Judaism: A Short Introduction by Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok
This book is an attempt to explain the Jewish religion as it is practised today. The first six chapters are concerned with theology. They discuss the nature of God, the role of the Jewish people in God's creation, the divisions within Judaism, the place of the land of Israel in God's scheme, the future hope and the relationship between Judaism and the other great religions of the world. The last seven chapters describe Jewish practice. They discuss Jewish worship, the festivals, the fast days, the ceremonies of childhood and youth, the ceremonies of adulthood, the laws of everyday living and the Jewish way of death and mourning.