This small volume should prove extremely valuable to the modern Orthodox family. It contains kiddush, zemirot and birkat hamazon, but goes way beyond the standard bentcher, including texts for Yom Ha’atzma’ut (Israel’s Independence Day) meals, a dedication of a new house and a Tu be’shvat Seder. It contains the additional symbolic foods for Rosh Hashanah, and concludes with popular “songs of Israel Reborn.” Rabbi Riskin has also carefully looked for precedents in Jewish tradition and sources to be sensitive to modern sensibilities. In particular, for zimmun in birkat hamazon, Rabbi Riskin notes straightforwardly, “When three or more males or three or more females are reciting Birkat Hamazon together, one invites the others to join in praise of God in a special introductory blessing,” and he adds “(When three or more females eat together, the Vilna Gaon rules that they are obliged to recite this zimun while other authorities rule that it is voluntary.)” The harachamon blessing for a married woman uses the term, “ishi” to refer to the husband paralleling “ishti” for a husband to say and not “ba’ali” which has the connotation of ‘master’.
Not only does the volume discuss a Shalom Zachor celebration on the first Shabbat after the birth of a boy, but Rabbi Riskin proposes a Shalom Bat for girls and says that the reason for the Shalom Zachor is not only the idea of protecting the boy in the dangerous period before circumcision, but also that it is a celebration to thank God for the good health of the mother after childbirth. He also says that one can consider the Shalom Zachor as an expression of mourning for the amount of Torah the baby lost at the moment of birth (according to the legend that an angel teaches every fetus the whole torah, but then kisses the baby above the lips before birth so that everything is forgotten and will have to be relearned), and that this clearly also applies to girls. As well as including a text for the ceremonies of Brit and Pidyon Haben, Rabbi Riskin also includes a text for a Simchat Bat based on the traditional Spanish-Portuguese ceremony of Zeved Habat. Many parents like the flexibility to create their own individual ceremony for a Simchat Bat, but other families will welcome the inclusion of a text that has verses from Shir Hashirim, berachot, a mishaberach, and Eshet Chayil.
Rabbi Riskin includes a wedding ceremony with full notes of explanation. When discussing the hatan’s tisch (bridegroom’s table), he adds, “In many instances there is now a Kallah’s tisch or Shulhan Kallah for the bride, her close family and friends in an adjoining room.” He also acknowledges that a bride might want to give her groom a ring as a gift of her love under the chuppah, and suggests it be done in the ‘nissuin’ part of the ceremony and offers possible verses for her to say at this point. Rabbi Riskin’s text for the Ushpizin ceremony on Succot notes that there are those who greet female biblical guests as well as males and includes Sarah, Rivkah, Leah and Rachel, Miriam, Devorah and Ruth, each one being greeted individually with the male guest on successive nights.
The Hebrew title of this book is Si’ach Hashulhan—Table Talk or Table Conversation and indeed it provides much insight and information to stimulate further discussion at the table on Shabbat and other occasions.