1st Koret book awards named

*History. Miriam Bodian for "Hebrews of the Portuguese Nation: Conversos and Community in Early Modern Amsterdam."

*Thought and philosophy. Professor Arnold Eisen of Stanford University for "Rethinking Modern Judaism: Ritual, Commandment, Community."

The awards were created in cooperation with the New York-based National Foundation for Jewish Culture.

Books were nominated by publishers. Three-judge panels for each category chose the winners, which were confirmed by a nine-member advisory board of academics and writers.