A little end-of-summer humor for our academic readers.
Finally, a Use for Reprints
A little end-of-summer humor for our academic readers.
“Catholicism and the American Experience” (MacGuire, ed.)
In July, Roman & Littlefield Publishers released “Catholicism and the American Experience” edited by James P. MacGuire (Portsmouth Institute). The publisher’s description follows:
What does it mean to be Catholic in America? Catholicism and the American Experience features essays from 
Robert George, Peter Steinfels, George Weigel, E. J. Dionne, and many more, exploring the unique elements of American Catholicism. The volume highlights the proceedings of the fifth annual Portsmouth Institute conference.
This collection of essays addresses the topic of Catholicism and the American Experience from diverse points of view. They discuss thorny topics such as the relationship between the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and religious freedom, what it means to be Catholic in a secular age, and the current state of Catholic art. Essays also explore subjects ranging from New Evangelization in the church to Catholic leadership.
Helman, “Becoming Israeli: National Ideals and Everyday Life in the 1950s”
In July, Brandeis University Press released “Becoming Israeli: National Ideals and Everyday Life in the 1950s” by Anat Helman (Hebrew University of Jerusalem). The publisher’s description follows:
With a light touch and many wonderful illustrations, historian Anat Helman investigates “life on the ground” in Israel 
during the first years of statehood. She looks at how citizens–natives of the land, longtime immigrants, and newcomers–coped with the state’s efforts to turn an incredibly diverse group of people into a homogenous whole. She investigates the efforts to make Hebrew the lingua franca of Israel, the uses of humor, and the effects of a constant military presence, along with such familiar aspects of daily life as communal dining on the kibbutz, the nightmare of trying to board a bus, and moviegoing as a form of escapism. In the process Helman shows how ordinary people adapted to the standards and rules of the political and cultural elites and negotiated the chaos of early statehood.