On Rockingham Street
Reclaiming My Family’s Jewish Identity—Our Journey from Vilna to the Suburban South
On Rockingham Street explores, in memoir form, how assimilation of Jewish immigrants arriving from Eastern Europe was shaped and affected by the culture of Southern Suburbia in the 1950s and 1960s. It probes the key questions of Jewish survival, including whether American Judaism has left many Jews unable to answer the question “Why are we Jewish,” and whether the education of Jewish youth by the modern American synagogue is adequate to maintain Judaism as a distinctive and meaningful voice.
Now available in hardcover and paperback from Amazon.
David is available for book readings and presentations.
“More than a beautifully written memoir and family history, On Rockingham Street is a meditation on the meaning of Jewish life and endurance. David Kuney’s sensitive analysis of all that has been lost through assimilation is complemented by the mystery of reclamation and embrace. Through the particular story of his family, Kuney offers a broader narrative about the journey back to Jewish learning and practice, and about the value of duty and devotion.”
— Rabbi Leon A. Morris, President, Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies.