Random Reads offers Shofar readers only two selections this time, yet both document compelling stories of notable Jews who shaped history. We recommend both with high marks.

The Women Of Rothschild: Untold Story of the World’s Most Famous Dynasty

In this book, Natalie Livingstone reveals the role of women in shaping the legacy of the famous Rothschild dynasty, synonymous with wealth and power. The writer follows the women from the dawn of the 19^th century to the early years of the 21^st. As Jews in a Christian society and women in a deeply patriarchal family, they were outsiders. Excluded from the family bank, they forged their own distinct dynasty and became influential hostesses and diplomats, choreographing electoral campaigns, advising prime ministers, advocating for social reform, and trading on the stock exchange.

A State At Any Cost: The Life Of David Ben-Gurion

In this definitive biography, Israel’s leading journalist-historian Tom Segev cites previously unreleased archival material to give an original account of David Ben-Gurion, the first prime minister of the modern state of Israel. The result is a full and startling portrait of a man who sought a state “at any cost” — at times through risk-taking, violence and unpredictability, and at other times through compromise, moderation and reason. Segev’s Ben-Gurion is neither saint nor villain, but certainly one of the historically great leaders in modern Jewish history.

On Jan. 27, a Palestinian gunman murdered at least seven Israeli civilians outside a synagogue in Neve Yaakov, an Israeli settlement in occupied East Jerusalem.

According to police, at around 8:13 p.m., the gunman arrived at the synagogue by car and waited until Shabbat prayers had ended. Reportedly, he first shot an elderly woman and a motorcyclist before opening fire at people outside the Ataret Avraham synagogue. The gunman fled the scene toward the Palestinian neighborhood of Beit Hanina, where he was confronted by police officers and shot dead after opening fire on them while attempting to flee on foot. The attacker has been identified as Khairi Alqam, a 21-year-old resident of East Jerusalem.

Seven people were murdered in the attack, five men and two women, ranging in age from 20 to 70. At least three other people were wounded.

The shooting took place on International Holocaust Remembrance Day. It was the deadliest Palestinian attack since the Jerusalem yeshiva attack in 2008. Palestinian and Israeli sources stated that about 50 people have been arrested since the attack, mostly members of the perpetrator’s family.

The father of the attacker expressed joy for his son’s actions and said that he was as happy as he was at his son’s wedding. Dozens of Palestinians congregated in impromptu gatherings across the Gaza Strip to celebrate the attack. Similar celebrations, including fireworks, sweets, gunfire and car honking, were reported in West Bank cities.

Many nations and international organizations issued statements of condemnation, including the 15 members of the U.N. Security Council.

Jaime Tran, a man with a history of making antisemitic comments, was charged with federal hate crimes in connection with the shootings of two Jewish men as they were leaving services at synagogues in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood of Los Angeles. The shootings took place on the mornings of Feb. 15 and 16. Both victims survived. The shooter was arrested near Palm Springs, about 125 miles from the sites.

Earlier this month, police charged a 26-year-old man with firebombing a synagogue in Bloomfield, NJ. In November, two men were charged in New York with multiple felony counts, including criminal possession of a weapon and making a terrorist threat in what the authorities said was “a developing threat to the Jewish community.” Also in November, an 18-year-old man from Middlesex County, NJ, was arrested and charged with threatening to attack a synagogue and Jews.

“Antisemitism is tragically on the rise across our city and our nation,” said Mayor Karen Bass of Los Angeles, who added that eradicating hate crimes was “a chief component” of her agenda.

Billionaire cosmetics magnate Ronald S. Lauder has reached an agreement with the descendants of Irene Beran regarding Gustav Klimt’s famous 1910 canvas “The Black Feather Hat.” Lauder has agreed to restitute the painting, which has resided in his collection for half a century, to the Beran family and then to repurchase it from them, Artforum International said. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Beran, the owner of the painting, fled Europe in 1943, fearing Nazi persecution. The whereabouts of the painting were unknown until it was included in an exhibition in Stuttgart Germany, a show organized by Austrian art dealer Friedrich Welz, a former member of the Nazi Party. Lauder bought the painting in 1979, and continued to exhibit it at New York’s Neue Gallery, which he owns.

Lauder, who is president of the World Jewish Congress, said in a statement: “…while our joint research leaves gaps, I have long championed the importance of restitution…I felt it was of utmost importance to arrive at a just and fair solution that recognizes the family’s history with this painting.”

An expressionist masterpiece by Edvard Munch, which a Jewish art expert was forced to sell shortly after Hitler came to power in the 1930s, will be auctioned in London. It is expected to sell for $15-to-$25 million.

The auction of “Dance on the Beach” is the result of an agreement between the heirs of Prof. Curt Glaser, the art dealer, and those of Norwegian shipowner Thomas Olsen, who acquired the painting at a sale in Oslo in 1934 and hid it from the Nazis in a forest barn.

The art was commissioned by Jewish impresario Max Reinhardt as a 12-panel work, which was later divided into component parts. It is the only part of the original in private hands. Nine of the pieces are held in the collection of Berlin’s National Gallery.

Over the past decade, restitution cases involving forced sales as opposed to looting by the Nazis have been recognized by the courts, legitimizing the validity of claims by Jewish heirs.

Archaeologists with the Israel Antiquities Authority found a gold bead crafted in Mesopotamian style while excavating a Roman structure in Jerusalem. The tiny bead was found in pristine condition in dirt removed from the Roman building, from about 1,600 years ago.

Made of pure gold, the bead was crafted by affixing tiny golden spheres together to shape a tiny ring. It might have been worn as a singular piece, like a pendant, but more likely formed part of a larger piece, said Dr. Amir Golani, the IAA’s ancient jewelry expert.

painting.” The metallurgical technique underlying the bead emerged in Mesopotamia around 4,500 years ago, the IAA said, and its manufacture speaks to great skill. “Understanding the materials and their properties is required, as well as control over the heat to solder the tiny balls together to create a tiny ring while preventing overheating which could melt the gold,” Dr. Golani said.