“Translations of the Yiddish model-letter books that allowed Jewish families scattered by migration to write business, romantic, and emotional family letters at the turn of the 20th century.”

“Such factors as a relatively high incidence of literacy and a widely scattered geographical distribution made Yiddish speakers prone to writing letters and, generally, committing to paper aspects of their experience. This book is a magic window into daily lives of people residing in various corners of the globe but sharing a common language and culture, epistolary culture in particular.”
 — Gennady Estraikh, New York University

“The vibrant world of the brivenshtelers, indispensible Yiddish guides to the art of letter writing for geographically mobile Jews, comes to life in this riveting volume. For the first time, model letters for every occasion—from desperate requests for money to advice about romance and jealousy, from excuses about late rents to accusations about having a Christmas tree—are accessible in rich detail and variety. Through the window of these long-forgotten manuals, unique for their paradoxical 'fluent banality,' this new history of Jewish emotions, sentiments, social propriety, and everyday life in Eastern Europe and America blazes a fresh, pioneering trail.”
 — ChaeRan Y. Freeze, author of Everyday Jewish Life in Imperial Russia

“...[C]overs a neglected aspect of Jewish popular culture and deserves a wide readership. For all serious readers of Yiddish and immigrant Jewish culture and customs.”
 — Library Journal

“Reproductions of brivnshtelers form the core of the book and comprise the majority of the text, providing a ground-level window into a largely obscured past.”
 — Publishers Weekly

“A great deal of history is covered in this book as the authors discuss the social and economic stresses that Jews faced on both sides of the ocean throughout this time period. Each section begins with an explanation of a particular issue, but the real delight of the book is in reading the letters themselves. . . . Highly Recommended.”
 — AJL Reviews

“Dear Mendl, Dear Reyzl delivers more than one would expect because it goes beyond a linguistic study of letter-writing manuals and explicates their genre and social function. It is appropriate for students of Jewish life generally and Yiddishists of any age.”
 — Slavic Review

“...These manuals provide us with a lens to better understand Jewish life at the time, as they mirror many of the challenges and concerns that Russian and American Jews were experiencing, and as they resonate with the emotional registers found in Yiddish literature and letters more generally.”
 — Jewish Book Council