7th Heaven: Celebrating Shabbat with Rebbe Nachman of Breslov

Abraham Joshual Heschel once called Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath) "a palace in time." This new book by Moshe Mykoff gives you the inner architectural tools for constructing that palace within your own life experience. In his introduction, Mykoff says that his book is intended for three kinds of people: 1) Jews who are new to sabbath observance and want to know the "why" of the rituals; 2) Jews who have never encounted the Sabbath and want to know more about it; and 3) Jews who grew up within the ritual observance and now want to understand the deeper meanings of Shabbat. To this list I would add a fourth category: Jews who, like myself, are familar with much of this material, but who sometimes need to be reminded of it in well-written, contemporary prose. (Non-Jews will also find it an interesting window into the inner meaning of the Sabbath, although the book does assume that you know the basics.)"Seventh Heaven" is arranged in short lessons that follow the complete cycle of the 26-hour Sabbath day, from pre-Shabbat preparations on Friday afternoon to the post-Shabbat celebration known as "Melavah Malkah." For each step, there are quotes from traditional sources, followed by Mykoff's essay (based on the teachings of Rebbe Nachman) about the inner meaning of the step in question. The result is a clear roadmap for deepening your personal experience of Shabbat. Although the book can be read from cover-to-cover as a Shabbat manual, each lesson is also complete in itself. Each one is a couple pages long -- perfect for a short dvar Torah at the Sabbath table. Mykoff's writing style is both profound and contemporary -- a refreshing change from other books written in that overly-pedantic Orthodox style that I call "Yeshivish." Mykoff writes for the educated English speaking public, and he does it well. In short, this book is a pleasure to read -- again and again.