I found this book fascinating in its discussion of the intersection of Black and Jewish cultures. As the author notes, Blacks are a minority of the Jewish population, but my knowledge of them has been taken from different circumstances. I especially loved that the author had once lived near where I live now in Montgomery County, Maryland, so I recognized names of people I knew in the dedication of this book! That gave him so much credibility in my view in addition to his vast knowledge of Judaism which he shared both in his writing and in being a Hebrew school teacher.

I liked hearing about the Black-Jewish relationship from this Black author rather than from the Jewish point of view, with which I am familiar.

The chapter about radio personality Marc Steiner’s reminiscences of growing up in Jewish-Black 1950s Baltimore as segregation was trying to end held a special fascination for me because that was my hometown at that time. His descriptions of that place at that time were spot on.

The chapter called “Katie - ‘I Feel Like Me’” made me cry. It was about a Hebrew school student of the author’s who finally felt like her true self when presenting a school project about Jews of Japan. She herself was the daughter of a Jewish Japanese American mom and an Ashkenazi Jewish dad. After making her presentation, she told her teacher, the author of this book, “I feel like me...the whole me.”

One thing that especially touched me deeply is that Twitty writes with such love for Judaism. As a born Jew, I never want to take my religion for granted, but as the author was a convert, my respect for him deepens as that which is so meaningful to me is just as meaningful to him.

The one thing in this book I didn’t like was the author saying he was not a fan of shakshuka, poached eggs in a highly spiced tomato sauce dish. How can that be?! :)

The second half of the book about the intersection of African American and typical Jewish food had some absolutely great cooking ideas which I can’t wait to try. Using smoked turkey necks or Liquid Smoke for flavoring beans or soup sounds fabulous. I also can’t wait to try making fake crab cakes!

To me, this was a fabulous book and quite a special treat to read. ( )

The only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is because there were no pictures of the food. I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to trying some of the recipes. I am not Jewish but my great great grandmother and great great grandfather were Russian Jews who fled Europe and settled in GA. My family has always made sure we knew our Jewish heritage and about their culture even though my grandparents became Christian’s. Judaism has a very special place in my heart. Soul food is our everyday food in the south and I was intrigued with how the two very different cuisines could be combined. I feel like Mr. Twitty is my brother and relate to him on many levels while respecting and admiring our differences. Food really can bring people together and Mr. Twitty does an amazing job at showing that in this book ( )