By Light of Hidden Candles
By Light of Hidden Candles is a historical novel that explores themes relating to Sephardic Jewish and Spanish culture, interfaith relationships, and religious and moral dilemmas of the 15th and 21st century. It can serve as an entertaining and valuable educational resource for middle school, high school, and college students as part of a curriculum in history, religious education, cultural education/social studies, or literature. Click here to read more about the book.
By Light of Hidden Candles Discussion Guide
The By Light of Hidden Candles Discussion Guide for book clubs and classrooms was developed to stand alone, so participants don’t need to have read the book to take part in the discussion. Click here to view and download the printable PDF. It includes excerpts, discussion questions, and an author interview (and no spoilers!).
Meet the Author
I’d be thrilled to speak or video chat with your class, community, or book club! Be in touch to discuss this possibility.
Additional Resources
I’ve published a series of blog posts on this website with additional background information on the process of writing and researching By Light of Hidden Candles, including a song playlist, deleted scenes, and fascinating resources about 15th-century Lorca. Click here to browse the relevant posts.
Letters to Josep: An Introduction to Judaism
Letters to Josep: An Introduction to Judaism is a collection of letters from an Orthodox American-Israeli Jew (a.k.a. yours truly) to a Catholic friend from Barcelona, describing the basic concepts of Judaism and Orthodox Jewish life. Its relaxed, humorous style and the warmth it draws from the real friendship that inspired it make it a perfect resource for beginners, especially teens and young adults. It can be used as part of a religious studies curriculum focusing on the Jewish faith and culture. Click here to read more about Letters to Josep: An Introduction to Judaism.
The book was compiled from the individual posts on the Letters to Josep blog. You can use the search function to explore the posts on a wide variety of topics relating to Judaism.
A discussion guide is forthcoming; in the meantime, feel free to be in touch with me about using Letters to Josep as an educational resource or discussing it with your book club.
![Today my middle child had a #tanakh party. After ceremoniously receiving his first tanakh (the cover was my first attempt at real embroidery, give me some slack), I studied a passage from it with him and we made an art project based on what we learned. Samuel I 15:11-12, about the unlikely identity of the man who would replace Saul as King of Israel: "And [Jesse] said, there remains [one more son], the youngest, he is minding the sheep... and the Lord said, rise up and anoint him" How awesome are his clay sheep?! #biblestudy #bibleart #hebrewbible](http://scontent-frt3-1.cdninstagram.com/vp/420260e669796b70b7b10ce18aa8136e/5D34670A/t51.2885-15/e35/s150x150/52421034_815595585457586_1713309960613646778_n.jpg?_nc_ht=scontent-frt3-1.cdninstagram.com "Today my middle child had a #tanakh party. After ceremoniously receiving his first tanakh (the cover was my first attempt at real embroidery, give me some slack), I studied a passage from it with him and we made an art project based on what we learned. Samuel I 15:11-12, about the unlikely identity of the man who would replace Saul as King of Israel: \"And [Jesse] said, there remains [one more son], the youngest, he is minding the sheep... and the Lord said, rise up and anoint him\" How awesome are his clay sheep?! #biblestudy #bibleart #hebrewbible")