Dear Reader,

Tu B'Av is a minor holiday that doesn't get enough attention. In Jewish day school, where I learned most of what I know about Judaism, this festival was only mentioned once. One of my rabbis noted the Talmudic statement that there are no two days more joyous in the Jewish year than Yom Kippur and Tu B'Av. He brought this up to teach us that, surprisingly, Yom Kippur—a holiday most of us associate with fasting and the most solemn prayers—should be embraced as a holiday of joy. What could make us happier, he argued, than the opportunity to be forgiven for our sins and embraced by God?

The only thing that comes close is Tu B'Av, which was a matchmaking day during the period of the Second Temple. Single women would wear white dresses and dance in the vineyards, hoping to find husbands. In its current practice, this unofficial holiday does not require any special prayers or observances, but it can serve as an opportunity for us to consider and embrace romance and love from a Jewish perspective.

The release of Ruchama King's first novel, which explores the world of religious matchmaking in Jerusalem, is perfectly timed to coincide with Tu B'Av this year. Our reviewer calls it "Sex and the City for the family values set." In this first chapter excerpt, King's characters yearn for spouses who will please them romantically, but also religiously: One of the reasons to get married and have kids, after all, is that it's a mitzvah.

The Torah commands us to get hitched; but can it teach us to be better lovers, better husbands, better girlfriends? Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis thinks so—in her new book, The Committed Marriage, she recommends that troubled spouses sing psalms. Shmuley Boteach, the author of Kosher Sex, agrees. Read a review of his book, The Dating Secrets of the Ten Commandments.

While we're considering the surprising possibility that the Bible can serve as a relationship therapist, we should remember that the theme of love is not hard to find in classic Jewish sources. Some of the best stories in Genesis, for example, are stories of husbands and wives, like the tale of Jacob's unflagging pursuit of the beautiful Rachel, which is updated and expanded in Meir Shalev's brilliant magic realist novel The Loves of Judith. Rabbi Mordechai Gafni, meanwhile, explores the intersection between Eros, sexuality, and divinity in scholarship that delves deeply into Kabbalistic sources.

For those who like to take a more practical approach to love, we're also featuring an excerpt of Lea Bayers Rapp's lighthearted Mazel Tov!: The Complete Book of Jewish Weddings, and an audio excerpt from Paula Marantz Cohen's Jane Austen in Boca, in which she spotlights the romantic entanglements of Jewish retirees living in Florida.

For more information on Tu B'Av, take a look at MyJewishLearning.com. Don’t forget to check out our discussion boards, where you can give or receive book recommendations, find out about upcoming author readings and literary events, and argue with other Jewish book lovers. If you haven't yet, sign up for our free e-letter so that we can let you know when we've posted a new issue. And drop us a line if there's anything new or different you'd like to see on JBooks.com.

Enjoy your reading,

Josh Lambert

Editor, JBooks.com