These 8 Books Celebrate Hanukkah With Tales of Romance, Friendship & More

‘The Matzah Ball’ by Jean Meltzer

While the title may be a little on the nose, The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer is the fun and romance anyone would enjoy this holiday season. The novel follows writer Rachel Rubenstein-Goldblatt, a secret Christmas romance writer, who’s challenged by her publisher to write a book about Hanukkah for the first time. For inspiration, she then becomes determined to find her muse at the Matzah Ball, a Jewish music celebration on the last night of Hanukkah, when she runs into her childhood archenemy, Jacob Greenberg.

‘Eight Dates and Nights’ by Betsy Aldredge

In this newly released Betsy Aldredge book, Eight Dates and Nights, New Yorker Hannah Levin is living out her worst nightmare when she gets snowed in at her grandmother’s home in a small Texas town. That is, however, until she runs into the only other teenager in town, Noah, who becomes to determined to share Hanukkah with Hannah “one sweater at a time.”

‘How to Excavate a Heart’ by Jake Maia Arlow

In another snowed in romance, How to Excavate a Heart by Jake Maia Arlow follows Shani and May as they get snowed in during Christmastime but have no desire to do anything Christmas-y because they’re both jewish. According to its description, this book is a Hallmark-style romance with “a sapphic Jewish twist.” 

‘Nine Cents of the Law’ by Claudia Hagadus Long

Nine Cents of the Law by Claudia Hagadus Long tells the story of two sisters, Zara and Lilly, who discover their family’s heirloom menorah in a New York museum years after it was taken by the Nazis in 1939. “Haunted by their mother’s buried memories, the sisters scheme to get it back—but their quest takes a dangerous turn when the menorah disappears, leaving a trail of murder and mayhem behind it,” the description reads. 

‘The Frozen Rabbi’ by Steve Stern

The Frozen Rabbi by Steve Stern tells the story of a teenage boy in the 20th century who finds a 19th century Jewish rabbi in his basement freezer and decides to thaw him to find out what happens. 

“As you approach the end of this un-put-downable book, you still cannot guess how it will end,” wrote one reviewer of the novel. “But when it does, you understand that it cannot have resolved itself in any other way. It’s a beautiful, astonishing, masterful ending, utterly satisfying.”

‘Today Tonight Tomorrow’ by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon follows two high school seniors, Rowan Roth and Neil McNair, who are in their height of their years-long competition when they decide to team up in their class’ annual game of Howl. During their time as teammates, however, their perceptions of each other completely change. “I appreciate TdTnTm for actually showing the audience Judaism and how it impacts the characters live,” one reviewer said of the romance. “It isn’t just an afterthought in this book, it’s actually representation.” 

‘It’s a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories’ edited by Katherine Locke & Laura Silverman

It’s a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories, which is edited by Katherine Locke & Laura Silverman, contains a diverse and captivating collection of Jewish-led short stories. “From stories of confronting their relationships with Judaism to rom-coms with a side of bagels and lox, It’s a Whole Spiel features one story after another that says yes, we are Jewish, but we are also queer, and disabled, and creative, and political, and adventurous, and anything we want to be,” the description reads. 

‘The Ruined House’ by Ruby Namdar

The Ruined House by Ruby Namdar follows Andrew P. Cohen, a professor of comparative culture at New York University who seems to be at the height of his life: loved by his students, on good terms with his ex-wife and in a great relationship with his girlfriend, Ann Lee. That is, however, until he starts getting series of strange and inexplicable visions that lead his to question all his decisions and beliefs. “Ruby Namdar’s brilliant novel embraces the themes of the American Jewish literary canon as it captures the privilege and pedantry of New York intellectual life in the opening years of the twenty-first century,” the description reads.