Artscroll: Contemporary Questions in Halachah and Hashkafah by Rabbi Yosef Viener

Offers readers practical, relevant, and unusually readable answers to over a hundred inquiries from all over the world. My son wants to make a snowman on Shabbos; is he allowed to do so? My elevator went into free fall until the emergency brakes kicked in - do I have to "bentch gomel"? What is the best way to prepare for a possible Shabbos birth? I can go to a Torah shiur or a wedding - which has precedence? Do we believe in "luck" - and what do we mean when we wish someone "mazal tov"? Using such questions as a starting point for discussion, the author includes many general guidelines on each topic, as well as penetrating insights into the mitzvah. Here is a wealth of both information and inspiration; thus, a question of whether a teenage boy should wear tzitzis while exercising ends with a poignant discussion of the commandment, drawing upon the experiences of people as diverse as King David and the Vilna Gaon. Extensive footnotes make this work an invaluable resource for scholars, and a detailed index allows the reader to quickly find the answers to questions that come up every day.