Jewish Books
by Rabbi Dr. Greg Marcus
“Each of us has what it takes to be a mensch, a person of integrity and honor…the Jewish practice of Mussar can teach you how.”
– The Spiritual Practice of Good Actions, Finding Balance Through the Soul Traits of Mussar
Best-selling author
Rabbi Dr. Greg Marcus (he/him) is the best-selling author of two Jewish books, both of which present Jewish values in an accessible and sustainable way to help you improve your life.
The Spiritual Practice of Good Actions: Finding Balance Through the Soul Traits of Mussar
Busting Your Corporate Idol: Self Help for the Chronically Overworked
Busting Your Corporate Idol: Self Help for the Chronically Overworked was published on Kindle in 2014 and in paperback on Amazon in 2014.
The Spiritual Practice of Good Actions:
Finding Balance Through the Soul Traits of Mussar.
I wrote The Spiritual Practice of Good Actions to make Mussar as accessible as possible. Alan Morinis, founder of the Mussar Institute and author of Everyday Holiness did a great job of taking Mussar as practiced in the 19th Century and bringing it to the 21st century.
I have a different sensibility. I wanted to take the essence of Mussar and present it in a way that people with any level of Jewish education could understand and apply the teachings in their own lives.
Mussar is a practice, and throughout the book, I share my own journey as this practice slowly helped me become a better person.
In 2024 I was super excited to release an audiobook version of the book, with me as narrator. You can find it on Amazon and Spotify, or just about anywhere audiobooks are sold.
What is Mussar?
Mussar is a Jewish spiritual practice that helps us find those things inside that cause us to get stuck in the same situations again and again, and offers a path to balance and healing by taking mindful action. To learn more, please read an excerpt from the Jewish book on American Mussar or this article on My Jewish Learning authored by Rabbi Greg.
Mussar as a path to becoming a Mensch.
A Mensch is a person of outstanding character. We all have the potential be become a mensch, and Mussar is the guide to help us along the way. Thousands of copies of The Spiritual Practice of Good Actions have sold since it was published in 2016, and many Mussar groups have studied this Jewish book chapter by chapter to help change their lives for the better.
Busting Your Corporate Idol: Self Help for the Chronically Overworked
In 2006, I was working 90 hours a week in the corporate world and was really depressed because I was the scapegoat for a product launch gone bad. On Yom Kippur afternoon, I had a spiritual experience that showed me that I’d turned my employer into a false idol. I decided to start putting people first in my life, instead of continuing to “do what was best for the company.”
Within a year I had cut my hours by a third without changing jobs. My career flourished because I was no longer an exhausted stressed-out wreck. A year later I was in a new job and cut my hours by a third again.
Although I tell this story in both books, Busting Your Corporate Idol goes into detail on how I cut my hours each year, with specific tips on how you can do the same. This Jewish book is available exclusively on Amazon.
How to use Busting Your Corporate Idol
Ok, I’ll be honest, this is a starter book and not as good as my second. I spend the first few chapters making the case about corporate idolatry that I think some people find off-putting. If I had it to do over again, I would probably not use the idolatry metaphor in the title and would get to the helpful parts more quickly. The stories of the corporate world in parts 2 and 3 are really good, and I suspect still hold up today.
The book is inexpensive on Kindle, and if you are working too much, just read the intro, and then skip to Chapter 7, “Secure Your Identity” to get tips on how to start putting people first in your life. I will say my favorite chapter is the fourth: “Who to Trust -The Scorpion, The Fox or the Wolf?” It is a great framework to understand the motivations of the people you work with.
Jewish Books: Fiction
Here are some of my favorite Jewish books in the fiction category.
The Golem and the Jinni: A Novel (P.S.)
by Helene Wecker
Weird old rabbi uses Kabbalah to animate a Golem on a ship but dies before he reaches New York. She finds a home in the Jewish community. Eventually meets a Jinni trapped in human form. Sparks fly. Can 15,000 reviewers be wrong? Love love love The Golem and the Jinni!
Spinning Silver
by Naomi Novik
Spinning Silver is one of my favorite books by my favorite authors. It brings a fantasy story out of folktales to the Jewish world of Eastern Europe.
The Yiddish Policeman’s Union
by Michael Chabon
The Yiddish Policeman's Union takes place in an alternate world in which a Jewish Homeland was established in Alaska 100 years ago. Very good detective story too!
The Orchard by Yochi Brandes, translated
by Daniel Libenson
The orchard is so cool! There is a story in the Talmud of 4 rabbis who enter the orchard. One dies, one goes mad, one becomes a heretic. Only Rabbi Akiva is ok. This novel tells the story from the context for Rabbi Akiva's wife Rachel. It incorporates other Talmudic tales of these and other characters in the narrative. It brings to life a pivotal time in Jewish history, as the rabbi's are creating Judaism as we know it today after the destruction of the Temple. A well written and gripping story too!
As a Driven Leaf
by Milton Steinberg
This is another fun book with a bunch of famous stories in the Talmud fleshed out and wrapped together. What really gripped me was the alleged conflict between Jewish tradition and the prevailing Hellenistic culture of the time. Reconciling tradition and modern ideas is still a major issue in Judaism, and one of my favorite things to do.
Maybe I should have taken my love for books like this as a sign I should go to rabbinical school. I guess in theory the 300 5 star reviews on Amazon could all be from rabbis....
Kabbalah A Love Story
by Lawrence Kushner
Dude into Kabbalah finds a mysterious letter in a book bindiing that seems to solve an ancient mystery. He falls for an astrophysicist - both trying to solve the mysteries of the universe on a cosmic scale. This book is a bit weird in a very cool way.
Ninth House
by Leigh Bardugo
Ok, this is a bit of a stretch to be a Jewish book - the main character's grandparents were Jewish. It is a really fun modern fantasy, where the societies at Yale really practice magic. There is a secret ninth house that is supposed to oversee them, and prevent people from getting killed. The main character is very out of place, but she has one advantage - she can see dead people.
Jewish Books: Non-Fiction
Here are some of my favorite Jewish books in the non-fiction category.
The Amen Effect: Ancient Wisdom to Mend Our Broken Hearts and World
by Rabbi Sharon Brous
I saw Rabbi Sharon Brous teach at my synagogue years ago. One of her lessons stayed with me, and it turns out it that idea is the basis of this book. The Amen Effect is what happens when we truly show up for each other.
Opening Your Heart with Psalm 27: A Spiritual Practice for the Jewish New Year
by Debra J Robbins, Forward by David Stern
It is traditional to read Psalm 27 every day in the month before the High Holidays. Rabbi Debra Robbins has created a wonderful spiritual practice with written reflection prompts for each day based on just a few words of the Psalm each time. I've done this practice three times, and it has changed my life each time.
Mourning and Mitzvah: A Guided Journal for Walking the Mourner’s Path Through Grief to Healing
by LCSW Brener, Anne, MAJCS, MA
Rabbi Anne Brenner's book Mourning to Mitzvah explains the Jewish mourning rituals in both spiritual and accessible terms. She offers writing prompts to help grievers on their journey. This book helped me process my deep grief after my mother died.
Witness: Lessons from Elie Wiesel's Classroom
by Ariel Burger
Ariel Burger was Elie Wiesel's student, teaching assistant and friend. He taught undergraduate students how to be morally responsible people. He transformed hundreds of lives with his kindness and wisdom. And my life was changed from reading this book.
This Is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared: The Days of Awe as a Journey of Transformation
by Alan Lew
This is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared will be read in 1000 years. It gives incredible insights to guide us from the spiritual journey from Shavuot to Sukkot. I read it every year.
Rebbe: The Life and Teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the Most Influential Rabbi in Modern History
by Joseph Telushkin
Rebbe is an easy and enjoyable read about a fascinating man. And, reading this book made me feel like a better person.
The Blessing of a Skinned Knee: Using Timeless Teachings to Raise Self-Reliant Children
by Wendy Mogel
The Blessing of a Skinned Knee was a go to parenting book for us. Very practical and proven techniques in a Jewish wisdom wrapper.
Other Books that Changed My Life
The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
by Eckhart Tolle
The Power of Now taught me what it means to be mindful and that we are not our thoughts. We can step back and be an observer of our emotions and not get caught up in them. A must read.
Rising Strong: How the Ability to Reset Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
by Brené Brown
Brene Brown's work on vulnerability is groundbreaking. We don't need to be comfortable being vulnerable - it is inherently uncomfortable. But when we we supress vulnerability bad things happen. Each time I read this I grow as a person.
Invisible Man
by Ralph Ellison
I read Invisible Man in high school, thinking it was a fantasy book. Instead, I found something that changed my life - as a teen I felt invisible, just as the nameless protagonist felt invisible as a black man in America. This is the only book I have ever read that I literally could not put down. And when I carried it around, people would come up to me to discuss the book.
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