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Boston writer Norm Finkelstein, whose YA books championed Jewish heroes, dies at 82

BOSTON (JTA) — In the early 1980s, when Norman H. Finkelstein was the director of education at Camp Yavne in Northwood, New Hampshire, campers would greet his daily announcements by exuberantly chanting, “Norm, Norm!,” a reference to a popular character on the hit television series “Cheers.”

The warm reception at the Jewish summer camp reflected Finkelstein’s fun and lively personality, according to his oldest son, Jeffrey.

“He was an educator. But even in summer camp, when the kids are not there to learn, but to have fun, he made it fun,” Jeffrey, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

At the time, Finkelstein was a librarian in the Brookline Public Schools, a career that lasted 35 years. He and his wife, Rosalind, had joined the camp’s summer staff so they could afford to send their three kids to the camp. In addition, he was a teacher at Hebrew College’s Prozdor Hebrew high school for nearly 40 years. 

But it was another role that brought him acclaim in Boston and beyond: Finkelstein was an acclaimed author of nonfiction books and biographies for older children, including many on Jewish subjects. He was a rare, two-time winner of the coveted National Jewish Book award, for “Heeding the Call: Jewish Voices in America’s Civil Rights Struggle” and “Forged in Freedom: Shaping the American Jewish Experience.”

He was also the recipient of the Golden Kite honor award for nonfiction for his 1997 YA biography of newsman Edward R. Murrow.

“His incredible books championed the vital contributions of Jewish Americans, immigrants, and workers to U.S. history and culture,” Della Farrell, associate editor of the publisher Holiday House, wrote in an email.

Finkelstein, 82, died on Friday, Jan. 5 from what his family said was an unexpected illness. Holiday House is publishing one of two books that Finkelstein was looking forward to seeing in print at the time of his death: “Amazing Abe: How Abraham Cahan’s Newspaper Gave a Voice to Jewish Immigrants,” a biography of the legendary Yiddish Forward editor illustrated by Vesper Stamper. The other is “Saying No to Hate: Overcoming Antisemitism in America,” which the Jewish Publication Society is publishing in May. 

He was drawn to stories that were under the radar, including “The Shelter and the Fence: When 982 Holocaust Refugees Found Safe Haven in America.”

“It’s one of those little holes in history that I seem to try to fill with my books,” Finkelstein said in a 2021 interview about the Jews who found safe haven at a resettlement center in Oswego, New York

“He loved teaching. Whether he taught in a classroom, whether he taught in his library or whether he taught through his books, he was a natural teacher,” his son Jeffrey said.

Susie Tanchel, the vice president of Hebrew College, said he had a “profound” impact on the college and students in its teen learning program.

“With his deep knowledge and love of Jewish history, he awakened their minds and hearts to find their own links to our shared past,” she wrote. “Norm’s kind manner…and sense of humor made learning with him a great joy.”

“I would refer to somebody like Norm as a Renaissance man, because he was interested in so many things like arts, entertainment and politics,” said Jordan Rich, of WBZ radio in Boston, who interviewed Finkelstein about his books some half-dozen times over the years.

The two were neighbors and belonged to Temple Sholom in Framingham, Massachusetts, Rich told JTA in a phone conversation.

Finkelstein had a keen wit and was a masterful storyteller, Rich said.

He loved hanging out with his grandkids, Jeffrey said. “He knew how to interact with kids.”

Finkelstein got a laugh from the irony of sharing a name with Norman G. Finkelstein, a controversial political scientist whose harsh views on Israel were polar opposite to his own love for the country. 

“I’ve often wanted to change my name to Lance,” he quipped to The Forward in 2004, in article about the doppelgangers. 

Norman Henry Finkelstein was born on Nov. 11, 1941, to working-class Jewish immigrant parents who settled in Chelsea, a city just north of Boston that was teeming with Jewish life. It’s where he met Rosalind, to whom he was married for 56 years. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Hebrew College, and a bachelor’s degree from Boston University.

This Shabbat, for Temple Israel of Boston’s celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the synagogue’s librarian, Ann Abrams, will display “Heed the Call,” her favorite among all of Finkelstein’s books. She displays it every year.

“When I think of Norm Finkelstein, I think of a mensch,” Abrams, the past president of the New England Association of Jewish Libraries, wrote in an email.

“I hope the world will continue to read his books. But, those of us who were lucky to get to know him, will always remember his generous spirit, and warm smile that clearly conveyed he was very happy to meet you.”

In addition to his wife Rosalind and son Jeffrey, he is survived by his son Robert, daughter Risa Sugarman and three grandchildren. 


The post Boston writer Norm Finkelstein, whose YA books championed Jewish heroes, dies at 82 appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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Israeli Strike on Tehran Kills Bodyguard of Slain Hezbollah Chief

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi lays a wreath as he visits the burial site of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, on the outskirts of Beirut, Lebanon, June 3, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

A member of Lebanese armed group Hezbollah was killed in an Israeli air strike on Tehran alongside a member of an Iran-aligned Iraqi armed group, a senior Lebanese security source told Reuters and the Iraqi group said on Saturday.

The source identified the Hezbollah member as Abu Ali Khalil, who had served as a bodyguard for Hezbollah’s slain chief Hassan Nasrallah. The source said Khalil had been on a religious pilgrimage to Iraq when he met up with a member of the Kataeb Sayyed Al-Shuhada group.

They traveled together to Tehran and were both killed in an Israeli strike there, along with Khalil’s son, the senior security source said. Hezbollah has not joined in Iran’s air strikes against Israel from Lebanon.

Kataeb Sayyed Al-Shuhada published a statement confirming that both the head of its security unit and Khalil had been killed in an Israeli strike.

Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli aerial attack on Beirut’s southern suburbs in September.

Israel and Iran have been trading strikes for nine consecutive days since Israel launched attacks on Iran, saying Tehran was on the verge of developing nuclear weapons. Iran has said it does not seek nuclear weapons.

The post Israeli Strike on Tehran Kills Bodyguard of Slain Hezbollah Chief first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Hamas Financial Officer and Commander Eliminated by IDF in the Gaza Strip

Israeli soldiers operate during a ground operation in the southern Gaza Strip, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, July 3, 2024. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS

i24 News – The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), in cooperation with the General Security Service (Shin Bet), announced on Friday the killing of Ibrahim Abu Shamala, a senior financial official in Hamas’ military wing.

The operation took place on June 17th in the central Gaza Strip.

Abu Shamala held several key positions, including financial officer for Hamas’ military wing and assistant to Marwan Issa, the deputy commander of Hamas’ military wing until his elimination in March 2024.

He was responsible for managing all the financial resources of Hamas’ military wing in Gaza, overseeing the planning and execution of the group’s war budget. This involved handling and smuggling millions of dollars into the Gaza Strip to fund Hamas’ military operations.

The post Hamas Financial Officer and Commander Eliminated by IDF in the Gaza Strip first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Report: Wary of Assassination by Israel, Khamenei Names 3 Potential Successors

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei waves during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 20, 2025. Photo: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS

i24 News – Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei named three senior clerics as candidates to succeed him should he be killed, the New York Times reported on Saturday citing unnamed Iranian officials. It is understood the Ayatollah fears he could be assassinated in the coming days.

Khamenei reportedly mostly speaks with his commanders through a trusted aide now, suspending electronic communications.

Khamenei has designated three senior religious figures as candidates to replace him as well as choosing successors in the military chain of command in the likely event that additional senior officials be eliminated.

Earlier on Saturday Israel confirmed the elimination of Saeed Izadi and Bhanam Shahriari.

Shahriari, head of Iran’s Quds Force Weapons Transfer Unit, responsible for arming Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, was killed in an Israeli airstrike over 1,000 km from Israel in western Iran.

The post Report: Wary of Assassination by Israel, Khamenei Names 3 Potential Successors first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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