 OCTOBER 24 • 2019 | 43

little of everything,” he said. “The three of 
us, with some guest contributors, wrote 
the book.” 
Among some 1,000 entries, Michigan is 
represented by the founding of Humanistic 
Judaism as worked on by the late Rabbi 
Sherwin Wine and, in contrast, the 
popularity of Zingerman’
s Deli in Ann 
Arbor. 
The three came up with topics asking 
the help of Tablet co-workers, divided the 
subjects three ways and wrote entries. After 
finishing individual assignments, they read 
and edited what was done by the others.
“There were a lot of late-night 
conference calls,
” Oppenheimer says. “It 
was very collaborative because we want 
the encyclopedia to be readable in 10 or 20 
years. I love the juxtaposition of different 
entries; one that’
s very religious can be next 
to one that’
s very secular.
”
Oppenheimer can point out entries he 
finds especially interesting — from “tikkun 

olam” because the actual expression does 
not mean what people think it means to 
Alan Alda because he’
s not Jewish although 
people think he is.
Oppenheimer and his two co-writers 
have another Book Fair appearance at 3 
p.m. Sunday, Nov. 3, when they discuss 
“Storytelling Across Platforms” with Alana 
Newhouse, editor-in-chief of Tablet and 
author of The 100 Most Jewish Foods. 
In a different location, the Detroit 
Writing Room in Downtown Detroit, they 
will share views about writing for different 
platforms and audiences while expressing 
an individual voice.
“We were very excited when the Detroit 
Jewish Book Fair reached out to the 
Detroit Writing Room to host its first event 
in Downtown Detroit,
” said Stephanie 
Steinberg, venue owner with her husband, 
Jake Serwer. “Historically, the book fair 
has always held events at the JCC in West 
Bloomfield. This year, organizers decided 
to branch out and offer a program for Jews 
living Downtown or suburbanites who 
enjoy attending events in the city. 
“Jake and I are honored to be the venue 
for their first event Downtown. As an 
author, I spoke at a JCC book fair event in 
2015, so it’
s nice to come full circle and now 
offer a welcoming space for fellow Jewish 
authors to share their stories Downtown.
”

JOSH YOUNG
A concert, on Saturday evening, Nov. 9, 
features tenor Josh Young and goes along 
with a presentation by James Kaplan, who 
discusses Irving Berlin: New York Genius, a 
biography of the iconic songwriter.
“I’
ve never performed at a book fair, and 
I don’
t think I’
ve ever been to a book fair, so 
I’
m very much looking forward to singing 
some Berlin songs and meeting the author,
” 
says Young, whose featured role in the 
musical Jesus Christ Superstar brought the 
nomination. 
“The concert is going to be mostly the 
songs of the composer we’
re celebrating 
but also other Jewish composers who have 
influenced him. I’
m performing with Alta 
Boover (a mezzo soprano who also has 
appeared around the world), and it’
s great 
that the author is going to be part of the 
program.
”

Young, who has 
toured to Michigan 
with a production 
of Les Miserables 
and was featured 
in productions 
of Evita and Kiss 
Me Kate at the 
Stratford Festival in Canada, recently joined 
Oakland University as an assistant professor 
of musical theater, where Boover is an 
assistant professor of music and teaches 
applied voice.
“We have a lot of crossover between 
students,
” says Young, who also has 
appeared in plays about the Holocaust; he 
remembers hearing about the firsthand 
experiences of his grandmother. “
Alta and I 
are familiar with each other’
s work, and she 
asked if I would do the concert with her.
”
Young and wife, actress Emily Padgett, 
wanted a more settled life and are glad to be 
based in Michigan to raise their 8-month-
old daughter.
“Oakland is a research university, and my 
research includes performing so I have the 
best of both worlds,
” says Young, who has 
taught master classes at various universities 
and now focuses on instructing students 
about acting out a song and performing 
in cabarets. “I love getting to teach, and I 
have some really great students with a lot of 
potential.
”

MARGALIT FOX
A slideshow will be presented Sunday 
afternoon, Nov. 10, by Margalit Fox, author 
of Conan Doyle for the Defense, a true tale 
of how the creator of Sherlock Holmes 
novels helped free an innocent Jewish man 
from jail.
Fox was starting her career in the 1980s 
as a copy editor for a small New York 

Josh Young 

ABOVE: Tablet magazine’
s Alana Newhouse, Leil 
Liebovitz and Stephanie Butnick will speak at the 
Detroit Writing Room in Downtown Detroit. FACING 
PAGE: The annual Detroit Jewish Book Fair at the JCC 
draws huge crowds to hear notable Jewish authors to 
speak about the creation of their books.

Mark 
Oppenheimer

continued on page 45

