My birth mother is Jewish, but I was adopted by a Christian family. I would really love to connect with the religion and culture.

When I was adopted, my mom asked my parents to make sure I was well-versed in a few things. I was taught very early on about the “big” holidays, the Messiah, and catalysts for the diaspora. I probably know the most about the Holocaust (my birth grandfather’s family lived in Germany and escaped it by about three years, so he taught me a lot when I was a tween/teenager) and a smidge about folklore. But my parents didn’t know much else, and I desperately want to know more.

Could anyone recommend some books that would be good to start with, as far as understanding how to read religious texts, and follow traditions? My exposure is limited to a few synagogue visits with my birth mom as a kid, weddings, and the bar mitzvah for my little brother. Even those seemed kind of Christian-ized, because my birth mom and her husband converted to Messianic Judaism when I was a kid. I might as well be a gentile!

I’ve already visited the sidebar but wanted to know if anyone had particular texts, films, blogs, etc they’d like to recommend.

Thanks in advance!