Special Speaker

The Jewish Experience In Small Towns: The Identity Issue - Special guest speaker, Professor Al Sokolow. Sunday, March 4th at 2pm.

Small town residence clearly has not been the dominant story of the Jewish existence in this country. We have been primarily an urban (big city and suburban) people in the United States. But there also has been a significant Jewish presence in small towns, an experience that reveals a great deal about retaining - or losing - Jewish identity. The KOH Library and Cultural Center is honored to present guest speaker Al Sokolow who will explore several aspects of small-town Jewish experi-ence. Much of this program will be audience driven and Dr. Sokolow especially wants to hear from folks who have experienced small town life as Jews, so please bring your personal stories to share. No fee and open to the community.

There is $5 suggested donation. Dr. Sokolow is a Public Policy Specialist Emeritus, University of California, Davis. He has a longstanding interest in the topic of Jews in small communities

KOH Special Exhibit

Haggadah Exhibit in the KOH Library and Cultural Center

The KOH Library and Cultural Center will be featuring a fascinating and varied exhibit of Haggadahs, on loan from personal collections, on display from February 13 through April 2nd. The exhibit can be viewed during regular KOH Library hours of operation or by appointment. Currently the library is scheduled to be open Monday, Thursday and Friday from 10:00am to 1:00pm; Wednesday from 1:00pm to 4:00pm and Sunday from 10:00am to 1:00pm. Please call before making your trip in to see the exhibit to confirm that the library hours have not been changed. For more information or to schedule a time to see the exhibit please contact Taliah Berger at 916-541-3720 or taliah@kohlcc.org.

KOH New Arrivals - February

By Fire Possessed; Dona Gracia Nasi 
     by Sandrak Toro
Jews and Booze - Becoming American in the Age of Prohibition
     by Marni Davis
A Book Forged in Hell; Spinoza's Scandalous Treatise and the Birth of the Secular Age
     by Steven Nadler
Good Living Street; Portrait of a Family, Vienna 1900
     by Tim Bonyhady

A Stranger in the Planet, a novel
     by Adam Schwartz
The House at Tyneford, a novel
      by Natasha Solomons
No One is Here Except All of Us, a novel
     by Ramona Ausubel
The Linen Queen, a novel
     by Patricia Falvey
The Flame Alphabet, a novel
     by Ben Marcus

In addition the following new receipts are related to the upcoming March 18 presentation by Dr. Robert Platzner on Women in the Bible:

Warrior, Dancer, Seductress, Queen;  Women in Judges and Biblical Israel
     by Susan Ackerman
The Voices of the Matriarchs
     by Chava Weissler
Discovering Eve; Ancient Israelite Women in Context
     by Carol Meyers
In the Wake of the Goddesses; Women, Culture, and the Biblical Transformation of Pagan Myth
     by Tikvah Frymer-Kensky
Did God Have a Wife; Archaelogy and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel
     by William G. Dever

February Happenings at KOH Library

ADDITIONAL LIBRARY HOURS STARTING FEBRUARY 1st - We will now be open Wednesday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

KOH FILM CLUB - Sunday, February 12, 2012 at 2 p.m. "Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story". Jews and Baseball traces the Jewish involvement in the history of the sport from the earliest days, through the tumultuous was years to today's All-Star games. By bringing to life dramatic moments in this history, including Hank Greenberg's support of Jackie Robinson and how the legendary Sandy Koufax pioneered rights for the players, the film demonstrates how Jews shaped baseball, and baseball shaped them. Narrated by Dustin Hoffman. Suggested donation -$5

DISCUSSION GROUP - Discussion group with Rabbi Joseph Melamed on Monday, February 13, 2012 at 1:30-2:30 p.m. Open to everyone. Meets the second Monday of each month. No class fee.

KOH BOOK CLUB - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 at 7 p.m. Fare Foreward by Wendy Dubow Polins. In the intersection of modern science and ancient mysticism, is a story about finding the things that transcend time. Gabriella Vogel's grandfather is about to receive the Nobel Prize in Physics for his shocking proof that will change everything we take for granted. As she stands at the threshold of the beginning of everything in her own life, she knows that her future and that of the world, hangs delicately in the balance. She must decide: What are the things in life worth fighting for? Can we change our fate?

In this journey of a lifetime, Gabriella meets a mysterious, young scientist, then learns that he's been at the center of her grandfather's research for hundreds of years, met her grandmother eighty years earlier, and that he hasn't aged--at all. Inspired by theories in art and science and events in history, Gabriella's unforgettable quest for answers will reveal a secret hidden for generations by her family, and one moment--one choice, that will change everything.

HAGGADOT DISPLAY - Unique and unusual haggadot on display in the KOH Library from February 12th through March 31st,

KEEPING PASSOVER; CREATING A FAITHFUL AND PERSONAL SEDER CELEBRATION - Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. Guest speaker Ira Steingroot, one of the nation's leading Haggadah experts and author of "Keeping Passover" will be giving a lecture. Suggested donation $5.

KOH CHESS CLUB - Come to meet and play chess with others at 10 a.m. on March 4th. All levels of chess players welcome! Save the date for our 2nd annual KOH Chess Tournament on Sunday, March 25th at 10 a.m. For more information and/.or to register for the chess tournament, please contact Hillel Damron at shalomhd@comcast.net

FEBRUARY LIBRARY CLOSURES - February 5th for a private event;February 19th and 20th in observance of President's Day.