Title: Days Are Coming: A Journey through the Jewish Year
Sivan Rahav-Meir
Maggid Books
For those that don’t know of Sivan Rahav-Meir, she is one of the more interesting personalities in Israel today. Born into a secular family, she became observant in her teen years. She entered the world of journalism and, in 2017, was chosen by the Israeli financial newspaper Globes as the most popular female media personality in Israel.
Rahav-Meir is not just an engaging speaker; she is an excellent writer. In Days Are Coming: A Journey through the Jewish Year (Maggid Books), she gives the reader an overview of the events and holidays that occur in the Jewish calendar.
If you have heard any of her speeches, Rahav-Meir is very big on keeping it real and current. She writes that Judaism has so much to offer to the world, and the world wants to hear from the Jews. And in this book of hers, she does just that.
One of the original aspects of the book is that she introduces many Israeli personalities that Americans may not be familiar with, from Rabbi Chaim Sabato and Adina Bar-Shalom on the religious end to entertainers like Aviv Geffen and Kobi Oz of the Israeli band Teapacks. She brings the totality of the Israeli scene, from Rav Kook and Rav Soloveichik, to Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Rabbi Avigdor Neventzal, and many more. For Rahav-Meir, she brings the reader to the totality of what’s happening there in Israel.
She quotes a plethora of Israeli personalities that I was not familiar with. And found myself Googling their names often to find out just who these people are.
In the book, she goes month by month and provides insights and vignettes that are relevant to the month. An interesting insight she shares on the fourth day of Iyar, with Yom HaZikaron, is that the tally of those who died defending the state doesn’t start in 1948. Instead, the first casualty of a hostile enemy attack was Rabbi Avraham Shlomo Zalman Tosref, who was murdered in 1851. The count for Yom HaZikaron doesn’t begin with the War of Independence, but rather with the renewal of the Jewish settlement in Jerusalem.
Rahav-Meir doesn’t just explain what the various holidays are about; she delves into their experiential aspects and shares countless lessons about what can be learned from each of them.
The chapters are easy to read and provide a treasure trove of original insights and advice by one of Israel’s most sought-out Torah personalities. Millions of people have been inspired by her columns and videos. And here, she brings those talents to the written word.
