Bulka (Chicken Soup with Chopsticks
), a rabbi and psychologist, blends personal stories with practical advice in this brief memoir. Despite the self-helpish title, it's more an autobiography than a how-to manual for either mourners or those who wish to comfort them. The first half of the book is primarily a love letter to Bulka's parents, who passed away within weeks of each other in March 2006, followed just a few weeks later by Bulka's mother-in-law. The rabbi had already endured his share of mourning, having lost an infant son years before to SIDS and his first wife to cancer. Bulka speaks lovingly, even hagiographically, of his deceased parents, and then turns in chapter four to questions of grief and mourning etiquette. His discussions of Jewish mourning rituals are helpful, though some readers will wish for more detail. His final chapter on "How to Console" will be valuable to those who wish to offer comfort but are terrified of saying something inappropriate. ("Those coming to visit mourners will need to think about what they will say before they come calling," he advises.) Jewish readers who have lost one or both parents will find consolation in this warm and deeply personal guide. (Feb. 20)
