Yiddish with George and Laura

by Ellis Weiner, Barbara Davilman

What do George and Laura Bush have in common with Dick and Jane? Well, both hail from prototypical WASP families. And, perhaps more to the point, both exhibit a natural resistance to moral complexity (i.e., reality).

That's the premise of this hilarious new primer-style book in which George, Laura, and the entire Bush family communicate with uncharacteristic expressiveness, conveying shades of of feeling and nuances of meaning that plain old English can't deliver--by peppering their conversatuon with Yiddishisms.

See George's mother.

Her name is Bar.

She wears a lot of pearls and is a farbisseneh .

"You are late, George," Bar says.

"Of course I am late," George says.

"I am the President of the United States.

I am a big macher ."

Like all good primers, YIDDISH WITH GEORGE AND LAURA tells a simple story--and, in the end, important life lessons are imparted.

Genres: Politics, Humor, Judaism, Language

112 pages, Hardcover

First published October 10, 2006

Reviews

[Briana Grenert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Should we have been studying for finals?
Yes.
was this a better use of our time?
Infinitely.
Read aloud with Maren in Lillian's room after lighting an LED menorah. Thr book was a gift from Shirah to Maren.

[Kevin Maring · Rating 5 out of 5]

The glossary in back illustrates Yiddish words and phrases (as did Rosten's "The Joy of Yiddish")with jokes; in one, Barb is asked how it feels knowing that the Shrub Regime will go down in history as the most corrupt and evil presidency ever; 'Well', she replies in Yiddish,'at least he has a job.' So, it is kinda out of date.
(Man, remember when we all thought Dubya was the nadir of evil? Those were the days!)
Spoiler alert:

There is a sub-plot/gag that revolves around Laura finding a baby in a blue plaid blanket. It ably illustrates the relationship between horror and farce.

[Terry Kent Hermansen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Arrogant and offensive! I’m not even a big President George W. Bush fan but I found this booklet to be light minded, disrespectful and pure ad hominem. Had the main character been Barack Obama i would feel the same way. I don’t think it does the Jewish community any PR favors.
I don’t recommend this “work”.

[Donna Teat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Have no idea who gave me this book. But I found it while cleaning out my bookshelf. The Yiddish sayings were cute but the portrayal of the Bush family was outlandish. I may not have voted for any of Bush gentlemen but I certainly never found them deserving of this disrespectful portrayal. Not even in 2024 where respect has become a 4 letter word.

[Melvin Marsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another funny Yiddish story. For a change this book had a lot of Yiddish that I did not already know!

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have forgotten when I read this, although I do recall my father and I laughing just at the fact it existed. I feel like I encountered it after the bush administration.

[Roslyn]

3.3

[Kate Irwin-smiler · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a pretty horrifying but quick read. Was it meant to be satire? I guess? Would it have been defamation if these weren’t public figures? Maybe!

[Cory Howell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was never the world's biggest fan of George W. Bush, so I can understand the authors making fun of him and the rest of the Bush family. But I found the results disappointing. Yiddish With Dick and Jane was a charming little book that took a somewhat poignant look at the grownup Dick and Jane characters, peppering the story with pithy little Yiddish words and phrases. Yiddish With George and Laura, on the other hand, just seems mean spirited, like school children poking fun at the weird kid in class. The book has some entertaining moments, but overall, it lacked the fun tone that made the authors' earlier book such a joy to read.

[Joe Marley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Can one man be a shmegegge and a macher at the same time? George W Bush can. This book combines two things that amuse me: Yiddish words and making fun of conservatives. This book gave me new ways to express my feelings about both:
I find George W's antics to be completely chalushisdick!
What are we going to do with this farschlugginer Supreme Court?
This year's congress is gornisht helfn!
Fox News? I need that like I need a loch in kop!

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

We got this at the LA Times Book Fair from the Skirball Center and laughed our way through it on the spot and then again at home. Come visit us. It is good bedside reading. It does lose its shine after a few reads, but I guess that is true of most books in this vein - the gift shop impulse purchase sort of thing.

[Jini · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd forgotten I had this book. I came across it while I was dusting the bookshelf. It's written in the Dick and Jane style with Yiddish thrown in for good measure. It even comes with a handy dictionary at the back for those goyim unfamiliar with the terms. As an Honorary Jew, I didn't need it. Much. Hee hee!

[Janie Cakes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informational, I learned that George bush "is a big shmegegge and "an ex-shikker. I also learned that a mandate is not "when two faygelahs go to the movies," it has to do something with politics. If you'd like to know what in the hell I just said to you, that means that somebody needs to read this book because apparently you're lacking in the Yiddish department.

[Shacoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is not what I expected. First of all I know the title has Yiddish in it, but I did not expect that the book would actually be teaching me Yiddish words and phrases, but that's what it does. Also I did not expect that the book would be incredibly leftist. Basically, the whole book is an insult to Republicans. It made me laugh because it was completely not what I expected.

[Claire S]

I need yiddish, and what better way to learn?

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

For an election year, it is a good laugh.

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seriously, derangedly, wryly funny - even though it's a bit Yiddishly imperfect.

[Foreign]

US: Terry Adams

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

A vaguely amusing children's book for adults

[Sara Goldenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, Good Heavens, this was funny!!!!