Chicago Jewish Alliance

LXCL:Reserve your spot for the upcoming CJA Member Book Club session.

Register Here

Join the CJA Member-Only Book Club!The Jewish Bookshelf brings together CJA members for meaningful conversations around Jewish literature. Our first meeting will be facilitated by Lynn Coe, our Membership Coordinator, and will feature a thoughtfully selected book through the <a fr-original-style="" href="https://www.nureads.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="text-decoration-color: initial; user-select: auto; box-sizing: inherit;" target="_blank">Nu Reads</a> subscription program, curated by the Jewish Book Council. These books highlight powerful stories by Jewish authors and explore themes of identity, community, history, and modern life. Our first book is Boy from the North Country by Sam Sussman. This novel explores identity, resilience, and growing up in a working-class community while imagining a better future. Through guided discussion, members will reflect on the story&rsquo;s themes and connect them to their own experiences and perspectives. Meetings will be held four times in 2026 in March, June, August, and October, with future dates and locations to be announced. Sessions are open to all CJA members and will last about one hour. Participants are encouraged to read the book in advance, but everyone is welcome to join the discussion. Registration is required to receive the Zoom link.

Hi <span contenteditable="false" data-custom-variable="{{firstname}}" fr-original-class="fr-deletable styled-tag-chip" fr-original-style="" style="background-color: rgb(248, 248, 255); border: 1px solid rgb(191, 191, 255); border-radius: 4px; color: rgb(42, 42, 196); padding: 1px 8px; font-size: 11px; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; user-select: none; box-sizing: inherit;">First name, Thank you for registering for the CJA Member Book Club, The Jewish Bookshelf! We&rsquo;re excited to have you join us for our upcoming discussion. Below are the event details:📅 Date: Sunday, March 15⏰ Time: 6:00 PM CDT📍&nbsp;Location: Zoom (virtual) Zoom Link:&nbsp;<a fr-original-style="" href="https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87624201880" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="text-decoration-color: initial; user-select: auto; box-sizing: inherit;" target="_blank">https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87624201880</a> As you finish (or begin!)&nbsp;Boy from the North Country by Sam Sussman, here are a few themes to keep in mind. These aren&rsquo;t questions you need to prepare formal answers to, just threads to notice as you read:<ul fr-original-style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; box-sizing: inherit;"><li fr-original-style="margin-left: 15px;" style="margin-left: 15px; box-sizing: inherit;">The complicated relationship between Evan and his mother, June &mdash; how childhood shapes adult distance, and what reconnection looks like in the shadow of illness.</li><li fr-original-style="margin-left: 15px;" style="margin-left: 15px; box-sizing: inherit;">June&rsquo;s decision to withhold the severity of her diagnosis &mdash; protection, denial, love, control?</li><li fr-original-style="margin-left: 15px;" style="margin-left: 15px; box-sizing: inherit;">The novel&rsquo;s blending of autobiography and fiction &mdash; why tell this story as a novel rather than a memoir?</li><li fr-original-style="margin-left: 15px;" style="margin-left: 15px; box-sizing: inherit;">The 1970s New York art world and June&rsquo;s relationship with Bob Dylan &mdash; artistic ambition, intimacy, ego, and creative drive.</li><li fr-original-style="margin-left: 15px;" style="margin-left: 15px; box-sizing: inherit;">The different forms of healing in the book &mdash; physical, emotional, relational &mdash; and whether fractured relationships can truly be repaired.</li><li fr-original-style="margin-left: 15px;" style="margin-left: 15px; box-sizing: inherit;">The quiet but steady presence of Jewish ideas about responsibility, love, and returning the world in better condition than we found it. </li></ul>Warm regards,The Chicago Jewish Alliance Teaminfo@chicagojewishalliance.org

Join the CJA Member-Only Book Club!The Jewish Bookshelf brings together CJA members for meaningful conversations around Jewish literature. Our first meeting will be facilitated by Lynn Coe, our Membership Coordinator, and will feature a thoughtfully selected book through the <a href="https://www.nureads.org/" target="_blank">Nu Reads</a> subscription program, curated by the Jewish Book Council. These books highlight powerful stories by Jewish authors and explore themes of identity, community, history, and modern life. Our first book is Boy from the North Country by Sam Sussman. This novel explores identity, resilience, and growing up in a working-class community while imagining a better future. Through guided discussion, members will reflect on the story’s themes and connect them to their own experiences and perspectives. Meetings will be held four times in 2026 in March, June, August, and October, with future dates and locations to be announced. Sessions are open to all CJA members and will last about one hour. Participants are encouraged to read the book in advance, but everyone is welcome to join the discussion. Registration is required to receive the Zoom link.

Chicago Jewish Alliance

The Jewish Bookshelf: CJA Member-Only Book Club

Zoom

Register Here

Free