Bar and Bat Mitzvah Books for Parents

(Page 3)


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For Bar/Bat Mitzvah books for young readers, go to the Children's Life Cycle Books Page

For Bar Mitvah books geared for older readers (including 13-year olds), go to the Bar/Bat Mitzvah Books Page



Other Pages of Interest:

Bar/Bat Mitzvah Books For Kids (Page 1) (Page 2) | Bar/Bat Mitzvah Books For Parents (Page 1)


Easy Reader and Picture Books:
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Putting 
God on the Guest List
Putting God on the Guest List :
How to Claim the Spiritual Meaning of Your Child's Bar/Bat Mitzvah

(for parents)
Expanded, updated, revised 2nd edition. Helps people find core spiritual values in American Jewry's most misunderstood ceremony -- Bar and Bat Mitzvah. Joins explanation, instruction and inspiration, to help parent and child truly be there when the moment of Sinai is recreated in their lives. How did Bar and Bat Mitzvah originate? What is its lasting significance? What are the ethics of celebration? How to make the event more spiritually meaningful!

Description from publisher

This book is destined to enjoy great popularity, for it addresses an important Jewish life cycle occasion in an exciting, contemporary style. The catchy title reflects the tone of the book. In illuminating the meaning of the bar mitzvah ritual, Salkin covers all bases: history, sociology, and religion. Recognizing that the bar mitzvah is an emotional event, particularly in families that are not observant, he explains its significance as a link in the unbroken chain of Jewish tradition as well as a rite of passage. The chapter on the highlights of the Sabbath prayers is useful. Throughout, Salkin offers instant answers to the perplexing questions of faith and belief. In our age of instant gratification, this approach has great merit and appeal.

Description from Library Journal

MitzvahChic: A New Approach to Hosting a Bar or Bat Mitzvah That is Meaningful, Hip, Relevant, Fun & Drop-Dead Gorgeous

By Gail Anthony Greenberg
There's a new way of celebrating life's milestones and it debuts right here with a complete re-think of the Bar and Bat Mitzvah. Milestones are sacred, deeply felt moments; times to be connected with friends, family, and the wonder of the human adventure. Don't just decorate or adopt a silly theme - have a real experience. MitzvahChic is designed to take even beginners into the heart of the Torah to discover its universal and surprisingly modern treasures. And then, use them to create a chic celebration that's moving to attend and impossible to forget. The book's a tactics guide and a well of inspiration. Take the journey and once you, to, have experienced the wonder, who knows where it will lead you... as a Jew and as a human being!

Description from Publisher


This book provides an inspiring, fresh look at the Bar/Bat Mitzvah process, which comforts, encourages, enlightens and informs in a concise and witty style. Her tone is conversational and very funny, yet the book is rich, intelligent and full of practical suggestions that can be used either as given or as a springboard for your own ideas. The author feels like your new best friend as you embark on this overwhelming feat of pulling off an American-style Bar/Bat Mitzvah without completely losing sight of it's deeper meaning. In addition to talking you through the whole process--from choosing a date to finding meaning in your Torah portion to designing a beautiful party that reflects this meaning--it provides many lists and charts and a timeline, all of which are extremely practical and easy to use. There are many money-saving tips as well...but the real strength and uniqueness of this book is that it revives an emphasis on the deeper meaning of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah, and takes that meaning well into the party. Beautiful photos, wonderful and artistic touches, clear and concise instructions. Her website does not seem to be "live" yet--I think the book was newly published at the time I'm writing this--but it looks like it will be a fantastic resource for information and products. I wish this book had been around when we first started planning my daughter's Bat Mitzvah, which is only a couple of months away.....!

Description from Amazon.com Customer Review
Bar/Bat Mitzvah Basics
Bar/Bat Mitzvah Basics:
A Practical Family Guide to Coming of Age Together
This practical guide gives families the how-to information they need-not only how to navigate the bar/bat mitzvah process, but how to grow as a family through this coming-of-age experience.For the first time in one book, all who are directly involved in bar and bat mitzvah offer their practical insights into how the process can be made easier and more enjoyable for everyone. Rabbis, cantors, and Jewish educators from the Reform, Conservative, and Reconstructionist movements, parents, and even teens speak from their own experiences.Topics include: What it's all about from start to finish, tutoring, stress, expectations, negotiating the ceremony and the celebration (including issues related to divorced and interfaith families), how to design a creative service, and advice on planning a reception that neither breaks the bank nor detracts from the inherent spirituality of the event.
Whose Bar/Bat Mitzvah Is This, Anyway?
Whose Bar/Bat Mitzvah Is This, Anyway? :
A Guide for Parents Through a Family Rite of Passage
Although a child's bat/bar mitzvah is one of the great moments in the life of a family, the months leading up to it can be surprisingly difficult, with stress appearing from every direction. In this guide, a family therapist helps parents survive this difficult time--and learn how to make the event a time for the family to thrive.

Description from publisher

Davis, a family therapist at the University of Massachusetts, looks not just at the child but at the entire family; not just at the bar mitzvah (for boys at age 13) or bat mitzvah (for girls at 12) ceremony but at the year surrounding it; and not just at the religious meaning of the event but at its psychological and social potential for the evolution of the family. Davis divides her book into five parts, discussing the issues (stress, myths, ritual), the players (children and parents), the spirit (sacred and secular), the details (guest list, ceremony, and party), and the big picture (life-cycle rituals). Davis' thoughtful examination of this meaningful rite of passage will help parents get through this joyous but stressful time.

Description from Horn Book

The Complete Bar/Bat Mitzvah Book :
Everything You Need to Plan a Meaningful Celebration

By Patti Moskovitz
A practical and friendly guide for students and parents-a guide that helps readers plan a meaningful celebration- both in the service and the reception. Incorporating the experiences and rituals of families from all traditions, and based on the experiences of rabbis, parents, and children, the book offers helpful suggestions for:
  • Long-term preparation and short-term goals.
  • Elevating the spiritual meaning of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah.
  • The "nuts and bolts" of planning the celebration.
  • Adult Bar/Bat Mitzvahs.
  • Jewish life afterward.
Readers will find descriptions of typical services for both boys and girls, various alternatives, and the meaning behind the rituals. There are many suggestions throughout to make the Bar/Bat Mitzvah service more personalized and more meaningful.

Description from Publisher

Moskovitz seems more concerned with the practical aspects of the traditional Jewish coming-of-age ceremony and the party that often follows than Jeffrey Salkin was in Putting God on the Guest List. Yet she balances practical suggestions with others for spiritual enrichment that will make the celebration much more than a glorified thirteenth birthday party. Explaining terms likely to be encountered during preparation, and integrating background on religious traditions that lead to the ceremony, she takes parents through everything from selecting a date to the responsibilities of the celebrant and of the family. Transliterations of traditional prayers and first-person comments from parents and youngsters appear throughout, adding vigor and a sense of the occasion's joy and deeper meaning. Moskovitz provides plenty of ideas for the follow-up party as well as a helpful, long-range planning time table. Appendixes of further resources and a glossary round out a book that will help adults smooth the way for a life-affirming, life-changing event connecting a child to family, community, and heritage.

Description from Booklist
The Bar/Bat Mitzvah Planbook
The Bar/Bat Mitzvah Planbook

By Jane Lewit and Ellen Robinson Epstein
An unprecedented step-by-step approach to the Bar/Bat Mitzvah Planning experience, this manual treats the ceremonies as Jewish religious occasions, wedding the ethical insights of religions to a meaningful and tasteful event.

A user-friendly, step-by-step guide for all parents. Helps families of the 90's prepare their child, understand the synagogue/temple service, plan a creative party...everything from havdalah to handicap access, from computer tutors to challah covers. It includes alternatives for the ceremony and celebration as well as useful charts, timetables, and a glossary. As one mother recently said, "just reading the first chapter answered so many questions and calmed me down tremendously."

Description from publisher
The Complete Bar/Bat Mitzvah Planner
The Complete Bar/Bat Mitzvah Planner :
An Indispensable, Money-Saving Workbook for Organizing Every Aspect of the Event-From Temple Service to Reception
Now, thanks to this indispensable, all-inclusive guide, you can: (1) Obtain complete information on how to plan the perfect Bar or Bat Mitzvah (2) Be guided every step of the way, from the temple service to the reception to the seating arrangements. (3) Feel well organized and assured that no detail is overlooked, by using the handy countdown and checklists. (4) Receive tips, suggestions, and advice based on numerous personal experiences gifts, and thank-you notes. (5) Discover helpful hints for choosing your photographer, videographer, musicians, florist, decorator, entertainment, favors, invitations, and clothing. (6) Compare prices easily as you visit caterers, musicians, photographers, videographers, florists, printers, etc. (7) Give this as a perfect gift to special friends or relatives to help them with their eventful day. (8) Relax and enjoy your day with everything going exactly the way you planned.

Description from Publisher
Bravo! Bar/Bat Mitzvah Organizer
The Bravo! Bar/Bat Mitzvah Organizer
The Bravo! Bar/Bat Mitzvah Organizer is a planning workbook for coordinating all the festivities surrounding this significant event. Using a loose-leaf format, this Organizer is an invaluable tool to plan, document, track and organize details.

Description from publisher

Bar & Bat Mitzvah in Israel :
The Ultimate Family Sourcebook

By Judith Isaacson
This is The Sourcebook for families of any Jewish denomination who are interested in celebrating a Bar or Bat Mitzvah in Israel. This well organized and easy to read book includes information on:
  • finding a rabbi to lead and coordinate the event,
  • resources for children with special needs,
  • celebrating in ancient and modern synagogues, national parks, and kibbutzim
  • museum receptions,
  • theme events,
  • weekday and Shabbat ceremonies,
  • rustic or elegant affairs all over the country. Unique features include:
  • Torah Tie-In Adventures which connects Torah readings with fun and interesting adventures in Israel and
  • Tikkun Olam: Mitzvot to Prepare at home and Perform in Israel.

    English Speaking Reliable Contacts are listed as well as Web Sites, E Mail addresses and Fax Numbers. This information will enable a family to plan the celebration via a home computer and fax machine!

    Description from Publisher
  • How to Survive Your Son's Bar Mitzvah
    How to Survive and Profit from Your Son's Bar Mitzvah :
    Or Other Significant Event Where You Are Expected to Pay the Bill
    Shapiro does a marvelous send-up of every aspect of the American penchant for overdoing Bar Mitzvahs (as well as every other coming-of-age) celebration. He harpoons (and lampoons) the "My event can be better than your event" materialism and mentality which all too often masks the true meaning of the event. The cartoons match the over-the-top, rapid-fire humor of what seems the perfect monologue for a borscht belt comedian. This one moves even more quickly than the 100 pages leads you to believe. You'll be done with it in less than a couple of hours - that is, if you don't stop to chuckle or laugh out loud like I did throughout this book. A perfect gift for the parents about to "celebrate" or "suffer through it."

    From Amazon customer review

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