Customer Reviews

Shalom Y'All: Images of Jewish Life in the American South

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Shalom Y'all: Images Of Jewish Life In The American South is a unique treasure trove of black-and-white images by professional photographer Bill Aron in which he expertly capturing images of Jewish daily life, culture, and tradition in America's southern states. Homes, shops, places of worship, and people young and old are vividly portrayed in these striking visuals, with a bare minimum of commentary by Vicki Reikes Fox (Founding Project Director of the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience) rounding out the collection. A joy to simply page through, Shalom Y'all is a welcome and much appreciated contribution to both personal and academic photography collections, as well as Judaic Studies reference collections.

I thought the book was a wondeful portriait of a vanishing world--it was really interesting to see how these Jews bridged the gap between their two identities. The pictures and text were really beautiful.

If you are from Mississippi and Louisiana, then you may like this book. If you are from other the southern states, you will wonder why there are no photographs -- or very few -- from these states.

I was raised in the 1930s and 1940s (until I went into the seervice in 1944) in a small Georgia town located in southwest Georgia. I find the foreword misleading in that the author implies it was normal for Jews in the south in the 1940s not to observe the Jewish traditions of bar mitzvahs, sabbath dunners, seders, etc. Atlanta and Savannah had sizable Jewish populations in those days. The largest congregation in Savannah was orthodox (and it is still that way today). Ours was a reform congregation, but we had Hebrew school and Sabbath school on Saturday. Bar mitzvahs were common in Savannah and Atlanta -- we had confirmations. For Passover, my parents drove 170 miles to Atlanta to buy their kosher groceries (the meat was shipped by train as needed). I did not know any Jewish family in my home town that had a Christmas tree, contrary to the author's statement that "We kids were raised with Christmas trees..."

I found the book disappointing, although it had inclusive photographs of Jewish life in two states -- just not THE SOUTH.

This is an easy-going, pick-up-and-enjoy book that has no pretense of being exhaustive, scholarly or deeply insightful. It is simply a sweet, loving glimpse at an enduring yet changing way of life as told through award-winning, black and white photos and commentary. Those featured are not caricatures or sterotypes, but vivid and memorable portraits of Southern Jews, each with their own unique story.

There's not one bad photograph and every one is a story in itself. And while there's much to love about everyone in this book, if forced to choose, my favorites would include the Lehman sisters, Lucille & Harold Hart, and Harold Nowalsky.

BTW, I mistook this volume as the companion book to the documentary film by Brian Bain (SHALOM Y'ALL, also worth your time), so I was surprised when nothing "matched". In the end, I got the best of both worlds: a wonderful introduction to Southern Judaism via the film, and another loving look courtesy of Fox & Aaron.

As a Mississippian, I found this pictography truly amazing! I work for a US Government agency, and I will be living in Israel for the next two years. Although I am not Jewish, I think the best way to learn about another culture is to incorporate what you know. What? Southern Jews eat bacon, and GASP, HAM? Southerners know all about the BLT and Easter Hams. Not too many of us know about Judaism or that Temples even exist(ed) in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana or even Arkansas. The photos and text of this book reveal a beautiful heritage that I am afraid is --- or soon will be --- extinct from the states that border the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River. Florida NOT included!
If you have any interest in Southern Culture(s), add Shalom Y'all to your shopping cart today!

PS: Please note the spelling of "y'all." It is a contraction for You All, thus, the apostrophe replaces the OU. Correct your friends who probably spell it: "ya'll."

I found this book to not only be informative, but also quite introspective. I thoroughly enjoyed the diversity that the photographs depicted, and the first-hand stories added flavor, too. Good job!

the book is excellent and was delivered amazingly fast in excellent condition.
The only problem was that i did not realize it was a book - thought it was the movie
which i had seen - did not know a book was written with the same title - so was
very disappointed!