JEWBILLY

Jewbilly is a funny, touching, coming-of-age story about the importance of family, spirituality, and how friendships can bloom in the most unlikely of places. Get ready to experience culture clash like never before as a young Jewish boy's life is uprooted and relocated to the South – sparking a journey of growth, adaptation, and dramatic change. 

PRAISE FOR JEWBILLY:

"An idiosyncratic story of personal growth and friendship, JEWBILLY is refreshingly offbeat, with unexpected profundity. Historical novels of adolescence are common, but this one has substance others often lack." - KIRKUS REVIEWS

"The humor runs through this book like a river. Thought-provoking, enlightening and sassy, it deserves a spot in any young adult collection; particularly in Jewish libraries." - D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

"An unapologetic and loud, historical YA, it's jam-packed with voicey humor and filled with twists and turns. It’ll be a refreshing read for kids looking for stories of honest 12 & 13 year olds - instead of the watered-down versions in their approved curriculum." - Independent Book Review

"A complex, heartwarming story of hard-won camaraderie and love. Rosenberg's novel is a read-the-last-page-and-start-again-right-away kind of book." - RECOMMENDED by the US Review of Books

"Truly an amazingly unique, and heartwarming coming-of-age story. The best book I've read in a long time. Seriously!" - Cara Lockwood, USA Today bestselling author and editor

"Hilarious, excellently-drawn characters. Rick Rosenberg is a talented writer who's created one of the most enjoyable books I've read. I highly recommend it." - Readers' Favorite

Yosef Bamberger is a typical, 11-year-old Jewish kid in 1973 Brooklyn; scrawny, naive, and excited for his upcoming Bar Mitzvah. He lives with his extended family, and a not-so-extended penis that won't grow no matter what Yosef does. Still, he's mostly a happy kid. Until the night of his 12th birthday party. When his father arrives late, Yosef's world is shaken beyond comprehension; a real oy gevalt on the Richter scale. Apparently, his Dad just got a new job – in a small town in Tennessee. They're moving. Like a gefilte fish out of water, Yosef now has to not only navigate a completely different world, but he also has to find a friend. At least one. And he does. A Southern Baptist, highly-freckled, miscreant named Calvin Macafee. With the help of his new companion, Yosef manages to balance two religions, while becoming involved in drugs, alcohol, sex, and a murder investigation - all in just under two years.

At the ripe age of 9, Rick moved from the big city to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, aka the "Secret City." It was around then he had his first experience with the literary world, publishing a short story in Grit Magazine. Somehow surviving a fraught, pimple-filled adolescence, he attended the University of Tennessee/Knoxville where he earned a Bachelors in Communications. Since then, he's lived in multiple cities and has managed to win accolades for copywriting and screenwriting. He has one child adopted from Vietnam. Jewbilly is his first novel.