Joanna Brichetto

Content by Joanna Brichetto

'For the Relief of Unbearable Urges' review

Issue: April, 1999
For the Relief of Unbearable Urges is 28-year-old Nathan Englander's first collection of stories: Jewish stories by a Jewish writer which transcend the particular and soar into Read more »
A guide for the domestically challenged

Issue: December 2009
For years, the author of How to Sew a Button never needed to know how to sew a button. Read more »
A Little House Collection

Issue: December, 2006
Laura Ingalls Wilder's A Little House Collection combines the first five Little House novels into one handy volume, a practical move appropriate to the thrifty, pioneering spirit of the st Read more »
A new spin on Hanukkah

Issue: December, 2005
Merry Hanukkah? The yearly tension felt by some who negotiate Hanukkah amid the Christmas season gets an ironic twist in several new books. Read more »
An ancient bestseller revived

Issue: December, 2004
The Book of Customs: A Complete Handbook for the Jewish Year is described as "the best-selling guide to Jewish life for three centuries." If this is true, then why haven't we heard of it? Read more »
Books for Hanukkah and beyond

Issue: December, 2004
The "you" in Barbara Rushkoff's Jewish Holiday Fun for You! targets a specific demographic: the hip, 30- or 40-something "who wants to crack the mystery of Jewish holidays." Rushkoff, creator Read more »
Celebrate Jewish identity and culture

Issue: December 2008
Jewish Holidays Cookbook: Festive Meals for Celebrating the Year serves up the snappy style, weighty content and yummy photos characteristic of publisher DK. Read more »
Centuries of Jewish life

Issue: December, 2004
The Jewish World: 365 Days is a compact, weighty tome that cries out for a coffee table. Read more »
Confronting a Holocaust legacy

Issue: September, 2008
Reporter Erin Einhorn recalls casting about for her next big adventure: a plum assignment on another continent. Read more »
Creating the perfect Seder

Issue: March 2007
Passover wins the prize for the Jewish holiday most likely to be celebrated. I suspect this is true because, at the bare minimum, celebrating can be accomplished by merely showing up for dinner. Read more »
Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel

Issue: December, 2005
Four Sides, Eight Nights: A New Spin on Hanukkah, by Rebecca Tova Ben-Zvi, lives up to its subtitle. This new spin on Hanukkah is child-friendly, fun and educational: a rare mix. Read more »
Feline freaky Friday

Issue: June, 2000
Satoshi Kitamura's cats have charmed young children before. His spunky board book hero, Boots, is a fine feline example. Read more »
Girls rule

Issue: August, 2000
Power isn't always the exclusive privilege of males. Read more »
Great gift books for kids

Issue: December 2008
Making history Read more »
Is there a letter in your bag for me?

Issue: December, 2006
Janet and Allan Ahlberg's beloved book, The Jolly Postman, is celebrating its 20th year of letting kids read other people's mail. Read more »
Kids Cook 1-2-3

Issue: December, 2006
Do-able and delicious describes Kids Cook 1-2-3. Read more »
Kids got book smarts

Issue: December, 2007
The world's most complete guide on how to never grow up could be trusted to no one but the editors of Klutz, bringers of countless kits and books aimed spot-on at getting kids to amuse themselv Read more »
Latkes galore

Issue: December, 2005
The Eight Nights of Chanukah, by LeslÅ½a Newman, is a brief, colorful picture book that transposes another Christmas tradition to a Jewish key. Read more »
Paying homage to magical books

Issue: July, 2009
At the beginning of Any Which Wall, Laurel Snyder’s second middle-grade novel, four bored children while away the summer, wistful for the kind of magic that only happens in b Read more »
Pick Me Up: Stuff You Need to Know

Issue: December, 2006
If facts are what you seek, pick up Pick Me Up: Stuff You Need to Know. For the 10 and over crowd, this revolution in reference will be most welcome. Read more »
Praising the Bar Mitzvah

Issue: August, 2005
Thirteen and a Day: the Bar and Bat Mitzvah Across America takes readers on a cross-country journey through the state of Judaism. Read more »
Remembering the Holocaust

Issue: April, 2000
There are many different paths into the story of the Holocaust. Read more »
Review

Issue: April, 1998
To the legion of readers who have already enjoyed How the Irish Saved Civilization, Thomas Cahill's distinctive style needs no introduction. Read more »
Review

Issue: June, 1998
Wonderfully chaotic. This is how the authors of Mom Central generously describe the lives of typical parents. Read more »
Review

Issue: June, 1998
Bookstores may find it difficult to shelve The Kabbalah of Food: Conscious Eating for Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Health. Should it go in Health or Religion? Read more »
Review

Issue: June, 1998
For three American women, a brief, summer vacation in London becomes an unexpected journey of self-awareness for which there is no return ticket. Read more »
Review

Issue: August, 1998
Allegra Goodman's first novel should surpass even the high expectations created by her 1996 bestseller The Family Markowitz. Read more »
Review

Issue: September, 1998
War is not a subject typically pursued in picture books. Read more »
Review

Issue: November, 1998
Gift-giving season is here again. If this announcement inspires frustration, oppressive obligation, or sheer panic, there is help. Read more »
Review

Issue: November, 1998
For anyone interested in things Irish, Heritage of Ireland: A History of Ireland and Its People would be a perfect present indeed. Read more »
Review

Issue: November, 1998
Kenneth C. Davis, the creator of the best-selling Don't Know Much About series, tackles the best-selling book of all time: the Bible. Read more »
Review

Issue: December, 1998
Size does matterDoes size matter? The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live answers with a big yes. Read more »
Review

Issue: December, 1998
The world at your fingertips Rand McNally attempts to provide a portrait of the planet with its new Portrait World Atlas ($39.95, 0528839950). Read more »
Review

Issue: December, 1998
The winter gardenAdrian Bloom's Year Round Garden: Color in Your Garden from January to December (Timber Press, $39.95, 0881924571) is gorgeous and absolutely packed with information. Read more »
Review

Issue: December, 1998
An Irish taleA recent novel by Walter Keady, author of Celibates and Other Lovers, is certainly worth investigating. Read more »
Review

Issue: March, 1999
Review by Joanna BrichettoA Passover Seder can be fun, meaningful, and still entirely kosher. But how often does this happen? Read more »
Review

Issue: November, 1999
Hanukkah is the Jewish holiday most visible to non-Jews. Usually occurring near Christmas, it gets quite a lot of attention simply because of a coincidence of the calendar. Read more »
Review

Issue: December, 1999
Chinese Natural Cures: Traditional Methods for Remedies and Preventions demonstrates that traditional Chinese medicine's 3,000 years of clinical experience requires no further translation to addres Read more »
Review

Issue: March, 2000
If the kids show up at your seder next month only to ask the Four Questions, eat, and find the Afikomen, they might not be getting as much out of the holiday as they could be. Read more »
Review

Issue: March, 2000
If the kids show up at your seder next month only to ask the Four Questions, eat, and find the Afikomen, they might not be getting as much out of the holiday as they could be. Read more »
Review

Issue: April, 2000
Remembering the HolocaustThere are many different paths into the story of the Holocaust. Read more »
Review

Issue: April, 2000
Remembering the HolocaustThere are many different paths into the story of the Holocaust. Read more »
Review

Issue: April, 2000
Remembering the HolocaustThere are many different paths into the story of the Holocaust. Read more »
Review

Issue: April, 2000
Remembering the HolocaustThere are many different paths into the story of the Holocaust. Read more »
Review

Issue: April, 2000
Remembering the HolocaustThere are many different paths into the story of the Holocaust. Read more »
Review

Issue: May, 2000
Arthur Read is an eight-year-old aardvark with a legion of fans. From toddlers to independent readers, kids adore him. Amazingly, parents do, too. Read more »
Review

Issue: July, 2000
A picture book about the Holocaust? A tricky undertaking, to say the least. Not surprisingly, Patricia Polacco pulls it off. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
iny treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
Tiny treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
Tiny treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
iny treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
iny treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
iny treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
iny treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: December 2000
treasures for the stockingGift books sized right for stocking stuffers abound this season. Small in dimensions but big in style and content, they make ideal holiday gifts for any taste. Read more »
Review

Issue: February, 2001
ous advice for would-be loversWhy do fools fall in love? Perhaps only fools attempt to reason why. Read more »
Review

Issue: February, 2001
ous advice for would-be loversWhy do fools fall in love? Perhaps only fools attempt to reason why. Read more »
Review

Issue: February, 2001
ous advice for would-be loversWhy do fools fall in love? Perhaps only fools attempt to reason why. Read more »
Review

Issue: February, 2001
ous advice for would-be loversWhy do fools fall in love? Perhaps only fools attempt to reason why. Read more »
Review

Issue: February, 2001
ous advice for would-be loversWhy do fools fall in love? Perhaps only fools attempt to reason why. Read more »
Review

Issue: February, 2001
ous advice for would-be loversWhy do fools fall in love? Perhaps only fools attempt to reason why. Read more »
Review

Issue: May, 2001
Harry Potter's J. K. Rowling is the hottest children's author in the United Kingdom, but Jacqueline Wilson, with more than 50 novels to her credit, is no slouch as second-hottest. Read more »
Steve Martin: wild and crazy guy takes surprising look at love

Issue: March, 2001
When Steve Martin hosts the 72nd Academy Awards on March 25, millions of viewers will see the brilliant comic they know and adore. Read more »
Surveying the best of the best in 2000

Issue: November, 2000
Readers in search of the best new writing in America need not search far. Read more »
The American Story: 100 True Tales from American History

Issue: December, 2006
If the word history elicits yawns from children, it is not the fault of The American Story: 100 True Tales from American History. Read more »
The Big Book of Brain Games

Issue: December, 2006
Should the brain need additional stretching, older kids and brave adults can try The Big Book of Brain Games: 1,000 PlayThinks of Art, Mathematics, and Science. Read more »
The little girl behind the name

Issue: January, 2008
When acclaimed historian Gotz Aly (The Nazi Census, Hitler's Beneficiaries) heard he was to receive the 2003 Marion Samuel Prize an award given by the German Remembrance Foundation, an orga Read more »
The Little Prince: Book of Fun and Adventure

Issue: December, 2006
Another timeless tale is given an interactive update in The Little Prince: Book of Fun and Adventure. Read more »
The reality and fantasy of Chagall

Issue: December 2008
In popular culture, Russian - born, French modernist painter Marc Chagall (1887 - 1985) is like a colorful, phantasmagorical "Fiddler on the Roof" of the art world. Read more »
Transforming a troubling biblical story

Issue: September, 2006
Caldecott-winning author and illustrator Mordicai Gerstein has managed to do, in a 32-page picture book, what biblical commentators, clergy and Sunday school teachers have been trying to do for centu Read more »
What's the Matter, Davy? review

Issue: April, 1998
Like real-life rabbits, Brigitte Weninger's brood of Davy stories is expanding. Read more »
Winnie the Pooh

Issue: December, 2006
A. Read more »

Columnist Information

Bio:

Joanna Brichetto likes the variety inherent in writing a lifestyles column, where nearly anything qualifies. Find out more on her website.

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Joanna Brichetto

Content by Joanna Brichetto

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