New From OU Press: ‘Return’ by Dr. Erica Brown for the Days of Awe

07 Sep 2012

OU PRESS AND MAGGID BOOKS PUBLISH RETURN: DAILY INSPIRATION FOR THE DAYS OF AWE, BY DR. ERICA BROWN

OU Press | Jewish Educational Publications, in conjunction with Maggid Books, announces the publication of Return: Daily Inspiration for the Days of Awe, by the renowned teacher, writer and educator, Dr. Erica Brown.

In her new book, Dr. Brown provides a practical roadmap for navigating through the Ten Days of Repentance that begin with Rosh Hashana and culminate with Yom Kippur, a complex, sometimes overwhelming season of the year.

Focusing on a blend of practical, spiritual and motivational insights, Return consists of ten chapters, one for each day of the Ten Days of Repentance. Each chapter addresses a different fundamental religious theme appropriate for the season: Faith, Destiny, Discipline, Humility, Compassion, Gratitude, Anger, Joy, Honesty, and Holiness.

Each chapter concludes with excerpts from primary sources such as Maimonides and Rav Kook, together with exercises (in the “Life Homework” section) carefully designed to translate the lofty theory into practical everyday behavior and growth. Weaving together sources as disparate as classical Jewish teaching, literary-feminist writing, Christian theology, and contemporary sociological theory, Dr. Brown presents a work that readers will find deeply wise and, at the same time, very entertaining.

Philosophical works often succumb to their own abstruseness and feel irrelevant, while self-help books can quickly spiral down into cliché-ridden sentimentality. Dr. Brown manages to avoid the occupational hazards of each type of writing even as she exploits the power of both genres. Return is sensitively written and inspires the intellect even as it nourishes the heart.

Return: Daily Inspiration for the Days of Awe is the latest publication from OU Press, the publishing house of the Orthodox Union. OU Press publishes books that breathe new life and relevance into the festivals we observe, the classic texts we study, and the rituals we practice every day. Return: Daily Inspiration for the Days of Awe follows in the footsteps of other quality OU Press editions on the Sabbath and Jewish holidays, including Festivals of Faith: Reflections on the Jewish Holidays by Rabbi Norman Lamm; The Gift of Rest: Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath by Senator Joseph Lieberman; and In the Narrow Places: Daily Inspiration for the Three Weeks by Dr. Erica Brown.

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