Sounds Jewish: September 2010

Welcome back to a bumper New Year edition of the podcast. In a Sounds Jewish exclusive, the critically acclaimed and now Booker-shortlisted author reads an acerbically funny extract from his latest novel, The Finkler Question . Is his depiction of a fictional Jewish anti-Zionist group as the "ASHamed Jews" fair? Challenging his account is Tony Klug , Middle East analyst and early signatory of Independent Jewish Voices , the group some critics have speculated might be the real-life inspiration for Jacobson's "ASHamed Jews." In this frenzy of festivals – beginning with Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur – Jason and Howard take a look at an attempt to reclaim one of those holy days that often gets neglected: Sukkot , or the Festival of Tabernacles. Architects from all over the world have converged on New York's Greenwich Village to show off their 21st-century take on the ancient tabernacles . Some are witty, some are poignant, all are ingenious. This special report on Sukkah City comes to us via Tablet Magazine . And the sponsors of Sounds Jewish, the Jewish Community Centre for London , are bringing in the wrecking balls and demolition squads this month as their new building gets underway in North London. The JCC's chief executive, Nick Viner, tells Howard and Jason all about the organisation's ambitious new vision . Sounds Jewish is produced with the Jewish Community Centre for London Post your comments on the blog below or find us on Facebook and Twitter