orchos Tzadikim to the bochurim in the Yeshiva of Waterbury, but I never considered writing a sefer until Rav Sheya Lazenga asked me to give a weekly vaad to the yungerleit on middos. In writing notes in preparation for those vaadim, I realized, “Wow, I think I have a sefer!”  

 AS:  Why is tikkun hamiddos so important – and why is it so hard, especially today?

RMDK: Tikkun hamiddos is so important, simply, as the Vilna Gaon and others write, because that is why we are here — to perfect our character! I don’t know if it’s harder today than before, but perhaps in these times where we are used to having everything come easy to us, we are less prepared to put in the effort to fight and overcome our natural tendencies.

AS: In the sefer you discuss becoming a “ba’al middos” – someone who “owns” his middos. In these days of selfies and “fake news,” how can we learn to do that?

RMDK: Probably by taking fewer selfies! As the Mesillas Yesharim writes, the yeitzer hara’s trick is to distract us. It is easier today more than ever to become distracted by everyone and everything else, rather than looking inside ourselves. My hope be”H is that this sefer brings people to discover themselves, seeing their unique greatness and their flaws. When we understand ourselves and work to better ourselves, life becomes all that much more enjoyable and meaningful. 

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