The Book of Customs
A Complete Handbook for the Jewish Year

By Scott-Martin Kosofsky

     Scott-Martin Kosofsky discovered the inspiration for his new work, The Book of Customs: A Complete Handbook for the Jewish Year, quite by accident. A Boston-based book designer and producer, Kosofsky was researching woodcuts for another book when he stumbled upon the 1648 edition of the Minhogimbukh, a handbook for observing the Jewish year, written in Yiddish, the language of the common people in Eastern Europe. It was unusual to find a book of prayers and observances written in what was considered at the time a secular language. This book led Kosofsky to several other Jewish customs books and further into research about Jewish history and religious practice. Translating this work, Kosofsky uncovered a wealth of information about the reasons why Jews used certain customs and practices. He also realized that much of the material referenced in the original Minhogimbukh was not detailed enough. This led him to include detailed prayers that were assumed to be common knowledge during the 17th century but had been lost over time.

     What Kosofsky has composed is a beautiful body of work, embellished with the woodcuts that he had originally found, a rarity in many Jewish religious books before the 20th century. The Book of Customs is a clearly-written account of daily, monthly, and yearly religious practice among Ashkenazi Jews, the Jews of Eastern Europe and much of America. The customs and practices, however, are Orthodox or traditional, which many modern Jews might find burdensome. Nevertheless, these prayers and rituals are the basis of their modern faith and the practice of many Sephardic Jews, who came from Iraq, northern Africa, and Spain. Though local custom in Sephardic communities varies, this book nonetheless provides a framework for all Jewish practice and fills a gap in the body of Jewish history and scholarly religious inquiry.

     The Book of Customs is by no means a book just for Jews. It is a fine addition to the personal libraries of history buffs and religious readers. In fact, many Christians will find inspiration and connection with the roots of their own faith.