Just "Jew-Ish?"

A resource blog for any teen who considers "Jewish" to be part of their identity!

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8 Festive Nail Art Ideas For Every Night of Hanukkah

These are *so* Instagram-worthy.

Okay, Hanukkah ended last night, but I can’t resist posting this incredible Teen Vogue feature of Hanukkah-themed nail art!!! The title says its one design idea for each 8 nights of Hanukkah, but these are so gorgeous you definitely will want to rock them for more than one night. Even if your family doesn’t observe Hanukkah (or light candles every night - my family usually only does latkes & candles on the first and last nights), Hanukkah nail art is definitely a fun, festive thing to consider for next year.

I find this one...

to be particularly impressive - look at the tiny menorah! And this one also has a tutorial on the nail artist’s profile. Beware, you’ll definitely go down an Instagram hole with some of these. 

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Fanny's Journey (Movie)

At many points in this blog, I mention that it is refreshing to read, and hear about Jewish teens today, living lives that look like your own. That said, i hope its ok to throw in one recommendation for an inspiring World War II movie about young Jewish people! 

Fanny’s Journey (or Le Voyage de Fanny in French), is about a group of Jewish children (led by 13-year old Fanny), who are forced to escape by foot across Nazi-occupied France, and into Switzerland where its safe. It’s really suspenseful, because they’re in danger for almost the whole movie. But it is also motivational, and amazing to see an adventure story like this that features heroic young people! It’s also based on a true story, which makes it even more impressive.

PS: This movie is currently streaming on Netflix, and is a great one to watch with your whole family!

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This article, by Jewish blogger Marjorie Ingall, is really interesting. It focuses on one of the main ideas behind this resource list: that your identity probably isn’t made up entirely of your Jewish faith. Also, how “Jewish” you are, or feel, may be completely different than how your neighbor, Sunday school friends, or even your own parents feel. That’s totally ok, and that is why it is super important to know that there are books being published that are about young Jewish people living “normal” lives too. Of course, it will always important to read about the Holocaust, anti-semitism, overbearing Jewish parents, etc., but its also cool to see your own lives reflected in the books you read, especially when the books don’t make the whole “Jewish” thing a huge deal. 

Some of these books for teens that Ingall writes about include:

Gayle Forman’s (wildly popular) novels If I Stay, and Where I Went, which features a protagonist with a Jewish best friend.

David Levithan’s Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist - who features Norah as a girl who is “not religious but still super-Jewy.”

Stephanie Perkins’ Isla and the Happily Ever After - the third book in a romantic trilogy, in which Isla falls for a cute Jewish boy named Josh who hilariously identifies as a “Yom Kippur atheist.”

There are three great book recommendations featuring characters you may just find yourself relating to!! Also, keep in mind that this article is a few years old now, which means there are already a lot more books out now that could make Ingall’s list! (Including Little & Lion, which is talked about on this very blog).

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This summer camp helps kids reach across the Israeli-Palestinian divide

Many Jewish people, and especially young Jewish people might feel conflicted, or confused about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. This is especially true today, because it is really common to see news stories about the conflict on the internet, or even on your own social media. You might even have friends, or family members who feel really strongly about the issue (on either side). 

The good thing about being able to find so much information on the internet, is that you can read about cool projects like this one - the Seeds of Peace program that connects young people from Israel and Palestine. Oftentimes, these teens have never had the opportunity of meeting someone from the other culture, let alone becoming their friend! The program’s success has been documented, meaning that interviews with participants afterwards have showed that their opinions of people from the other culture have significantly changed (for the better) after participating in Seeds of Peace. 

It’s important to dig deeper into any important issue, or topic, but it might be harder to do that when it involves something you personally identify with. Researching opportunities, and initiatives like this one that involve young people directly is a good way to start forming your own opinion and broadening your knowledge. 

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If you are just creeping into the teenage years, and are planning on having a Bar/Bat mitzvah (or your parents want you to have one), Pinterest is an amazing resource for ideas! Taking a look at just one of the many “Bar/Bat Mitzvah” boards will start to get you excited. 

There are ideas for fun cakes (like those in the photo above), creative party favors (like personalized drawstring bags, or earbuds!), and even whole theme ideas like tropical, Hollywood, or Candyland. There are also a lot of gift suggestions on the boards. One of the cool things about this celebration is that you will probably get a lot of presents - so looking at these boards may give you some ideas about what to ask for from your family and friends (like this really pretty customized necklace with your Hebrew name on it). 

Trust me, taking a look through the thousands of Pinterest posts will definitely distract you from all of the memorization you have to do before the big day...

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You’ve probably heard of Birthright Israel - it is the program that sends young people of the Jewish faith on a free, educational trip to Israel. If you haven’t heard of it, the organization’s aim is to introduce young Jewish people to their roots, and Jewish history in a very immersive way. Their mission states:

Birthright Israel began with a bold idea—offering a free, life-changing trip to Israel to young Jewish adults between the ages of 18 and 26 and, in doing so, transforming the Jewish future. Our mission is to give every Jewish young adult around the world, especially the less connected, the opportunity to visit Israel on an educational trip. 

The trip itineraries all include: seeing the most famous historical and geographical sites, visiting the bustling city of Tel Aviv, sampling delicious Israeli cuisine, and meeting other Israeli teenagers. One of the coolest things about Birthright Israel is that there are a ton of different trip providers, giving people a lot of diverse options for their trip experience. For example, there are more outdoorsey trips, where participants do a lot of hiking and water sports. But there are also LGBT groups that go during Tel Aviv pride, multi-ability trips that accommodate young people with physical disabilities, “eco” trips that focus on environmental issues, and many more. You can usually go on the same trip as your friends too, but everyone I’ve ever talked to who has done the trip has told me that they’ve made amazing new friends on their trip. 

Birthright Israel is definitely something to start looking into for when you turn 18. Asking your Jewish youth group, or at your synagogue is a good place to start. But their website also has a lot of information. It’s not too early to at least start looking at the different trip offerings to see if there is one that looks like a good fit. 

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If you’re already thinking about college, and what your college life might look like, put Hillel on your radar. Hillel is the largest national Jewish Life organization - with chapters on most university campuses (even those with smaller Jewish student populations). Actually, they even publish a college guide online, with statistics for tons of universities and what their Jewish involvement looks like. 

Hillel organizations do a lot of different things, from supporting students during Shabbat services and holy days, helping to facilitate Birthright Israel trips for the Jewish student body, and providing mentorship opportunities with Jewish community figures. Hillel organizations invite anyone who identifies with the Jewish faith, so this means there will be all sorts of involvement opportunities, at many different levels of both commitment, and faith. Most recently, they’ve been involved in several larger social justice projects - including a huge movement called MitzVote earlier this year, which aimed to get 100,000 students to vote in the midterm elections!

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A New Read on Jewish Life

Tablet is sort of like a mixture of Slate (in regards to news), and Buzzfeed (fun food lists and pop culture) - except with all Jewish content! This means its pretty entertaining, but also really informative! For example, a brief look at the front page today shows a combination of top news stories (including a story about Donald Trump’s problematic relationship with Saudi Arabia), and fun Hanukkah tidbits (including how to make the “ultimate Sufganiyot” - or the traditional, DELICIOUS jelly donuts).

One of the coolest things about the site, in my opinion, is its Arts and Culture section, which features really great book reviews (including a lot of children’s & YA book reviews by blogger Marjorie Ingall), original fiction, and even things that aren’t quite 100% Jewish - like a review of J.K. Rowling’s new mystery. Why is it on Tablet? Must be because they call her “Britain’s most prominent defender of the Jews.”

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Unorthodox by Tablet Magazine / Panoply on Apple Podcasts

Unorthodox is a podcast produced by Tablet- a hip online Jewish media platform (sort of like Slate, or Mashable except with all Jewish content) that is actually also featured on this resource list! The cool thing about Unorthodox is that it has Jewish content, but you don’t have to be Jewish to enjoy it.

That means nothing about it is too “insider,” or niche. In fact, it’s mission is to feature one Jewish person, and one gentile as guests each week, ensuring that the topics are very diverse and interesting - or, unorthodox as the title claims. For example, a few weeks ago the podcast’s featured Jewish guest was A.J. Jacobs (bestselling author of, most recently, the book Thanks a Thousand about his quest to thank every person involved in his morning cup of coffee!), and their gentile guest was Shay Khatiri, the “Iranian-born political refugee who raised more than $1 million for the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh following the Oct. 27 massacre” (iTunes). Interested yet? I sure am! They also have a segment called “News of the Jews,” in which they round up current news events about Judaism. 

If you don’t trust me about how interesting this podcast is, trust the ratings - it’s ranked #1 on iTunes Judaism podcasts. 

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Independent, Jewish & Frankly Feminist

Lilith Magazine has an impressive history! It’s been in publication since 1976, with the mission of being a:

“feminist change-agent in and for the Jewish community, amplifying Jewish women’s voices, creating a woman-positive Judaism, spurring gender consciousness in the Jewish world and empowering Jewish women and girls to envision and enact change in their own lives and their communities.”

Obviously, it has changed a lot since the 1970s, including going online. But they still do have paper issues as well! A quick look at their homepage shows that they’re publishing super interesting, progressive stories like this one about Alma Hernandez - a Jewish, Latinx woman running for office in Tucson, Arizona. It’s safe to say that this is not just for your mom’s generation, even though she’s definitely heard of it and may be surprised that you’re mentioning it...

Unfortunately, you have to pay to read their most recent issue. But all of the back issues are available for free online, and they include artwork, poetry, fiction, news stories, and a link to their blog - The Lilith Blog - which is updated regularly (their last two blog posts shows the magazine’s diverse offerings - one is about a Jewish summer camp that just burned down in California, and another is called “Do You Know what Meshuggeh Means?” - one of my personal favorite Yiddish words meaning “a little nutty.”)

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How the "Jewish American Princess" became America’s most complex Jewish stereotype

I loved this article from Vox (published just this week during Hanukkah!) which talks about the new “Jewish American Princess” (also known as the unfortunately-named acronym J.A.P., which you shouldn’t say because of its negative racial connotation!!) This is an interesting read, and has become really popular on the internet, because it talks about the history of the term, and how Jewish American Princesses have been portrayed in books, music, and movies throughout the years. It even talks about the The Official J.A.P Handbook, which was published in the 1980s and was sort of an ironic publication teasing the stereotypes from Jewish American Princess names (Rachel, Jamie), pastimes (skiing, going to the hairdresser), and even the university J.A.P.’s are “supposed” to go to (apparently it was American University in DC).

This article is worth the read, because I think we can all agree that it’s interesting to "study” rich people and their lifestyles (does anyone else here watch Real Housewives??). On the other hand, it’s also never nice, or right to stereotype, and it is always important to read about the history and evolution of any stereotypical term - especially one that has lasted this long! 

Bonus: it talks about amazing fashion trends from the past twenty years, like Juicy Couture and uber-fancy charm bracelets.

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25 Classic Jewish Foods Everyone Should Learn To Cook

Matzoh ball soup is just the beginning.

In my opinion, Buzzfeed always does a good job with their lists - especially when it comes to themed recipe lists! This one is particularly fun, because it is all recipes for classic Jewish foods (some of which you’ve definitely eaten, like matzoh brie), and some maybe you haven’t!! (like the Persian Jewish dish Tahdig, or crunchy fried rice). It doesn’t hurt that the photos of the prepared foods are all super yummy looking.

Make one of these recipes for the next family dinner, and you’re sure to impress both your mom and grandma. There’s a good mixture of holiday dishes (Passover Marori & new year apple cake!), but also more casual dishes like falafel - which I just learned is the national Israeli food. K, I’m hungry now are you?

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Ok, so this book isn’t explicitly Jewish (it doesn’t say Jewish anywhere on the cover), but the cool thing about it is that most of the inspiring women in the book are! In fact, more than half of the women featured in Stealing the Show identify as Jewish. Some of these awesome ladies include: Tina Fey (from 30 Rock) Abbi Jacobson & Ilana Glazer (from Broad City), Lena Dunham (Girls creator), and Jenji Kohan (creator of Orange is the New Black, and a bunch of other popular shows). 

So, while the book is about other things than just the Jewish faith, it is totally inspiring to see how all of these Jewish women became super successful in the television world, specifically. The book talks a lot about what is happening in tv today, but also describes many moments in recent tv history where the stars, or creators inserted small (or large) moments of their Jewish identities - like Broad City’s hilarious portrayal of Ilana’s mom, as a very lovable, neurotic, thrifty stereotype of a Jewish mother.

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So we’ve determined that we don’t just want to read Jewish books about the Holocaust. But we also acknowledge that it is an important part of our history. We’ve also all probably read The Diary of Anne Frank at some point in our lives. Even if you haven’t read it, I’m pretty positive you’ve heard of it - so I’m not going to explain it here! 

But, did you know that there is a beautiful new graphic novel adaptation out, published earlier this year? The images, by artist David Polonsky, allow the reader to see parts of Anne Frank’s story that weren’t captured in the text of her diary. Or, in some cases, the images expand upon ideas that she didn’t explicitly write about. For example, one page illustrates Anne’s dream wedding day with the boy she had a crush on. This book is a way to revisit, or read for the first time, the important story of Anne Frank. Here’s a good review of the graphic novel from Bustle, in case you’re interested in more info!

Art Credit: https://www.bustle.com/p/anne-franks-diary-just-got-a-graphic-adaptation-its-a-stunning-update-of-the-holocaust-memoir-12199097 

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Guess what?! Not all “Jewish” books for teens are about the Holocaust! Especially in the past few years, there have been a bunch of YA books published that are about Jewish teens today. I think Brandy Colbert’s Little & Lion (published earlier this year) is particularly cool, because it tackles intersectionality (or, the different intersections that make up someone’s identity). The main character is Suzette, who is not only questioning her identity as a black, Jewish sixteen-year old, but also her sexuality and her loyalty towards her brother (who was just diagnosed with bipolar disorder and has asked Suzette to keep a pretty serious secret). 

Even though Suzette definitely identifies as Jewish, there is so much else happening in this book that her faith is definitely not the focus of the entire story. Which is perfect! Because none of us are defined by one aspect of our identity, right?

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Art Credit: Alessandra Olanow (2014). Retrieved from https://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-life-and-religion/183638/jewy-young-adult-books