I really struggled reading this. I planned to read each section on each holiday before the holiday happened but I didn't manage that for a variety of reasons. This is Real gets sold as The Book of The High Holiday Season and I can see why but it also isn't The Book of The High Holiday Season either. I only read all of it because it was so heavily recommended and I knew there was some insight buried in the pages.

Before I gripe more I want to say that if you struggle with Yom Kippur because of the way many Jewish people address mortality via what feels like death cosplay because you have trauma, are poor, disabled or chronically ill, or anything like that you will struggle with this book in the same ways. I'm trying to find ways to make YK meaningful when I regularly have to deal with failing health and forced poverty as my entire life.

There is so much sexism blatantly on the pages (and how he talked about his ex wife was.. odd) all throughout the book as well. It very much feels like R' Lew was the kind of person to say he supported minorities but his actions or how he says it tells us otherwise.

I wouldn't suggest this book as some great book for the season to a marginalized person at all.