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Jewish Luck Blog

Leslie Levine Adler, PhD visited Russia in the summer of 1976 as part of her undergraduate Russian Studies program. She returned in 1977 to pursue her friendships from the previous summer. After teaching ESL at university, she became a psychologist.
Leslie

Leslie

  http://morejewishluck.com

Leslie Levine Adler, PhD visited Russia in the summer of 1976 as part of her undergraduate Russian Studies program. She returned in 1977 to pursue her friendships from the previous summer. After teaching ESL at university, she became a psychologist.

Leslie

January 2015: Author of the Month: Gina Ochsner

Leslie
Tuesday, 30 December 2014
Highlighted Books
1501bookThe Russian Dreambook of Colour and Flight  This beautifully titled book is not for everyone, but it speaks to me. My day to day life may not be exciting, but at night I travel to other continents. My one complaint is that about once a month, I find myself just finishing a lovely trip in my dreams to some new, exotic place only to remember that I have a ticket for China and I’m neither packed, prepared, nor pleased. Perhaps because after visiting China in summer of 1982 when skies were blue, shirts were blue and cars were few, I’ve had my fill of that experience.   I must say that our watchers in China were far more gracious and useful frequently returning lost objects to me, like my camera, compared to the Soviet followers lurking in the shadows who may have awaited my droppings for personal re-sale.  “…as a girl, she’d...
Tags:
magical realism russian life womens literature Gina Ochsner
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Leslie and Meryll
Sorry to those of you who are moved by Leslie's review to borrow the book from the HCL. I took out the kindle version and I'll re... Read More
Tuesday, 30 December 2014 18:57
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Leslie

A Shrine to Our Children's Childhood: A Decorating Dilemma

Leslie
Sunday, 07 December 2014
Jewish Luck Blog
141207kidsroomsOur book, Jewish Luck, delves into memories.  And memories have a concrete existence in the "stuff" we choose to carry with us.  Alisa preserves those memories on one floor of her home while another floor reflects a more modern Swedish decor.  In her London apartment to which she commutes from Sweden, I'm guessing there is little from the past.  When Vera moved to the Cayman Islands, she started fresh and created a home that reflects her new life. Both women like decorating a lot more than I do.  Yet, I have an existential dilemma that has become a decorating dilemma. I’m a little worried that if I continue holding on to my memories in the form of "stuff",  I will feel like an insect preserved in amber.  Harry and I enjoy a certain entropy in our home.  It is a cozy and colorful setting for our lives.  However, lately, it strikes...
Tags:
parenting young adults leaving home empty nest parenting declutter
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Leslie

Souvenirs

Leslie
Sunday, 16 November 2014
Jewish Luck Blog
141115aI tipped my worn sneakers as I lifted them from my suitcase, checking for grains of sand from the Tel Aviv Beach visited the day before. Proof. My memories were real and not a dream. Digging further down, I sniffed the zaatar (hyssop), sumac, dried apricots and dates for tea. In my mind, I am hearing bits of Hebrew conversation and a haunting melody of Min haMa’amakim (“From the Depths”) by Idan Raichel. Closing my eyes, I can see the vistas of flowering cacti, cedar groves, and rocky hills – pictures moving in and out of consciousness. What did it feel like to go to Israel after 17 years? It felt like replenishing a part of my soul that I hadn’t realized had been empty. It felt like I was absorbing a vitality that nourished my cells. Meryll and I made this trip to Israel to attend the wedding of our...
Tags:
Return to Israel Jewish author Israel tour Travel to Israel Israel
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Leslie

Full Circle

Leslie
Sunday, 19 October 2014
Jewish Luck Blog
Unlike those brave CNN anchors, Wolf Blitzer and Fareed Zakaria, I am afraid to have a DNA test from Ancestry.com.  I might discover my husband and I are too close for comfort – Sorry kids!  Let me explain. Everyone who has read our book, Jewish Luck, knows of my serendipitous meeting with Vera in Leningrad, but I had another serendipitous meeting - - with my future husband, Harry Adler.  The agent of this meeting was the unlikely Therese, Hennepin County Medical Center psychodynamic psychology intern, a nice Catholic girl from the Minnesota Iron Range with dreams of marrying a Jewish doctor. On October 14, six weeks after our introduction at the posh downtown apartment building in which Harry and Therese resided, Harry’s friend and self-appointed life coach, Rob Schilit (z”l), called to ask Harry “how serious?”  Harry called to ask me the same question, which I refused to discuss over the...
Tags:
bsheret ushpizin sukkot talk Norfolk Jewish engagement story
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Leslie

What’s a Child of Soviet Jewish Immigrants to Do? How about write a novel?

Leslie
Monday, 29 September 2014
Highlighted Books
1410book-fishmanFeaturing: A Replacement Life by Boris Fishman (NY: Harper, 2014)*  and Lena Finkle’s Magic Barrel – A Graphic Novel by Anya Ulinich (NY: Penguin, 2014). If you want to read an authoritative high-brow book review on either of these books, hop to the New York Times Book Review where both books are highly touted.  If you want to read a Midwesterner's account of how I connect to these books and how it relates to our book, Jewish Luck, keep reading. These novels have something in common besides being extremely funny, well written, and, no doubt, somewhat autobiographical.  Both are written by Soviet émigrés who came to the US at a young age.  Boris Fishman arrived in New York City at age 9 from Minsk; however, his neighborhood in Brooklyn might better be named New Minsk.  Anya Ulinich immigrated from Moscow to Arizona at age 17.  What better topic for these Americanized emigrés...
Tags:
Soviet Russian emigre literature lena finkle boris fishman anya ulinich a replacement life
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Recent Blogs

Leslie
Leslie
28 June 2020
Earthquake
Wearily, I don my mask, my gloves for the weekly drive from my Minneapolis home to my suburban office to collect my mail. My footsteps echo in the empty hall. The calendar is still turned to March 2020 which means I have spent less than three months in this space that does not yet feel like my own. The March calendar photo of Little Paradise, New Zealand reminds me of my visit to an exquisite plac...
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Leslie
Leslie
07 April 2019
Mirror, Mirror
The date- April 15, 2018.The place- Minneapolis. The weather-15 inches of snow due to fall by the end of this day. The dilemma—Do I move the gilded mirror measuring 39" by 54" and weighing over 40 pounds from my sister's house to ours?I had delayed responding to the question—do I want this family heirloom—for a year and now Meryll was moving the next day.This forty pound heirloom seemed so much we...
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Leslie
Leslie
26 May 2018
The Regina Monologue or Feh! on Calling Me A Black Widow
When my mother was 8 years old, she had a "grandmother" for just over a year, the only grandmother she remembers.How did this happen? Grandfather Emil, a widower, lived with her family until 1937 when he was introduced to a "nice widow." Thirteen months after his wedding, Emil died at the age of 59.Cause of death? "Overfeeding by Regina," my mother said.Mom was sure that Regina was a " black ...
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Invite Us To Speak

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We were featured speakers at Hadassah Brandeis Institute and Levy Summer Series. Our speaking engagements include JCCs, synagogues, libraries, book groups, retirement communities, schools, and organizations (e.g. ORT, Hadassah, and Women's League). References are available. 

Invite Us To Speak
 

Upcoming Events

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Talk Review

"I was very fortunate to be able to hear Meryll and Leslie speak at a Hadassah event in Israel. Each of the ~50 participants really enjoyed the event because Meryll and Leslie were so engaging. While they had a natural rapport with the audience, you could also tell they had prepared well so they could connect with our particular group's interests. I learned a lot from listening to them, and I found their sisterly interaction unique and fun. If you want an enlightening and uplifting experience, attend one of their book talks."
Lisa Shimoni, Modiin Israel

Book Review

"Truly, you have written a story that makes accessible the reality of existence in Russia, through the eyes of individuals who lived through the various regimes and dictates.  It is fascinating and very well told.  As I read Vera and Alla's story, I learned more Russian history than I had known from a textbook.  That's a big deal, women!  You tell the tale with vivid detail and hook us on the two women and their stories, then weave in the history to illuminate their journeys. It is such a necessary book.  I am thrilled that the two of you collaborated, as I can see the uniqueness of your personalities come through in the stories, and that, too, makes the book a gem."
Margaret Leibfried, Danielson Group consultant

Buy the Book

Online:

Click here to order your copy of Jewish Luck: A True Story of Friendship, Deception, and Risky Business on Amazon.com.

The Kindle version is available here

In Stores:
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Make a donation to Sholom Home and enjoy Jewish Luck at the same time. Jewish Luck is now available at the Sholom Home West gift store. Meryll and Leslie will donate 50% of the proceeds back to Sholom Home. Enjoy!

Tasting Torah

Nourish mind, body, and soul with Meryll's Tasting Torah, which will bring oneg (joy) and limmud (learning) to your Shabbat, broaden your culinary horizons, and draw your Shabbat guests closer together.

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Highlighted Books

Meryll
Meryll
02 July 2017
July Book of the Month:  Bloodlines by Neville Frankel
July Book of the Month: Bloodlines by Neville Frankel
Leslie and I began writing Jewish Luck with an underlying question in our minds—what would life have...
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