By
– October 18, 2011
As the title suggests, there are numerous paths to spiritual awareness and living a more meaningful Jewish life. With this insightful, creative, interactive guidebook, Milgram lights up more paths to spirituality than you can count, then hands you the torch. There are six chapters: Finding Meaning in Jewish Prayer, Reclaiming God with Integrity, Taking Torah Personally, Hebrew is a Spiritual Practice, Living a Mitzvah- Centered Life, and The Positive Power of Peoplehood. Each offers “recipes” designed to put Milgram’s suggestions into action. These include meditation techniques, tips to enhance your understanding and appreciation of Hebrew, as well as Jewish liturgy and songs; and challenges to find new ways to perform mitzvot. The only weakness is her propensity to switch topics abruptly (a passage on introducing breast self-exams to women in the former Soviet republics is followed by a discussion of the kippah, for example). Peppered with motivational anecdotes and dialogues, the book is otherwise well-organized and accessible to readers of all Jewish educational backgrounds and levels of observance. Appendix (“Mitzvah Cards,” including brief descriptions of specific mitzvot), further reading, gloss., index.
Robin K. Levinson is an award-winning journalist and author of a dozen books, including the Gali Girls series of Jewish historical fiction for children. She currently works as an assessment specialist for a global educational testing organization. She lives in Hamilton, NJ.