Kahn, Sharon 1934-

PERSONAL:

Born 1934, in Birmingham, AL; married a rabbi; children: three. Education: Vassar College; University of Arizona Law School.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Austin, TX. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Scribner, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

CAREER:

Writer, attorney, and arbitrator.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Agatha Award nomination.

WRITINGS:

Kacy and the Space Shuttle Secret: A Space Adventure for Young Readers, illustrated by Mark Mitchell, Eakin Press (Austin, TX), 1996.

(With Ruthe Weingarten) Brave Black Women: From Slavery to the Space Shuttle, University of Texas Press (Austin, TX), 1997.

"RUBY, THE RABBI'S WIFE" MYSTERY SERIES

Fax Me a Bagel, Scribner (New York, NY), 1998.

Never Nosh a Matzo Ball, Scribner (New York, NY), 2000.

Don't Cry for Me, Hot Pastrami, Scribner (New York, NY), 2001.

Hold the Cream Cheese, Kill the Lox, Scribner (New York, NY), 2002.

Which Big Giver Stole the Chopped Liver?, Scribner (New York, NY), 2004.

Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Choir, Scribner (New York, NY), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

Sharon Kahn started writing in the mid- 1990s. She is best known for her mysteries featuring a Jewish congregation in a small town in Texas and her heroine Ruby, widow of the late rabbi and computer expert extraordinaire. Her home state has become the setting for her popular mystery novels. Kahn has also published a children's book, Kacy and the Space Shuttle Secret: A Space Adventure for Young Readers, which features a pre-teen's attempts to foil a plot against the space program.

Kahn, herself the wife of a rabbi, has achieved mass popularity with her mysteries featuring Ruby, the rabbi's wife. Ruby Rothman first appears in Fax Me a Bagel. She lives in Eternal, Texas, the widow of Stu, the rabbi of a thriving congregation who has been killed by a hit-and-run driver. Ruby loves the bagels that her friend Milt sells in his shop, and is considering becoming his partner in the bagel business. When a woman from her late husband's temple drops dead at Milt's feet, the victim of a poisoned bagel, Ruby sets to work proving Milt's innocence. She eventually links the woman's death to her own husband's tragic end and determines that both victims had been murdered as part of a lengthy family feud in the bagel business. Along the way, she squabbles with the victim's sister over the choice of a new rabbi and dodges attempts on her own life. Kahn's writing mixes suspense with comic relief, and educates the reader on the subtleties of rabbi selection and the history of the bagel union in New York.

Ruby makes her second appearance in Never Nosh a Matzo Ball. Ruby is now running a bagel bakery and a software consulting business while the new rabbi pursues her. The outrageous owner of the town's only gym enlists her help with a temple fundraiser, selling frozen, reduced-fat matzo balls. A fitness trainer is found dead with a thawed matzo ball in his pocket, and Ruby steps in to help the police investigate the crime. She grows increasingly suspicious of the gym, and goes through several harrowing experiences (including being drugged and locked in a walk-in refrigerator), before uncovering a plot of murder and illegal drug smuggling. She keeps her sense of humor throughout. A Publishers Weekly contributor called the book "chicken soup for the funny bone, a bit overdone but hearty all the same."

In 2001, Kahn published her third "Ruby" book, Don't Cry for Me, Hot Pastrami. In this novel, Ruby finds herself on a Caribbean cruise with many members of her temple. Once again, she is faced with solving murders and mysteries with the help of her computer skills. She also faces her first romantic interest since her husband's death. The reviewer for Publishers Weekly wrote that "a fast-paced mystery, a cast of quirky characters … make this a delightful addition to the series."

In 2002, Kahn released her fourth "Ruby" book, Hold the Cream Cheese, Kill the Lox. In this installment of Ruby's adventures, the professional Bagel maker and amateur detective investigates the murder of Herman Guenther, a specialist in providing gourmet lox for bar mitzvahs and other events. In the process, Ruby finds herself saddled with helping to take care of the overly active Lester and Larry, the cousins whose bar mitzvah Guenther was going to help cater. Barbara Bibel, writing in Booklist, noted that those "who enjoy the antics of small-town life will be amused."

Which Big Giver Stole the Chopped Liver? features Ruby trying to solve the murder of an unknown man who is found in a bed of ice at the Temple Rita during a fund-raising event to help finance temple's renovation. This time Ruby is helped in the case by Police Lieutenant Paul Lundy, thus opening some time for Ruby to deal with her boyfriend and her new rambunctious kitten. "Readers will laugh their way from the opening fake sushi roll to the final recipe for chopped liver with tofu," wrote a Publishers Weekly contributor. Rex E. Klett, writing in Bookist, called the book "charming."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, August, 1998, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Fax Me a Bagel, p. 1975; July, 2001, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Don't Cry for Me, Hot Pastrami, p. 1987; August, 2002, Barbara Bibel, review of Hold the Cream Cheese, Kill the Lox, p. 1931.

Kirkus Reviews, July 15, 2002, review of Hold the Cream Cheese, Kill the Lox, p. 996; July 1, 2004, review of Which Big Giver Stole the Chopped Liver?, p. 606.

Library Journal, August, 1998, Rex E. Klett, review of Fax Me a Bagel, p. 138; March 1, 2000, Rex E. Klett, review of Never Nosh a Matzo Ball, p. 127; September 1, 2001, Rex E. Klett, review of Don't Cry for Me, Hot Pastrami, p. 238; August, 2004, Rex E. Klett, review of Which Big Giver Stole the Chopped Liver?, p. 60.

Publishers Weekly, July 13, 1998, review of Fax Me a Bagel, p. 65; February 28, 2000, review of Never Nosh a Matzo Ball, p. 65; July 2, 2001, review of Don't Cry for Me, Hot Pastrami, p. 55; July 19, 2004, review of Which Big Giver Stole the Chopped Liver?, p. 147.

School Library Journal, April, 1996, Anne Connor, review of Kacy and the Space Shuttle Secret: A Space Adventure for Young Readers, p. 136.

ONLINE

Best Reviews,http:// thebestreviews.com/ (May 9, 2006), Harriet Klausner, reviews of Hold the Cream Cheese, Kill the Lox, and Don't Cry for Me, Hot Pastrami.

Sharon Kahn Home Page, http:// www.sharonkahn.com/ (May 9, 2006).

Stop You're Killing Me,http://www.stopyourekillingme.com/ (May 9, 2006), "Sharon Kahn."