{"id":2459,"date":"2023-01-05T13:10:44","date_gmt":"2023-01-05T18:10:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/?p=2459"},"modified":"2023-01-05T13:10:44","modified_gmt":"2023-01-05T18:10:44","slug":"paperback-boundaries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/paperback-boundaries\/","title":{"rendered":"Paperback Boundaries"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Look at How the Contemporary Frum <\/em>World Designs and Defines Kosher Reading<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elisheva Braun<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the People of the Book, our connection to reading material is intimate and inseverable. In a world that never stops evolving, growing, and publishing\u2014upping the ante and raising the bar\u2014can we provide our youth with the space to breathe, explore, and uncover while protecting them from less-than-virtuous material?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We spoke with those in the industry as well as spectators to its changes to find out.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publishers speak<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The vetting process<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do frum<\/em> publishers decide whether a manuscript is publish-worthy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The editors at Israel Bookshop rely on the discretion that its staff has developed over 30 years in the publishing industry. When in doubt, they are in touch with the company\u2019s rav hamachshir<\/em>. \u201cThe rav<\/em>\u2019s wife, a mechaneches <\/em>and girls\u2019 high school principal, also weighs in when we\u2019re unsure whether a book is appropriate,\u201d says Malkie Gendelman, acquisitions editor at the publishing house. \u201cIt\u2019s usually not a yes-or-no issue; the rav <\/em>and\/or his wifeoften provide suggestions as to what can be switched, tweaked, or cut.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ArtScroll Publications says, \u201cAll our books must pass the muster of an editorial board that includes mechanchim<\/em> and bnei Torah<\/em> who learned in leading yeshivos and under gedolei Yisrael<\/em>.Of course, the board does not review every word of every work. We have a staff of experienced and sensitive editors who do that, and they refer any questions they have to those on the board. If questions of propriety arise, they are referred to the gedolei Yisrael<\/em> who guide us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rabbi David Kahn, general editor at Feldheim Publishers, has many years of experience in reviewing manuscripts. \u201cOnce I believe that it\u2019s kosher, the book goes to our editors, who check it more thoroughly while editing. The work is then typeset and proofread, which is another check. Our system has many stops to help us catch mistakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne book we edited included a false story about the Rambam which was published in a magazine years ago. The typesetter recognized the story and remembered that a retraction had followed its printing. Her attention to detail saved us from printing a falsified story about the Rambam.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Discretion required<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sensitive material isn\u2019t a frequent problem for Feldheim. \u201cAll of our manuscripts are from yerei Shamayim<\/em>;we stay away from \u2018borderline\u2019 books,\u201d says Rabbi Kahn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe do not publish general-reading books that we feel have sensitive content. While individual parents may have additional sensitivities, overall, we are true to our mission of publishing works that anyone can feel comfortable having around the house, no matter the age or gender of their children,\u201d says ArtScroll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Israel Bookshop steers clear of sensitive topics. When it comes to thrillers, which usually involve terrorists, guns, etc., \u201cThis is a very gray area, one that we\u2019re constantly discussing with our rav.<\/em> While we make sure action books are written with sensitivity, preteen boys love this genre, and we don\u2019t want to deprive them of it altogether.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feldheim stops at nothing to remove potentially damaging material from the market. \u201cOn the rare occasions when mistakes slip past us, we have damage-control protocols in place. With a rav<\/em>, we weigh hefsed<\/em> concerns against the severity of the oversight to decide on the next steps. This can mean making corrections before a reprint, manually cutting out problematic sections and replacing them with new pages, and even initiating book recalls when necessary,\u201d says Rabbi Kahn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a cultural thing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCertain sensibilities are common in America and not in Eretz Yisrael, and vice versa,\u201d says Rabbi Kahn. \u201cConcepts such as connectivity to technology and women as careerists in the workforce are common in the US, while Israeli chareidim <\/em>are familiar with low-income and political issues. A recent sample of this divergence came up in a book that discusses the Jewish attitudes toward non-Jews. The volume was heavily edited before print in the States, where a different standard of political correctness is accepted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn a Hebrew book that we translated, there was a story about a gadol<\/em> who wouldn\u2019t touch a doorknob after a goy<\/em> touched it. I removed the story for the English edition as I felt that it would cause more harm than good. In Eretz Yisrael, the stringency is seen as praiseworthy, while Americans would perceive it as radical and extremist. We need to think not only of the words we write but also of the way they\u2019ll be received and the effect that they may have.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Israel Bookshop prefers to err on the side of caution. \u201cSome things are okay for many groups except the ultra-yeshivish<\/em> or chassidish<\/em>. Because the market is so small to begin with, it isn\u2019t worth it for us to cut out a group. For that reason, we tend to be more machmir<\/em> than we need to be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The idea of creating an across-the-board rating system for frum <\/em>literature was tossed around at Israel Bookshop many times. However, the hair-splittingly nuanced levels within Yiddishkeit<\/em> make such a system seem impossible. \u201cBecause every parent wants different things for their children, we cannot say which book is for which age. Ultimately, it\u2019s the parents\u2019 responsibility to decide what their kids should read. To facilitate that, we remove the guesswork by making it clear\u2014on the front or back cover\u2014what each book is about. Parents should at least read the book\u2019s description in order to know what type of book they are letting their child read.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On haskamos<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA haskamah<\/em> doesn\u2019t completely protect you,\u201d Rabbi Kahn cautions. \u201cSometimes it means nothing more than that the author keeps Torah and mitzvos. I read a book that compared therapists to doctors and said that if one needs psychological help, they may see a counselor who isn\u2019t a yerei Shamayim<\/em>.When I asked the rav <\/em>who gave the haskamah<\/em> if he agreed with that, he replied, \u2018I told the author many times that a therapist must be a yerei Shamayim<\/em>!\u2019 Sadly, these occurrences are not uncommon.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Readers should look carefully at the haskamah<\/em>\u2019s wording to verify whether the rav<\/em> is merely approving the author or he has actually read the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instructive or Gratuitous?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Psychotherapist Dr. Sara Teichman\u2019s take<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As parents and educators, it is our duty to protect our children from witnessing and experiencing aggression, bullying, and violence. Yet, we cannot go too far in sheltering kids; for the right age, in the right way, education about the realities of life is important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is what I mean: Our nation\u2019s history is written in blood. Learning about Haman, Pharaoh, and Antiochus is a normal part of school for us. We want our children to know about our past, even when it includes hardship and pain. The Churban<\/em>, the Inquisition, and the Holocaust are all parts of our narrative, and they need to be taught, albeit in a sensitive, age-appropriate, not overly graphic manner. For safety reasons, we also have to warn our children about predators, thieves, and ne\u2019er-do-wells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That viewing violent activity leads to aggression has been proven many times. Thebystander effect (where one is neither victim nor bully, but rather a silent observer) desensitizes onlookers and diffuses responsibility. Violence, whether observed in schoolyard bullying, in verbal assaults, in books, or even in aggressive driving, is damaging, especially to children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When children are exposed to violence, they react in one of two ways. Some see yelling, pushing, and hitting as a way to solve problems, and they unfortunately learn their lesson all too well. Other children may become afraid of the scary world around them and plagued all their life by anxiety and fear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parents have to use discretion in allowing their kids to explore and discover the world without being exposed to distressing and potentially traumatizing material. Unfortunately, there is no foolproof method. Your child will hear things from friends and neighbors, classmates and teachers. You can\u2019t completely protect them. We don\u2019t always know how kids interpret things; every child reacts differently to the same information. But a parent\u2019s sensitive and sensible explanation is always better than an education from a classmate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Society\u2014both Jewish and secular\u2014has not yet figured out how to curtail the presence and impact of violence on our children. We can certainly do our part by lowering the temperature in our home and maintaining a safe, even-keeled environment. We can make every attempt to send our child to a school that has a zero-tolerance policy for bullying and aggression. We can, and should, screen media material\u2014books, kosher videos, and periodicals\u2014for violence that would traumatize our child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the end of the day, there are no easy answers to the really hard questions. The best a parent can do is maintain the balance between the need to know and the need to protect\u2014and hope that we get it right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Respect and verify<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Judaica Plaza owner Rabbi Avrohom Levine weighs in<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Judaica Plaza, anything that seems problematic is flagged and discussed with a prominent BMG posek<\/em> before being put up for sale. At the same time, the store caters to a diverse crowd and provides reading material for a wide gamut of Yidden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do we get complaints about books? All the time. But once we\u2019ve done our part to make sure we have the approval of a posek<\/em>, we leave the rest up to the customer. Everyone has different sensitivities, so it\u2019s impossible to please each person. For instance, some people screamed when toy tefillin<\/em> hit the market. Although I wouldn\u2019t buy it for my own children as I worry that it could weaken their chashivus<\/em> for tefillin<\/em>,I felt that it was a call parents should make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s important to understand that our world isn\u2019t black and white. When there\u2019s controversy, we temporarily take books off the shelves until the issues are cleared up. We don\u2019t jump to conclusions but instead do the legwork to find out what the proper next step is. Sometimes, we\u2019re guided to stop selling something. Other times, sticking a \u201ccontains sensitive material\u201d warning on the cover is enough. I recommend that readers take a similar approach: before you dub something assur<\/em>, uncover the truth about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The view from the library<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

High school mechaneches<\/em> and library owner Baila Klein* shares<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I opened my neighborhood library, I spoke with many highly regarded people about which books to stock. The consensus was that although I must filter books on a basic level, the responsibility to screen reading material lies with parents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While I have pulled a couple of problematic books that have made their way into my library, it usually isn\u2019t a question of \u201cgood book versus bad book\u201d; most reads simply aren\u2019t meant for everyone. A tale of disordered eating can have disastrous effects on a developing mind. A girly, gossipy novel isn\u2019t a good fit for a preteen boy, while his fast-paced action book would give his sister nightmares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are two genres for older kids that I dislike: spying-bombing-kidnapping-double-agent thrillers and books with mental health, marital, and addiction issues. Books that aim to \u201cdestigmatize\u201d problems and bring attention\u2014perhaps too much attention\u2014to issues that have been \u201cshoved under the carpet\u201d are my personal pet peeves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I recently asked some high school girls which category they think is worse. One girl told me, \u201cThe thrillers feel so removed from real life, they\u2019re like fantasy reads to me. On the other hand, books that paint marriage and parenthood as stressful, chaotic, and just plain hard really affect me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The portrayal of crumbling marriages, addictive or avoidant behaviors, mental health crises, extreme poverty, and dysfunction is damaging. Teenagers\u2014especially those who didn\u2019t grow up in homes that modeled excellent parenting, shalom bayis<\/em>, self-regulation, and communication\u2014are left with skewed and disillusioned worldviews. Who would want to build a home when they believe they will inevitably perpetuate the pandemonium?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve gotten lazy, and we don\u2019t check anymore. If it\u2019s Jewish, we\u2019re in. We\u2019re used to things being comfortable inside our unique kosher culture. But parental oversight is important. We would never drop off a young daughter at a frum<\/em> clothing store and tell her to pick anything. We understand that there are some hechsheirim<\/em> we don\u2019t eat and some Jewish places we don\u2019t frequent. There are so many shades and nuances within the frum<\/em> community. Do our children\u2019s books get the same discernment?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Growing up, I would take a bus to the public library and choose the books I wanted to read. My mother would skim through my selections before I read them. I feel that we should have the same attitude toward frum<\/em> books today as we had toward public libraries 30 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A rav\u2019s perspective<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rabbi Yaakov Berman speaks<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The criteria for acceptance by the frum<\/em> world cannot only be that it\u2019s better than non-Jewish alternatives. Preventing people from engaging in worse does not always justify introducing kashered goy\u2019ish<\/em> entertainment or products to Klal Yisrael.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a famous drashah<\/em>, Rav Moshe Feinstein explained that the idea of indulgence in every goy\u2019ish<\/em> pleasure in a glatt<\/em> kosher<\/em> manner is treif<\/em>. Reading for pleasure is a non-Jewish idea; generations of Yidden grew up reading Torah and mussar<\/em>. The closest to entertainment that we had was sippurei<\/em> tzaddikim<\/em>, biographies, and Jewish history written by talmidei chachamim<\/em> and filled with yiras<\/em> Shamayim<\/em> and inspiration. Therefore, one has to measure and weigh the benefits with the potential liabilities of reading novels, even frum<\/em> ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dangers are many: There\u2019s the bittul zman<\/em> the engrossing, hundreds-of-pages-long books bring on. Although blatant, graphic violence is usually not described in frum<\/em> books, authors come as close as they can\u2014a little too close. Although romance is avoided, the whole shidduch<\/em> scene with all its details somehow became permitted territory. Reading about relationships and marriages good and bad has become the norm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many novels and serials expose the reader to the \u201creal world\u201d of jealousy, work and family politics, power grabbing, lying, stealing, anger, revenge, and inappropriate behavior. Some contain subtle and not-so-subtle agendas promoting husbands leaving kollel<\/em>; promoting therapy as a cure-all for everyone; or suggesting that mental illness, divorce, addiction, and abuse are found in every frum<\/em> home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I feel that the proliferation of Jewish novels and serials is a disservice to Klal Yisrael, replacing pure books with empty fiction at best and opening up vistas that better remain closed to the young Jewish mind. I suggest that parents sit down with their children to openly and honestly explain the potential problems in literature and only purchase books that are beyond reproach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sidebar:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On secular books<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rabbi Chaim Meir Roth gives perspective<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many of us fondly remember the nonreligious novels we grew up on as clean and kosher, but in fact, most of these works contain damaging messages, both subliminally and outright. Cheapening murder and promoting a reckless way of life are just some of the harms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, ethical standards have dropped dramatically in recent years, and books are worse than ever. Nonreligious libraries and bookstores have become dangerous places.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some people make the mistake of thinking that girls can read anything they want. In fact, there\u2019s no halachic difference between men and women when it comes to reading divrei cheshek<\/em>; it\u2019s assur<\/em> for everyone. This genre is especially dangerous because it creates an alternate universe of unrealistic expectations and twisted hashkafos<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it may be difficult, we must find a way to satisfy our children\u2019s love for reading without compromising on our values.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*Name has been changed<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Look at How the Contemporary Frum World Designs and Defines Kosher Reading Elisheva Braun As the People of the Book, our connection to reading material is intimate and inseverable. In a world that never stops evolving, growing, and publishing\u2014upping the ante and raising the bar\u2014can we provide our youth with the space to breathe, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2460,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[19],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2459"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2459"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2459\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2461,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2459\/revisions\/2461"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2460"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2459"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}