It Takes Two to Torah - by Abigail Pogrebin & Dov Linzer (Hardcover)

About the Book

"This book is a Torah conversation-starter for families on Shabbat, for religious school instructors with students of all ages, for individuals who have never found a way to read the entire Torah in bite-size, relatable nuggets, and for young clergy looking for some sermon ideas if they're stuck! Most of all, it is a snapshot of what Torah study is meant to be: a real-time, candid, instructive, challenging exchange of responses to ancient text.For the first time, in a single volume, readers can take a tour of the entire Torah through the medium of one challenging, instructive, irreverent, animated conversation. Rabbi Dov Linzer, an Orthodox rabbi, and Abigail Pogrebin, a Reform journalist talk their way through the Five Books of Moses with candor, humor, emotion, personal revelation, and scholarship."--Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

It Takes Two to Torah is not just an education, it's an invitation - to join the oldest Book Club in the world.

This book is a Torah conversation-starter for families on Shabbat, for religious school instructors with students of all ages, for individuals who have never found a way to read the entire Torah in bite-size, relatable nuggets, and for young clergy looking for some sermon ideas if they're stuck! Most of all, it is a snapshot of what Torah study is meant to be: a real-time, candid, instructive, challenging exchange of responses to ancient text.For the first time, in a single volume, readers can take a tour of the entire Torah through the medium of one challenging, instructive, irreverent, animated conversation. Rabbi Dov Linzer, an Orthodox rabbi, and Abigail Pogrebin, a Reform journalist talk their way through the Five Books of Moses with candor, humor, emotion, personal revelation, and scholarship.

This book is the product of two people literally meeting in the middle to bring us their most honest intellectual and relevant understanding of the Torah. Pogrebin and Linzer engaged in short dialogues on a podcast forTablet Magazine, and they have now been collected and edited so that the full, fascinating exploration can be found in one place.

Rabbi Linzer is President and Rabbinic Head of YCT Rabbinical School (a Modern Orthodox seminary, ) and Abigail Pogrebin is a veteran journalist, author of My Jewish Year: 18 Holidays, One Wondering Jew and former producer for 60 Minutes.

Dov is a renowned expert in Torah and Talmud, whose personal values run liberal and egalitarian, but who also has clear parameters about what is halachically correct and comfortable when it comes to Jewish law and tradition. Abby is our relatable every-Jew in America, deeply engaged in Jewish life, but less through strict observance and prayer as through study, reporting, synagogue, and community.

Review Quotes

"Abigail Pogrebin and Rabbi Dov Linzer illuminate the Torah through discussion in the most joyous, insightful, conversational way. They make what could be an academic concept- to investigate and discuss the true meaning of the Torah- into delightful banter, coming at it from two very different perspectives. They give us permission to question and interpret the layers of the text and in so doing, realize that it is the questioning that makes us human. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and learned so much along the way."-JULIANNA MARGULIES, Actor/Producer/Author

"This unlikely, inspired pairing of an esteemed Torah scholar (Orthodox) and brilliant journalist (Reform) leads to some of the most spontaneous, moving exchanges about our tradition's foundational text. Linzer and Pogrebin embody the magic of talking Torah--arguing, asking, letting it meet you where you are. It Takes Two to Torah is a gift to anyone who wants to be part of this eternal conversation and be enlightened and surprised -even rabbis who read it every year." -RABBI ANGELA BUCHDAHL, Senior Rabbi, Central Synagogue, New York City

Articulate, eloquent, fascinating, insightful, thoughtful and thought-provoking, "It Takes Two to Torah: An Orthodox Rabbi and Reform Journalist Discuss and Debate Their Way Through the Five Books of Moses" is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended reading for anyone with an interest in the Torah, Jewish Religious Studies, and the first five books of the Old Testament."Midwest Book Review

"Rabbi Linzer and journalist Pogrebin (My Jewish Year) discuss 52 weekly readings of the Torah in this intellectually lively adaptation of their Parsha in Progress podcast. Aiming to step outside their "echo chambers," the authors draw fresh insights.... Such openness gives the book its spark and propels the authors' broad-minded consideration of such questions as the value of ritual versus belief and what the Bible might have to say about gender identity. Rigorous and readable, it's a stimulating addition to modern-day Torah scholarship."Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Rabbi Dov Linzer is the President and Rosh HaYeshiva (Rabbinic Head) of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah (YCT), an Orthodox rabbinical school and Torah center which promotes a more open and inclusive Orthodoxy. A leading Torah voice in the Modern Orthodox community, Rabbi Linzer serves as religious mentor to YCT's students and its over 200 rabbis in the United States and Israel. He has written for The Forward, Tablet and The New York Times, has published hundreds of teshuvot (responsa) and scholarly Torah articles, and hosted a number of highly popular Torah podcasts.

Abigail Pogrebin is the author of "Stars of David: Prominent Jews Talk About Being Jewish" and "My Jewish Year:18 Holidays, One Wondering Jew" which was published by Fig Tree Books LLC and was a finalist for a National Jewish Book Award. She has written for The Atlantic, New York Magazine, Tablet, and The Forward, and moderated public conversations for The Streicker Center, the Shalom Hartman Institute, the JCC in Manhattan, and Jewish Broadcasting Service. She is a past president of Central Synagogue in New York.

Mayim Bialik, PhD, is perhaps best known for her lead role as Blossom Russo in the 1990s television sitcom Blossom, and she starred on the top-rated comedy The Big Bang Theory. Bialik earned a BS from UCLA in 2000 in neuroscience and Hebrew and Jewish studies, and a PhD in neuroscience from UCLA in 2007.