Anne Dublin, a librarian from Toronto, Canada, wrote a piece titled, "Gifts--Treasures or Mouldy Oldiest?" She recalls her dismay when, after entering her library one Monday morning, she almost tripped over a huge pile of boxes filled with books. (An anonymous donor had left them and made a fast getaway.)

She wrote, "Would the boxes be filled with treasures, or would I have to sift through mouldy, smelly books that were only fit for the dustbin?...Perhaps I would find a veritable gem, a shining jewel, an item that would make my library perfect at last. I've been working my way through the books and, I must admit, enjoying every minute of it. The old dust jackets are simple things, from a simpler time like a worn-out, comfortable sweater."

Ms. Dublin adds, "I open the books and read dedications written on the occasion of special birthdays or anniversaries, from people giving the gift of reading to friends or family they loved. I read such inscriptions as, 'For Sam's sake, For Edna's sake, For God's sake, Please keep well.'" In Yiddish, we say, "zayt gezunt!"

I'm the kind of reader who wants to get every nuance of meaning from a book and ponders on the reason behind the dedication.

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach says that there are no rules for dedicating a book. [It may be dedicated to] "whomever you want, usually a source of inspiration." "The Surfing Rabbi," Nachum Shifren, agrees: "There are no laws [for dedicating books] that I know of. My dedication seems somewhat standard though."

Shown below are some touching, humorous, and thought-provoking dedications from Jewish and non-Jewish authors:

"To the memory of those who taught me Yiddishkeit, Shirley and Louis Winston, and for those who preceded them. To the long and happy life of Yiddishkeit for my son, Simon, and for my nephew, Justus, and for those who shall follow them."
Marnie Winston-Macauley
"A Little Joy, A Little Oy - Jewish Wit and Wisdom"

"To all the grandmothers who don't entirely approve of the way their grandchildren are being brought up. AND TO My eight grandchildren--Noah, Elana, Maireda, Shira, Allen, Diana, Colin, and Alida--who made this book possible and who probably won't even like it."
Sylvia S. Seaman
"How to Be a Jewish Grandmother"

"For Rob and Sophie, mainly because I love them more than I can say, but also because someday they ill be paying for my Social Security."
Dave Barry
"Dave Barry Hits Below the Beltway"

"I would like to dedicate this book to the memory of my entire family who perished during the Holocaust, thankful that they had the opportunity of instilling in me the much cherished values of the Jewish tradition before they were lost to me. I am especially grateful to my father who 'learned' with me, even though I was not a boy, and to my grandmother who, before her deportation, wrote in every letter to me that I should study and trust in God..."
Dr. Ruth Westheimer
"Heavenly Sex - Sexuality in the Jewish Tradition"

"To Deanna Number Four [wife] should have been Number One. Thanks, honey."
Jack Dempsey
"Jack Dempsey" with Barbara Plattelli Dempsey

"Dedicated to my father, Bernard, who for seventeen years never opened his mouth in the house and to my mother, Minnie, who for seventeen years hasn't known that my father has not opened his mouth in the house."
Alan King
"Help! I'm A Prisoner In A Chinese Bakery"

"To my mother, Louise Bernheimer, who gave me not only life but the good sense to enjoy it."
Kathryn Bernheimer
"The 50 Greatest Jewish Movies - A Critic's Ranking of the Very Best"

"This book is dedicated to the memory of Mama, who gave birth to me on the Lower East Side of New York, and to Yonkel, who introduced me to the whole world."
Molly Picon
"Molly! An Autobiography" by Molly Picon with Jean Bergantini Grillo

"In memory of Sadie Youngman, my beloved partner for fifty-six years. To my kids, Gary and Marilyn, who never saw me enough, I guess, while I was out hustling."
Henny Youngman
"Take My Life, Please!" with Neal Karien

"To our children: Jennifer, Freddy, and Ian, who--like their parents--were fortunate enough to grow up Jewish in America."
Myrna Katz Frommer and Harvey Frommer
"Growing Up Jewish in America - An Oral History"

"To my parents--'I love the old folks at home!'"
Michael Alexander
"Jazz Age Jews"

"For Emma and Camille, with all my love. May your lives unfold exactly as you plan. And if not--just get your bearings and take a different turn. It works."
Sharon Kahn
"Never Nosh A Matzo Ball"

"To the Memory of My Brother, David, Brother of All Mankind and a Mench for All Time."
Sam Levenson
"You Don't Have to Be in Who's Who to Know What's What"

"Special thanks to my parents David and Bernice Apisdorf. I, for one, am glad you didn't skip parenthood on the way to grandparenthood."
Shimon Apisdorf
"Judaism in a Nutshell: Holidays - An Easy-to-Use Guide For People Who Are Long on Curiosity, But Short on Time"

Note:
In Shimon Apisdorf's book, "The survival Kit Family Haggadah," he acknowledged 43 people, PMA, NBN, and "my favorite inner child, Sammy Matzahbrei."

"For Bonnie, the tov of my mazel"
Joel Samberg
"The Jewish Book of Lists"

"This book is for the buoyant Jewish people, unwilling to bow before adversity, unquenchable in their passion for life, unafraid to laugh at the world, and even themselves."
Albert Vorspan
"My Rabbi Doesn't Make House Calls"

"For Kathy, who said yes."
Tom Carey
"The Marriage Dictionary"

"I always wanted to write a book my mom would be proud of. Well, Mom, here it is (sort of)."
James Marshall Crotty
"How to Talk American - A Guide to Our Native Tongues"

"This book is dedicated to the good name of every mother everywhere. (And you thought the grand manner was dead.)
"Mrs. Portnoy's Retort - A mother strikes back"
As told to David Martin and Harvey Jacobs

"...Above all I thank my son, Rob, who's still willing to go out with me and help me test the world's most powerful head-mounted gun even though, unlike his dad, he's really gotten too mature for that kind of thing; and my wife, who makes me endlessly happy and takes me to basketball games."
Dave Barry
Dave Barry is From Mars and Venus"

"L'chaim--To life!"
Martin Marcus
"The Power of Yiddish Thinking"

"To my wonderful patents Betty and Kal, and also wonderful sister, Carolyn, who when they heard I wanted to become a comedian, thought it was a great idea."
Jerry Seinfeld
"SeinLanguage"

"Dedicated to all those who have kept the Jewish people alive for four thousand years by telling stories."
Canfield, Hansen & Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins
"Chicken Soup for The Jewish Soul - Stories to open the Heart and Rekindle the Spirit"

"To Anne Meara, my wife, comedy partner and mother of Amy and Ben, who loves me still, for reasons known only to her..."
Jerry Stiller
"Married To Laughter - A Love Story Featuring Anne Meara"

"This book is for my brother John and in memory of Joel Oppenheimer who heard the cries of 'Yonkel! Yonkel! Yonel!' in the summer bleachers of 1947."
Pete Hamill
"Snow In August"

This book is dedicated to my parents, Helene Markens and Sampson D. Cooper, who now dwell in ealms beyond this reality but nonetheless frequently visit me in dreams and dozens of other ways to kvetch and kvell about how I am living my life."
Rabbi David A. Cooper
"God Is A Verb - Kabbal and the practice of mystical Judaism"

To Lucy Barfield
My dear Lucy,
I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some uppershelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand a word you say, but I shall still be your affectionate Godfather."
C. S. Lewis
"The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe"

Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe's new book, "Are Yentas, Kibitzers, & Tummlers Weapons of Mass Instruction? Yiddish Trivia" is dedicated to her mother, Jeanette Gottlieb.